“My very first instrument was the piano. I learned to play it at the age of five. I grew up in the Pico-Union area of Los Angeles (by MacArthur Park) and it was quite ghetto. I wanted to play music, so my mom took me to this recreation center where they were offering free music lessons to low income families in the neighborhood. Hilariously, for the first month of lessons, they had us all “playing” on an 11×17 sheet of paper with piano keys printed on it. It was an initial step to see if the kids were serious about playing piano. I stuck with it, learning chords on my paper piano for the first month, after which the instructors brought in little Casio synths to play on.
I learned that month to be patient and understand what music is without having the ability to even listen to any music at all.”

David “Papi” Fimbres warms his experimental offerings with Latin American & West African rhythms, utilizing both organic & electronic sounds, at once ancient & futuristic. Like a playful sonic shaman, the multi-instrumentalist drummer creates a rhythmically transportive psychedelic experience, punctuated with strategic vocalizations—from soothing songs to primal, percussive cries. This is a man who describes having out-of-body experiences while playing drums live. No one who has been to a paper/upper/cuts show would be surprised. Fimbres—known for his wild, engaging performances—palpably opens a portal through which he leads the listener like a trans-dimensional Pied Piper, complete with mesmerizing flute songs.

Exposed to a diverse array of sounds growing up—from traditional Latin Cumbia to the Talking Heads—Fimbres draws on an abundance of influences, creating a music all his own. As of now, Papi Fimbres is involved with over 22 bands in Portland, Oregon, still expanding the endless limits of music and bringing new light & thought into every aspect of sound.