Formed in 2006 in Los Angeles, California, by vocalist Shana Halligan and producer Kiran Shahani, Bitter:Sweet are an American duo whose jazz-infused, seductive brand of trip-hop has been extensively featured in TV series and films. Despite living one block away from each other, the pair hadn’t crossed paths before Halligan responded to Shahani’s Craigslist ad looking for a singer. Heavily influenced by bossa-nova, easy listening, and lounge music, The Mating Game, their studio debut, was released in 2006 to great critical acclaim, drawing comparisons to Goldfrapp, Morcheeba, and Portishead. Built upon a sample of Serge Gainsbourg’s “Les Amours perdues,” the single “Bittersweet Faith” was featured on the film The Devil Wears Prada along with “Our Remains,” a lush drum ’n’ bass track also included in their full-length debut. The LP earned the duo an award at the 6th Annual Independent Music Awards for Best Pop/Rock Album and was quickly followed by The Remix Game (2007), a collection of remixes by top-tier producers such as AtJazz, Fort Knox, and Thievery Corporation. Follow-up album Drama saw the light of day in 2008 and spawned the single “The Bomb,” which was used as the theme song for American dramedy Lipstick Jungle. In subsequent years, Bitter:Sweet released The Break Up (2010) and Trilogy (The Best of) (2015), a compilation curated by Quango, the duo’s long-time label.
