Sometimes we find ourselves having a hard time not rambling on or reciting Shiha’s long list of achievements whenever we have to mention him (Epic 101 co-founder, releases on multi-national labels, etc.) Fortunately, it isn't necessary to repeat the list, as Mahmoud Shiha is at that point in his career where his name has become its own accolade.
Starting out 13 years ago and hardly slowing down since, Shiha tried his hand at an array of sounds ranging from trance, progressive house and leading up to the current brand of deep house that he masterfully commands in the latest installment of his Clubbing Purposes series.
The 17th episode comes in the form of a flawlessly mixed, dark two-hour mix that’s hardly devoid of lengthy, light-spirited and fun interjections. The mix starts out on a rather expected note: your commonplace deep house tracks from Oliver Koletzki and MUUI. But don’t let the intro fool you, the vibe quickly emerges into much groovier territory with cuts from Amberoom, Alles Andrs and Paxton Fettels remix of Uffe’s "Jump Into."
Shiha pulls the mix out of the sun drenched day party and back into the dark industrial club it started out in, using tracks from Henry Saiz, Sasha and his own latest track "Ballad of the Sirens." Soon however, the dark, driving and synth heavy approach is ditched for a bouncier aesthetic represented by tracks and remixes from Basti Grub, Barber & James Trystan.
Mahmoud cleverly speeds up Bicep’s downtempo gem "Metro" into a deep house banger, after which he takes the whole set into chill-mode with tracks from Jonathan Kaspar, Gleb Rubens and our very own Misty. For an ethereal finish he rounded up the mix with Eins Tiefer’s rework of Flowers and Sea Creatures’ "Colour The Rain" and Modd’s "Motoko." Overall it is a creative, well mixed and varied set that can fit as a soundtrack whether you are clubbing in the park or, well, the club.
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