Italian producer and multi-instrumentalist Bonnot (real name Walter Buonanno) is widely known for his collaborations with legends like General Levy, M1 (Dead Prez), and the iconic Italian hip hop group Assalti Frontali. His work oscillates between hip hop, reggae, and jungle, and for years he’s held a strong presence on the European scene – featured on BBC Radio 1 as well as in overseas radios like HOT 97, Eminem’s Shade 45 Radio and IRIE FM.
With his new single “Falcon”, set for release on May 30, Bonnot takes an unexpected turn – heading straight for the dancefloor. The melodic, high-energy track echoes the sound of contemporary drum & bass artists like Sub Focus, Culture Shock, or Dimension. It marks a noticeable shift from his previous sound, yet retains the depth and signature quality of his production.
In a recent conversation, Bonnot confirmed he is currently focusing on a newer, more modern sound aimed at reaching a broader audience. Tracks like Falcon, he says, serve as a bridge between his legacy work and new listeners.
Alongside the release comes a new chapter in his career – Bonnot is now officially represented by the agency DNBTV, which welcomes him to its roster.
“We’re excited to have such a seasoned and open-minded producer join our family. Falcon is exactly the kind of track that can bring different generations and styles together,” says Jan Markes of DNBTV.
In the last few years I’ve fallen in love both with the new style of arrangements and with the meticulous engineering knowledge behind the sound of this sub-genre. The skills that some producers reached are insane, sonically speaking, so I’m fascinated by the challenge to reach that level of sound engineering.
I tried to find a signature melody and sound, something not seen every day… So I picked up that flute part which looks very interesting to me, both for the remarkable melody and for that quiet sound,which is pretty unusual in a drum & bass “lead instrument”. At the same time I wanted to keep the song in that high dancefloor standard, in order to keep it playable for djs in a club or in a Festival and danceable for the dnb massive.
Yes sure, I love Blooom, Basstripper, Kanine (who just supported my recent single “Koomalé” in his Summer Essentials of this year) , Arcando, Nia Archives, Andromedik.
Of course, the UK’s massive knows and sings every single song! In Italy (and in some other Central European countries) there is a smaller knowledge of the entire culture (compared to the UK), or maybe sometimes some people follow only a specific subgenre and they don’t know about the rest. In the UK drum’n’bass is so popular of course, so the people usually deal with so many different styles.
At the moment I’m cooking singles one by one, monthly. I’m very happy with the results and I’m finding step by step my own signature sound. This is my most important goal for now. Of course at a certain point, after the summer, I will consider collecting some of my best tunes in a full album, adding unreleased songs too. Also, I’m on tour, I did 20 shows in these first months of the year and I’m going to play in some cool festivals this summer.
Falcon is the start of a new chapter – fresh, danceable, yet true to his artistic identity. If you were expecting another classic jungle anthem, you’ll get more than that: you’ll get a glimpse of the future, in Bonnot’s unique form.
Falcon will be available on all major digital platforms starting May 30.
