Claude vonStroke

Dubai | 11/03/2010

Claude VonStroke on Branding, Beards & Bloggers

“I just wanted to say ‘you can’t have everything, you motherfuckers.’ You might get it in three weeks time but you will not get it today on promo, bitches.” The ‘it’ US tech-house hero and Dirty Bird/ Mothership label chief Claude Vonstroke is referring to is ’Big n Round’, the vinyl only B-side he’s added to hotly tipped new single Vocal Chords. “I did that just as a little tiny ‘fuck you’ to the bloggers,” he chuckles, “Go buy a vinyl record for once in your life.”

Teasing bloggers aside (he admit he expects few, if any of them to buy the record), the man who could have been called ‘Pedro de la Fedro’ (his real name’s Barclay Crenshaw) is surprisingly serious about his business strategy, certainly when it relates to issues concerning his image - and beard. “This is something I wish more people would pay attention to,” he complains, “not my beard, but branding. Unfortunately part of the industry and part of life is marketing yourself. You don’t only have to be the best; you have to also be the best at getting your message across to people. There are sick, sick (fantastic) producers who don’t understand this and they end up just floating around in the middle of the pack because they don’t understand this aspect of it,” he sighs.

“Branding yourself, whether it is with a beard or your weird tracks or your DJ name or your logo; all of it matters,” he stresses, “And being cool to all the fans matters. Basically, EVERYTHING matters, not just your 3 minute blend or your insane remix of Carl Craig.” Despite sounding somewhat critical of his less focused peers, he’s also extremely popular with all sorts of DJs, as evidenced by the long list of ecstastic supporters on the Dirty Bird site (www.dirtybirdrecords.com) for new album Bird Brain. He’s also considerably more humble than his outspokenness might suggest, reflecting the long hard slog that saw him flirting with bankruptcy before exploding onto the global dance stage in 2006.

Growing up in Detroit, the teenage Barclay occupied himself learning to play cello, before picking on an obsession for hip hop at boarding school in Connecticut. Returning to Detroit briefly, he next discovered drum and bass before moving back east to Rochester New York where several years later he graduated from film school. Leaving the very next day for sunny California, he soon found himself near the bottom of LA’s status heap, working as a tour guide at Paramount Pictures, a job he admits he enjoyed. “Being a tour guide is actually one of the best jobs at that place. Everyone on the tour thinks you are some kind of film guru even though you have no memory of the training after two weeks,” he recalls, “All the other jobs are a serious grind unless you are in charge and even those people are so stressed out it is incredible. The best jobs at a movie studio are at the very bottom (no pressure but fun being there) and the very top (tons of pressure but TONS of perks). All the middle jobs will make you want to kill yourself,” he laughs.

Happy at the bottom, he refrained from telling coworkers he’d one day be a superstar DJ, he insists. “Ha!!! No. I never even knew I would be doing this when I lived in LA. I wasn’t even really into house music yet,” he laughs. “Also, I’m just not that kind of person. I would never brag about anything that I hadn’t done yet. And even then I tend to keep my mouth shut. When I hear other DJs and producers bragging to their friends about all their awesome remix work and how many copies their records sell I just think they are insecure losers.”

In the meantime, he conceived and starting working on his own documentary Intellect, a how-to guide to becoming a star DJ. Involving interviewing the likes of Derrick Carter and Carl Craig, the documentary allowed him to both learn the ropes of the music business while making the industry wide connections that helped him eventually experience ‘overnight’ success with his first ever house tune Deep Throat. Released in 2006, the track went on to sell over 11,000 vinyl copies, paving the way for his debut album Beware Of the Bird and even bigger breakthrough hit Who's Afraid of Detroit? Talking to Infusion though, his chief focus is on promoting new album Bird Brain, a ‘a little less goofy’ record, he asserts, that’s been ‘slightly easier’ to make.

When asked if he suffers from writer’s block or lacks creative inspiration or if his music is a ‘happy accident’, he remains upbeat. “The old three questions inside one question trick! I usually start with a clear idea of what will happen when I start a track and then that never happens. In that way you could say there are a lot of happy accidents. I do have creative blocks sure, but not in my head, they’re more about getting what is inside my head to sound right on the dang (dammed) machines.” Claude’s ability to stay positive is something of a characteristic; after leaving college with huge personal debts and under huge pressure to get a ‘straight job’ things could have been uncertain for the fledgling artist. “After that I felt the pressure, for sure, but I was always a scrapper. I found jobs doing everything you can image. I never starved. Also, I never ever even thought of the safe route as an option.”

Such circumstances would be enough to deter even the most determined of minds, but he attributes much of his inner-confidence to his early years and family life. “I think my parents made me feel loved and special when I was a kid. I always thought I would do something interesting and fun with my life. I never doubted it. I think it really matters a lot if you love and support your kids. It’s a really big deal down the road. As a side note I would say during the making of my documentary there was a moment when I thought I would go completely bankrupt but I didn’t care by that point. I would have sold my furniture and the clothes off my back to finish it. I was truly obsessed and that it was it takes to break through. Obsession with your goal.”

In fact, it was these influences that have set the pace for his lifestyle now, and he has no problem in turning down gigs in order to be there for his family. “I turn down more gigs than I accept. I wish I could explain it to promoters sometimes. They just don’t understand why I’m not free every single Friday Saturday and Sunday of the entire year. My kids actually need a father is why. My wife wants to see me sometimes as well. I think I’m playing the right amount now.”


www.myspace.com/claudevonstroke / www.dirtybirdrecords.com / www.infusion.ae