2nd release with the mighty Mr Mountain all the way from Japan <3 If you dig 80 and DnB, you might like this one! Big Love :)

Mountain ft. MC Fava - Here U Go [Pilot Recordings UKF/ 07-23]

[Project] Wireframe /// Track 3

The importance of blocking out the noise.

Listen / Download: https://pilot.ffm.to/paper-skies-wireframe
Visuals by Paper Skies | Released with Pilot Records.

I had accepted I hit rock bottom. My streaming numbers were lower than they had been in 6 years and I was sitting in my friend's apartment in LA on my first solo vacation. This trip had no specific purpose other than to see my friends, but I learned real quick why LA has such a hustle mindset. I got an opportunity to receive massive funding to reopen my label, was chatting with big names in the scene and every moment felt like chasing an opportunity. The trip was amazing, but it brought me right back to the mindset I was trying to avoid when I wrote Freefalling.

The skill I learned on this trip was to block out the noise. Everyone has something to say about how you should live your life and push your career, but sometimes the best ideas and exploration of self comes when nobody is around. I used this opportunity to write this track whenever I was alone on this trip and discover the importance of isolation.

/// Paper Skies
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user_paperskies
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3jtjn7NRlzHNIqdPvRf2WA?si=D37oDNIfT4qTjY69-wFzlg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paperskiesmusic/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaperSkies_Sc
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PaperSkies
Discord: https://discordapp.com/invite/a6FS2cx

[Project] Wireframe

Louder Than Noise

Listen / Download

Louder Than Noise (Ft. flowanastasia)

[Project] Wireframe /// Track 1

This is where it all started.

Listen / Download: https://pilot.ffm.to/paper-skies-wireframe
Visuals by Paper Skies | Released with Pilot Records.

In 2019 I realized everything I was doing was pointless.

Today's musicians are placed in a stupidly toxic position. If they aren’t feeding the algorithm, constantly growing and doing 10 jobs at once, all of their hard work is swept away by the endless waves of new music and competition. I remember feeling like I was working harder than anybody, but I treated myself like shit for not hitting the same numbers as other musicians which led to toxic work habits. Maybe if I made MORE music or BETTER sound design I could get the numbers they had? Maybe I need to make more short form content? Maybe I need to change my sound? The doubts just kept rolling in and I was killing myself by doing what I THOUGHT I should be doing.

The truth is, we ask ourselves the wrong questions and create this toxic position for ourselves. I didn’t NEED the numbers to be happy. Yeah I have to make money to live, but it didn’t NEED to be from music for me to finally BE happy. As long as I could sustain myself and MAKE music that would make me pretty happy, right? What the fuck was the point in doing this to myself?

I think it was 2020 when I finally started asking the right questions; “Why am I doing this? What are my true goals? Why does ANY of what I create matter?” These were my answers…

1) What I wanted to do was create ANYTHING that made me feel proud; music, art and all. 
2) My goals were to have a sustainable income and ensure I had time to create and be social. 
3) What I was making hardly mattered in the world and especially to myself.

I didn’t like the answer I gave myself on the last question, so I took a step back from being a musician, and I decided I wanted to become an Artist. I wanted my shit to matter, at bare minimum, to myself. I’ll say in highsight, this is the best choice I ever made and I am happy.

This is the foundation of who I was as a musician and my journey to becoming what I self define as an "Artist". I'm excited to hear what you think about the music, how you interpret it and I want to thank you so much for being with me in this moment.

/// Paper Skies
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user_paperskies
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3jtjn7NRlzHNIqdPvRf2WA?si=D37oDNIfT4qTjY69-wFzlg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paperskiesmusic/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaperSkies_Sc
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PaperSkies
Discord: https://discordapp.com/invite/a6FS2cx

Wireframe

Wireframe (Intro)

[Project] Wireframe /// FULL MIX

This project is the foundation of who I was as a musician and my journey to becoming what I self define as an "Artist"

Listen / Download: https://pilot.ffm.to/paper-skies-wireframe
Visuals by Paper Skies | Released with Pilot Records.

/// Paper Skies
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user_paperskies
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3jtjn7NRlzHNIqdPvRf2WA?si=D37oDNIfT4qTjY69-wFzlg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paperskiesmusic/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaperSkies_Sc
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PaperSkies
Discord: https://discordapp.com/invite/a6FS2cx

Wireframe [FULL MIX]

[Project] Wireframe /// FULL MIX

[Project] Wireframe /// Track 5

Every time I hear this record I just think about how lucky I am to have such amazing people around me.

Listen / Download: https://pilot.ffm.to/paper-skies-wireframe
Visuals by Paper Skies | Released with Pilot Records.

We're now half way through the album. The sense of independence I felt at this point and the freedom from that self inflicted curse of chasing the numbers was beautiful. Despite this, I realized that this story only looked into issues I was facing at the moment, but I wanted to dive deeper and look more into my past.

This started by looking back at every single video I had on my phone since 2014 when I started making music. Honestly one of the best experiences I ever put myself through and I got to revisit so many memories and friends. Each recording you hear here is from my phone and I tried my best to highlight my journey and people who are crucial to my life in this moment. Each field recording and ambience you hear across this entire album is taken from the videos on my phone at different times and locations. Each moment of this album is so important to me.

/// Paper Skies
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user_paperskies
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3jtjn7NRlzHNIqdPvRf2WA?si=D37oDNIfT4qTjY69-wFzlg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paperskiesmusic/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaperSkies_Sc
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PaperSkies
Discord: https://discordapp.com/invite/a6FS2cx

Interlude

[Project] Wireframe /// Track 7

You know nothing more than you did before listening.

Listen / Download: https://pilot.ffm.to/paper-skies-wireframe
Visuals by Paper Skies | Released with Pilot Records.

This is a skill I have been preaching to everyone I meet. Listen and Learn. It sounds so simple in concept, but doing it successfully is actually really hard. Ask yourself, the random dude you met at the club, on discord, at school, wherever- how much do you remember from chatting with them? Did that conversation actually matter to you? 

To listen means to hear someone from their thoughts and not your own. A lot of times, we subconsiously "listen" to people with our own bias and you will learn much more if you can dig deep and remove that bias. To learn means to actually remember what that person said and study it in your mind. Come to your own conclusions after removing that bias and watch how much you can take away from even a basic conversation. 

This song is called "Listen / Learn" because I've never made drum and bass before this. I can't tell you how many thousands of tracks I've listened to now in the genre and that was all purposeful. I still don't think I "did it right", but I definitely did it my way and I took inspiration from more sources than I can name on paper. It wasn't just about listening to the tunes, it was about studying them and asking what they were trying to accomplish. Not what I heard, but what did the artist who made it hear.

/// Paper Skies
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user_paperskies
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3jtjn7NRlzHNIqdPvRf2WA?si=D37oDNIfT4qTjY69-wFzlg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paperskiesmusic/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PaperSkies_Sc
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PaperSkies
Discord: https://discordapp.com/invite/a6FS2cx

Listen / Learn

World traveling and Award winning South-German Drum & Bass MC, Vocalist and DJ. On a mission to promote his debut LP on the ´LIFETRACKS´ World Tour these months. Regularly on the mic for various brands like Liquicity, Sun and Bass, Blackout etc.

New tracks tagged #Pilot Records