Ex-Simple Minds are a Scottish

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 New Wave

New Wave music

New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...

/rock

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 band, formed in 2009 by Derek Forbes

Derek Forbes

Derek Forbes is a Scottish bassist and sometime guitarist, best known for his work with Simple Minds .His departure from the band was due to stylistic musical differences with the rest of the band during the...

 and Brian McGee

Brian McGee (drummer)

Brian McGee is a Scottish drummer who played in different bands like Simple Minds and Endgames.He met future Simple Minds frontman Jim Kerr at Holyrood R.C...

, both former members of the New Wave bands Simple Minds

Simple Minds

Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...

 and Propaganda

Propaganda (band)

Propaganda is a German synthpop group, formed in 1982. They were one of the initial roster of acts signed to Trevor Horn's ZTT label, between 1984 and 1986, during which they released the critically acclaimed album A Secret Wish....

. The band features McGee's younger brother, singer Owen Paul

Owen Paul

Owen Paul , is a Scottish singer, best known in the UK for his 1986 #3 hit single, "My Favourite Waste of Time", a cover version of a song that was originally written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Marshall Crenshaw...

 on lead vocals.

Biography

After a highly successful career as two of the original members of one of the biggest Scottish bands, Simple Minds

Simple Minds

Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...

, ex-members Derek Forbes

Derek Forbes

Derek Forbes is a Scottish bassist and sometime guitarist, best known for his work with Simple Minds .His departure from the band was due to stylistic musical differences with the rest of the band during the...

 and Brian McGee

Brian McGee (drummer)

Brian McGee is a Scottish drummer who played in different bands like Simple Minds and Endgames.He met future Simple Minds frontman Jim Kerr at Holyrood R.C...

 formed the partnership they shared in the 1980s, this time under the name Ex-Simple Minds (also abbreviated to XSM). Throughout 2010 and 2011 the band have performed shows across the UK and in Europe, performing the classic hit songs of Simple Minds, as well as live covers. In September 2011 a concert was held in Manila

Metro Manila

Metropolitan Manila , the National Capital Region , or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines...

, Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

 together with English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 New Wave band China Crisis

China Crisis

China Crisis is an English pop/rock band. They were formed in 1979 in Kirkby, near Liverpool, Merseyside with a core of vocalist/keyboardist Gary Daly and guitarist Eddie Lundon...

.