Danielle De Picciotto, Phew

Paper Masks marks a striking new collaboration between visionary Mute labelmates Phew and Danielle de Picciotto. Developed quietly over nearly five years, what began as an experiment between friends gradually evolved into a full-length album. Phew composed and arranged all the music, weaving in de Picciotto’s voice and freely reshaping it to create something entirely new. Performed in both German and English, the result is an exploratory work that balances electronic minimalism with emotional immediacy.

Described by Pitchfork as “a Japanese underground legend”, Phew - former member of Osaka punk pioneers Aunt Sally - has forged a remarkable solo career, collaborating with Ryuichi Sakamoto, members of Can, and many others. In parallel, Danielle de Picciotto, an American-born interdisciplinary artist based in Berlin, co-founded the Berlin Love Parade and has performed internationally, working with Crime & the City Solution, Gudrun Gut, Space Cowboys, and her partner Alexander Hacke (Einstürzende Neubauten and frequent Phew collaborator) in hackedepicciotto.

Paper Masks stands as a mesmerising exchange between two singular voices in experimental music - an intimate dialogue across distance, language, and sound, and a compelling addition to both artists’ evolving legacies.