Dirtybird Records is an independent

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

record label based in San Francisco, California. The label was founded in January 2005 by

Claude VonStroke Barclay Macbride Crenshaw (born July 7, 1971), who is known by the stage name Claude VonStroke, is an American house producer based in Los Angeles. He owns Dirtybird Records based in San Francisco. In July 2006 he released his debut album, ''Bew ...

(aka Barclay Crenshaw) and specializes in a brand of

house music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...

he describes as "tech funk." Dirtybird caters to

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

fans who are seeking something a little more laid back on the dance floor. The catalog is party music. Dirtybird won Underground Label of the Year at the

International Dance Music Awards The International Dance Music Awards or IDMAs is an annual awards ceremony held in Miami Beach, Florida, United States as a major part of the Winter Music Conference. The awards have been held every year since the conference's creation in 1985 ...

during

Winter Music Conference The Winter Music Conference (WMC) is a week-long electronic music conference, held every March in Miami Beach, Florida, United States since 1985. It is also known as the premiere platform for electronic dance music. The conference brings togethe ...

in 2013 (presented in 2014) and 2014 (presented in 2015).

History

got the idea to create a label in 2002 during the production of ''Intellect,'' an intensive study and documentary on

DJs A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile D ...

and producers in

and

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...

. He created the concept of the label in order to supply tracks for the DVD's

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

. Through the ''Intellect'' project, VonStroke met Christian Martin, who later introduced him to his younger brother Justin Martin. Justin would go on to contribute music to the soundtrack. The first artists to release music on Dirtybird were Claude VonStroke, Justin Martin, and Sammy D. In an interview, VonStroke details the beginnings of starting the label, ''"I did everything humanly possible. Based on what I'd learned making the documentary, I was able to skip a lot of pitfalls and save a lot of money. I worked directly with distributors and did a lot of the legwork. I even shipped bundles to something like 100 DJs with handwritten notes."'' VonStroke also credits his wife as being the one who helped execute the idea of the label both financially and tactically by giving him a one-year trial with a deadline to pull it off. The bird logo was derived from a drawing VonStroke used to make when he was a kid to make his little brother laugh but was changed to the lightning bolt cracked egg design in 2015. In 2013, VonStroke began picking a lowbrow surrealist every year to be an "artist in residence" to create release artwork for the label. Notable artists in residence have included Graham Carter, Raoul Deleo, and Dan May. The same year, opened offices in Los Angeles to expand the label's roster. The first release on Dirtybird was ''The Southern Draw'' EP by Justin Martin and Sammy D. The label celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2015 with a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

and the first annual Dirtybird Campout festival in California later that same year. In 2013, VonStroke opened offices in Los Angeles to help expand the label's roster. Claude VonStroke picks all the music and is well known for breaking new artists and frequently signs music by unknown producers. The current label manager is Deron Delgado. On October 20, 2022, Dirtybird was acquired by EMPIRE. Per the terms of the deal, EMPIRE now owns the entirety of the Dirtybird brand, including includes Dirtybird's back catalog and all future releases, minus Dirtybird's live events.

Notable artists

Albums

*''Beware of the Bird'' -

(August 5, 2006) *''Stars of Zoo'' - Catz n’ Dogz (November 11, 2008) *''Bird Brain'' -

(October 21, 2009) *''Escape From the Zoo'' - Catz n' Dogz (February 15, 2012) *''Ghettos & Gardens'' - Justin Martin (May 22, 2012) *''Urban Animal'' -

(September 24, 2013) *''Taylr Swft'' - Kill Frenzy (November 3, 2014) *''Hello Clouds'' - Justin Martin (April 20, 2016) *''Self Help'' - Walker & Royce (October 20, 2017) *Live in Detroit - Claude VonStroke (June 22, 2018) *''Mr. Good'' - Ardalan (November 1, 2019)

Compilations

*''Best of Mothership'' - Various Artists (March 3, 2007) *''Five Years of Dirtybird'' - Various Artists (March 31, 2010) *''BASS'' - Various Artists (January 12, 2011) *''Makeovers'' - Various Artists (July 27, 2011) *''Dirtybird HATCHED'' - Various Artists (January 10, 2012) *''DIRTYBIRD Players'' - Various Artists (February 27, 2013) *''dirtybird BBQ'' - Various Artists (February 25, 2014) *''The 7 Days of Dirtybird'' - Various Artists (December 16, 2014) *''Dirtybird 10'' - Various Artists (January 27, 2015) *''If You Find Yourself In A Large Room, Vol.'' - Various Artists (June 15, 2015) *''DIRTYBIRD BBQ: Grill$on's Revenge'' - Various Artists (July 25, 2015) *''The New Years Special'' - Various Artists (December 28, 2015) *''Dirtybird BBQ: Secret Sauce'' - Various Artists (June 14, 2016) *''Dirtybird Campout Compilation'' - Various Artists (September 30, 2016) *"The New Years Special, Vol. 2" - Various Artists (December 23, 2016) *"Dirtybird BBQ: Secret Ingredients" - Various Artists (May 19, 2017) *”Dirtybird BBQ: Filthy Flavor” - Various Artists (May 18, 2018)

References

External links

Dirtybird Records
{{Authority control Electronic dance music record labels American independent record labels Electronic music record labels Record labels established in 2005