As a musician, producer, and songwriter Gianluca Buccellati has worked with some of the best around. Nominated for a Grammy awarded an Ivor Novello, he’s a potent collaborator, someone who continually seeks out challenges.
His own project Bien Et Toi is where he places his most intimate thoughts. A daring, incredibly creative pop endeavour, new EP ‘London Safar II’ was prompted by spells in the titular city.
Out now, it features Paris Texas on fan favourite ‘So Long’, while the EP itself drips in refreshing ideas.
To coincide with the release, Bien Et Toi has picked out five songs that remind him of London.
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Someday – Weval
I remember a night out in London with some friends in 2020 right before the pandemic. As the night was coming to an end we ended up at a flat in Dalston where everyone lay on the (heated) floor and someone was playing songs. This one stuck out as it was a song I’d never come across. It wasn’t made in England but when I hear it I’m always brought back to that evening. This was a really cool time in my life.
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NSG – ‘OT Bop’
This song is quintessentially British to me. Lily Allen showed me this when we were doing sessions back in 2019.
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Defrank Professionals – ‘Afe Ate Yen Bio’
I make a conscious effort to listen to music that isn’t in English. I wound up listening to a lot of afro psychedelic music as a result. During this phase of my life I was spending a lot of time in London writing with Biig Piig, Easy Life and Arlo Parks. I found this song put me in such a good mood every morning.
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Bernache – ‘Your Name’
The early months of 2019 marked a big stint in England for me, as I was invited to produce an album for a band called TENDER. I was living in Hackney Wick in a tiny loft. This song was something I had on repeat for that whole time. It reminds me of winter there. I love the drums!
Mr. Sandman – Oppidan
Oppidan is so legendary – probably my favorite UK DJ at the moment. I love a lot of the dance music that comes from the UK and the sample in this song finally got cleared so they were able to distribute it. I was really happy to see this come out, it always puts a smile on my face and reminds me of the intricacies of British music.
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‘London Safar II’ is out now.
Photo Credit: Megan Anderson
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