Claude VonStroke has spent more than two decades shaping electronic music from multiple angles. As the founder of Dirtybird, he helped introduce artists such as FISHER, Eats Everything, Catz ‘n Dogz, and Nikki Nair to wider audiences while building one of dance music’s most influential independent communities.
Photo credit: Claude VonStroke – Official
After selling the company in 2022, he stepped away from the machine he had spent years creating and returned to the foundations that first drew him to music.
Now, with his new album, ‘Wrong Number’, VonStroke embraces uncertainty, imperfection, and creative freedom. Moving away from festival stages and peak-time formulas, the record reflects a more personal approach centered on smaller clubs, family collaborations, and the willingness to make mistakes.
In this conversation, Claude VonStroke discusses the philosophy behind ‘Wrong Number’, the value of intuition, stepping away from expectations, and why doing everything “wrong” might be exactly what he needs.
EG: Hi Claude, welcome back to EG. As always, great to have you here. How have you been, and where are you speaking to us from today?
Claude VonStroke: I’m great, thanks. I’m here at home in LA cutting videos, answering questions, and doing general album stuff.
EG: Your new record, ‘Wrong Number’, feels less like a typical album rollout and more like a deliberate rejection of where dance music culture currently is. At what point did you realize you wanted to take this path instead of following expectations?
Claude VonStroke: It’s called ‘Wrong Number’ because I should be collecting giant paychecks and playing tech house bangers at huge festivals, but I’m over it. So instead I’m doing the dumbest thing ever—trying to move culture again, playing smaller shows, being myself, and doing everything wrong. I didn’t sell Dirtybird so I could keep doing exactly the same thing. I did it to reset my life and go back to the beginning of why I love music.
EG: Sonically, ‘Wrong Number’ feels unconcerned with trends or peak-time formulas. Were you consciously trying to unlearn certain instincts after years at the center of such a massive scene?
Claude VonStroke: I don’t even listen to other DJs for the most part anymore. I don’t care what they are doing or what the hot trend is. I’m not trying to collab with the biggest main-stage acts. I’m doing it all backwards. I post what I want to post. It’s the absolute wrong business plan, and I’m loving it.
EG: One of the most fascinating aspects of the project is how personal it became, especially with your son Jasper and daughter Ella contributing vocals throughout the album. How did having family so deeply embedded in the creative process change the energy of the record?
Claude VonStroke: Both of my kids are accomplished musicians, so I just bring them in and see how they want to help. Jasper is now tour managing me for the summer, so he is really seeing what it’s like on a higher level. He is even opening some of the shows, and he’s seeing that it takes a ton of work, and it’s not just easy peasy to do it well.
EG: There’s something very human and imperfect about this album, almost like it embraces mistakes instead of polishing them away. Has your relationship with imperfection changed over the years?
Claude VonStroke: I grew up playing the piano and the cello, but I was always horrible at music theory, so I’ve forgotten everything. I don’t know what is supposed to go where or any of that. I just noodle until it feels right to me. Sometimes the chords are not right, or the notes are not mathematically correct, but they still sound right because I am doing it as a human. Mistakes can be corrected if you listen to the vibe and not the theoretical math. That is the metaphor of the whole album.
“I’m doing the dumbest thing ever-trying to move culture again, playing smaller shows, being myself, and doing everything wrong”
EG: You’ve described this new chapter as ‘The Life of Leisure’, centered around smaller rooms, more intention, and a stripped-back approach. What were you missing from the larger scale of dance music culture?
Claude VonStroke: I think people are waiting for me to say everyone sucks and fuck the mainstream. I’m never going to do that. Yes, I prefer personal shows with less pyrotechnics and video walls. Yes, I prefer dancing to posting. Yes, I prefer going to a club with friends or making friends instead of walling myself off with a bunch of VIPs. These are the things I like. Other people like cheese, and that’s OK. I like that they like it. That means they won’t be at my shows.
EG: A lot of artists talk about “going back underground,” but in your case, it genuinely seems tied to risk. Turning down larger stages and bigger paydays for intimate spaces isn’t the obvious move. Why was that important to you?
Claude VonStroke: Like I said, terrible business decision, great heart decision. It’s wrong if you look at it just by the finances. But I don’t look at life like that anymore.
EG: Beyond music, you’ve hinted at wanting to move deeper into film, art, and fashion. Does this moment feel less like a reinvention and more like opening doors that were always there?
Claude VonStroke: Yeah, I see a world where maybe I’m not even doing traditional shows anymore. But I’m still developing all these ideas. I have a lot of them. Top secret chef shit!
EG: Your career helped launch artists like FISHER, John Summit, Eats Everything, and Catz ‘n Dogz, while shaping an entire community around Dirtybird. Looking at the current landscape, what do you think electronic music has gained-and what has it lost?
Claude VonStroke: I do not know how to be the #1 DJ in the universe, but it sure does seem like almost all of the #1 universers came through my shop. Yes, maybe I’m always two years too early on literally everything, but I’m OK with that. I’m that annoying music guy who was listening to the Beastie Boys’ ‘Cookie Puss’ three years before their first album.
It’s a blessing and a curse to be way too early all the time. Electronic music is just a wave in the ocean. Fifty DJs you think are hot right now will be gone in four years. And I will still be here haunting your ass with my sick tracks! My sound is eternal.
“Mistakes can be correct if you listen to the vibe and not the theoretical math. That is the metaphor of the whole album”
EG: Finally, after more than twenty years in electronic music, what still gives you that feeling of discovery?
Claude VonStroke: Hitting the right groove makes me laugh. And if I laugh in the studio, I’m having fun. If I’m having fun, then look out-it’s going to be good. Everything is an accident. Nothing is ever, “Let’s make this exact beat from my brain.” I just create and create and create, and then it hits.
EG: Thank you so much for your time, Claude. We wish you all the best with ‘Wrong Number’ and this next chapter ahead. Take care!
Claude VonStroke: Thank you. I loved these questions. Very fun to answer them. Thanks.
Claude VonStroke’s ‘Wrong Number’ is out now on Wrong Number Records. Stream and download your copy here.
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