Simian Mobile Disco @ Onzieme, Osaka - March 5th, 2010

By Matt Lyne | Wednesday, Mar 3, 2010

gan-ban night feat. simian mobile disco @ onzieme

Saturday March 5th, 22:00-05:00

Door: ¥4,500 w/ one drink

Advance: ¥4,000 w/ one drink

Special guest DJs: Simian Mobile Disco, Gold Panda

Guest DJs: Dex Pistols

DJs: Isobe, Juse et al

www.simianmobiledisco.co.uk | www.iamgoldpanda.com | www.onzi-eme.com

I'll save the Onzieme-bashing this month for fear of becoming a bore, and get on with the spiel. March sees Japanese record shop/promotion team Gan-Ban return to Osaka, and this time they're bringing two UK acts with them - Simian Mobile Disco and Gold Panda.

Simian Mobile Disco are an English production and remix team of James Ford and Jas Shaw. In the late 90s, Ford and Shaw, along with Simon Lord and bass player Alex MacNaughten, formed the band Simian. Because of their love for electronic party music, the pair - although enjoying playing in a standard band format - also booked themselves DJ dates while touring with Simian. They'd finish a gig and then run off to play electro records to small, sweaty rooms full of people who often seemed to be having lots more fun than the audiences at their gigs. As a pisstake, they called themselves Simian Mobile Disco.

At around the same time, their record company decided to launch a competition for bedroom acts to remix the Simian track "Never Be Alone". A then-unknown French production duo called Justice entered and, famously, didn't win (Ford blames this on the dodgy stereo they had to listen to the entries on). Nevertheless, the remix was picked up by DJs like Erol Alkan and became something of a party anthem. It gave James and Jas the boost to strike out on their own as DJs, remixers and producers of thumping electronic party tunes. Simian Mobile Disco became a going concern.

Six years later and the pair have become two of the major players in the popular dance music scene, supporting acts such as Chemical Brothers on world tours, releasing two very successful albums (the second featuring guests including Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals, Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip, Beth Ditto of Gossip), as well as producing major mix compilations for series such as Bugged Out! and FabricLive. In addition to his work with Simian Mobile Disco, James Ford is a producer and has worked for bands such as the Arctic Monkeys, Peaches and Klaxons, and the pair have completed numerous remixes for artists including Bjork, The Rapture, Inner City and CSS.

Although SMD's set will definitely be an interesting and eclectic one, perhaps even more exciting is the appearance of fresh newcomer Gold Panda at this event. Gold Panda is a leftfield producer and remixer called Derwin who makes instrumental soundtracks to half-remembered, dreamy summer days. He scours charity shops for old records and VHS tapes to turn into distorted samples, and wraps them in minimal, warm beats. He is obsessed with Japan and its culture, and once sold his entire record collection to pay for a Japanese diploma at the School of Oriental and African Studies, before moving here for a year. He now lives back in the UK and last month made it into the top 15 artists for the BBC's Sound Of 2010 list.

In support are the popular Japanese Dex Pistols, who have recently stepped up their game even more, and are now seen playing a fine selection of UK Funky and bass blended with 80s and 90s Chicago house. No doubt a very "high-tension" event, although you might have to take out a second mortgage to buy a round of thimble-sized drinks. Oh and did I mention the...

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