Exploited Ghetto Records label boss Shir Khan is a Berlin born and bred music lover who doesn’t involve himself with the Berlin “techno tribe”. Instead Shir Khan has set up a label that surrounds itself in the sometimes glorious, sometimes overtly strange nature of EBM; (electronic body music) Disco, Electro, Electro Funk, straight up Funk and Cosmic House. “Shir Khan” has been described as “dance music hybridism at its most glorious, baffling and technicolour .... Khan is an expert at making square pegs fit in round holes”.

On 'Exploited' Shir Khan has merged the best artists from his own label “Exploited Ghetto” with some fine examples of a range of differing genres. The overall effect is a hybrid, dance, funk, nu-jazz, disco, electro, compilation CD mix that takes the listener through so many varied styles, templates, and musical moments that it is truly hard to define or review.

Much like the hyped “2manyDJ” compilations, Shir Khan takes the listener on an emotional journey, a veritable roller coaster ride through all that is new and “in-vogue”. He marries the dirty grime step of Planet Mu’s “Milanese” with the acid jazz of “Adam Sky” through to the Gypsy Disco of “Malente & Dex”.

For one to review such a wide ranging mix is truly difficult as the CD goes of in so many different directions it is not funny. What can be said though is that the strongest songs are from the “Exploited” record label and this is a testament to “Shir Khans” own musical taste and spectrum. CD Two is a release of all the “Exploited” tracks in single, unmolested form and this is what I what I will review.

The opening track is by a serial “Exploited” artist – “Lorenz Rhode” with “A Little Something” and is unashamedly 80’s inspired “Disco-Boogie” with its synth arpeggiation and delicate synth/lead lines that rise to a natural crescendo.

Next up is another serial offender from “Exploited” – “Siriusmo” with “Femusle” and he takes the CD further into EBM/Electro Disco mode with some reverb automation and vocoder stabs to boot. The production work on “Femusle” is superb with some lovely snaky percussion elements that twist and mesh themselves beautifully into “Femusle”. “Seriusmo” is featured again on Track Three with “Testliebe” which is another Electro Disco/EBM gem, this time slightly more dance orientated, with a rising synth pad sound that builds the track into a nice moody melody and a stuttered arpegiatted lead sound. Nice flavour indeed.

The CD delves further into Electro Disco with tracks from “Jan Driver” and “Adam Sky” before opening up on track six with a quite sublime piece of music from Lorenz Rhode; “Like A Player”, which features again an 80’s inspired arpegiatted rhythmic lead along with some lovely off beat percussion that filters up into a lovely peak where the track delves deeper into pumping dancefloor disco.

The next piece that distinguished itself on this CD is Moss Eisley Cantina; “**” the “Fredski and Tomas Barfod Remix”. Here, lovely organic and natural drums mesh themselves with yet another arpegiatted lead line and a reversed snare, before opening up with some bird call like lead synths that use some delay automation to build and build with the tracks natural crescendo.

The CD moves into some Electro Gypsy music next (I cannot describe it any other way) with tracks from Molente & Dex with “Gypsy Kings” and “Minimows”, “Bollyhouse” the “SIS” remix which is heavily “World Music” influenced.

Another stand out track comes in at track twelve with DJ Chernobyl & Praga with “Balanca” where rhythmic elements are built from beat boxers while a Spanish rap is layered over the top in a salsa influenced Grime/Hip Hop track.

From reading this you are probably starting to get a picture of just how diverse this album is. It really is a massive white board of many differing ideas and styles of party music.

Track 13 Malente & Dex’s feat “Bonde do Role; “Bangkok”, takes the album into a slighter dirtier street party disco feel, if that makes any sense at all? With lines like “pussy pop makes me fly” you may start to get the idea. “Bangkok” also features a thai singing vocal sample that is chopped up and effected to startling effect when set against the street rhythms and sultry rhyming.

Minimows; “Bollyhouse” (Original) is up next, a minimal house roller where there is gated swirling percussion set against a nicely structured beat and some a sublimely automated pitched bass work, pretty melodramatic stuff indeed.

Moving on swifty as both CDs on 'Exploited' do is RQM’s; “Miss Pacman” with a vey abley chopped up vocal sample set to a more house/electro house beat with more than a hint of minimal influence. There is also a very nicely broken up synth section set against vocals like “she lives express, loves in excess” that makes "Miss Pacman” a deceptively sexy minimal house tune.

The CD continues through with another track from “Siriusmo”, this time a Modeselektor edit of “WOW” into a very very nice Grime/Hip Hop track from “Milanese” feat “RQM”.

The CD closes with another Lorenz Rhode track “Antidote” which is unashamedly Cosmic Disco, at, near its best, with a kick-snare-kick-snare 4/4 pattern, some nice auto-panned percussion elements and an almost speaking synth solo. “Antidote” closes out the CD nicely.

As you can tell there is a wealth of imagination, ingenuity and rooted excellence on this album, and this is just on the Single Version. CD 1 – the mix, takes in even more “out there” music that Shir Khan meshes unbelievably into a coherent whole. Shir Khan must be applauded, for both his ear, his vision and his dexterity. The 'Exploited' CD is true modern party music, that would get so many “what are we listening too?” moments, it wouldn’t even be funny. This is modern music, rooted in the depths of Berlin, that very very surprisingly has a great sense of humour.

Also, almost a footnote, the artwork is very “Arty” indeed, much in keeping with the ethos of the “Exploited” CD, and the label in general. Fair Play Shir Kahn I enjoyed that trip immensely, i hope you will too.


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