“Quitter’s Raga” was his entry ticket: even before Derwin Panda, born in 1980 in Peckham and living in Chelmsford, released album, this song attracted attention on its journey through vast digital worlds. This track, an extremely infectious mix of looping samples, breakbeats and Indian folklore, turned Gold Panda, as he calls himself, into more than a rumour: he was contracted by the Ghostly International label on which his celebrated album “Lucky Shiner” was released in 2010. The record reveals his colourful past, he lived in japan, and studied at the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University of London, and he doesn’t give a damn about borders in his musical experiments. His latest album, which was released in May on City Slang is inspired by a journey through Japan in 2014. The title, as Gold Panda revealed, is thanks to a farewell wish by a Japanese taxi driver: “Good Luck and Do Your Best”. Gold Panda actually did do his best. The record enraptures through its melancholic catchiness, and like its predecessors brings soundscapes from outside Europe into life and creates a very urban feel of freedom and openness. And it is also danceable.
