In 1997 he met the electroacoustic composer Maurizio Martusciello and the two of them founded the Meta_xu duo. By now he had also begun to use vinyl records and turntables, influenced by the new plagiarist and radical DJ scene, though maintaining the classic “acousmatic” approach of concrete and electroacoustic music, as well as a great interest into digital dance music and sound design of 50s, 60s and 70s.

The first Paolini live performance took place as a disturbance of a Luther Blissett press conference in a small art gallery in Rome (Spring 1997). In the same year he played as a support for a Doctor Nerve gig, but his first actual concrete works are being composed for the Radio Prix competition held by Phonurgia Nova from Arles (France).

In May 1998 he took part in an improvisation meeting organised by the national radio RAI, playing with musicians such as Zu, Mike Kooper, Eugenio Colombo, Vittorino Curci, Luca Venitucci, Bernardino Penazzi, Fabrizio Spera, Elio Martusciello, Maurizio Martusciello, Pasquale Iannarella.

In the same year he played with Zu at Gubbio festival Octavia and at Ostia Antica festival, as well as in the theather-dance performance Risalta bene sul bianco by Sciatto collective (Rome, Teatro Vittoria, September 1998), and he also founded Økapi whose first work My Secret Love was commissioned and published on CD by Cervello a Sonagli.

At the same time Meta_xu took part in the radiodramas competition “L’Immagine Leggera” organised by Alessandro Aiello on September 1st 1998 in Palermo and in the electronic and contemporary music festival “Ondine” (Trento and Rovereto, October 1998). In 1999 he played in various international festivals: “Controindicazioni continuano” (Rome, Teatro Colosseo, March 1999); “Ring Ring b92 Around the World” (Rome, Forte Prenestino, May 1999, in co-operation with Radio B92 from Belgrade); “Awakening,” a performance of Meta-Zu (Meta_xu+Zu) with Sciatto Produzie at the “Biennale giovani artisti d’Europa e del Mediterraneo” (Rome, June 1999).

In June 1999 he also gave birth to the project “Quatermass Plunder Space Opera” with Rota Masada, premiered in collaboration with Pol G of Bruto Pop at Forte Prenestino (Rome) and then performed with Maurizio Martusciello at Venice Biennale. In December 1999 Meta_xu played at the Museum of Contemporary Furniture (Ravenna) and at the contemporary art gallery “Il Punto” (San Gimignano) together with visual artist Giulio Lacchini.

In the mean time Økapi also became official DJ of Torazine magazine (performances at “Florence Fringe Festival,” “Rome Future Gallery") In July 2000 Filippo Paolini and the America turntablist Christian Marclay played an experimental live performance during the program “Radio Tre Suite” broadcasted by Italian national radio RAI, while in August 2000 Meta_xu played at the “Off-ICMC” festival in Berlin.