Claude VonStroke is back to his famous studio funny business.
Out today on his newly minted label, the tech house legend’s fifth full-length album, Wrong Number, returns to the underground groove that laid the foundation for the genre’s mid-2010s explosion—only refined with two decades of wisdom.
From dialtones and spoken-word soundbites to jazzy horns, chopped-up grunts, and broken bassline beats, the 10-tracker wields sonic dissonance with the same charm that set the scene alight and became the blueprint for one of the genre’s most influential labels, VonStroke’s own Dirtybird Records, over 20 years ago.
Now, though, with Dirtybird sold and a blank slate ahead, it hits even closer to home. In an age of socially engineered collabs and algorithm-fueled crossovers, nearly all of the album’s vocals are performed by the VonStroke family. Claude’s son, Jasper Crenshaw, and daughter, Ella Crenshaw, appear on “Two Line Groove” and several other tracks. The phone conversation that opens the title track is a comedic chat between Claude and his wife, Aundy.
After a two-decade cycle from the underground to the mainstream and back again—Claude is still making his weird beats.
Listen to Claude VonStroke’s new album, Wrong Number, below.
Featured image courtesy: Claude VonStroke.