*50 copies limited edition* Big tip! Repeat Until True works to build a musical ontology. This is a collection of recordings made by Zach Cooper, Odeya Nini, and Maria Chávez. It’s an exercise in composition via rule-based improvisation using contrabass, the human voice, and turntables. Taken one step further, the contrabass and voice versions were committed to vinyl and used as score and material for Chávez’s unique abstract turntablism style.

Taken together, these tracks don’t play through like an album—and that’s exactly why it’s an interesting listen. The simple strictures of the improvisation rules become apparent as you listen to this record. You’re taken through multiple cycles on each instrument as the bound nature of the compositions spurs high engagement and awareness with what’s going on. In playing similar, repetitive figures the artists shine a light on how different the timbre of each expression is, and center the human body as the most sophisticated tool for music creation to date.

In a landscape where doom-saying presides, we’re aware of how industry models, comfortable livings for artists, and aesthetics as we know it are in flux, or even chaos. But what usually gets left out of this is the relative peril of us listeners. In truly dumb times, Repeat Until True challenges how we listen to music—and why. Engaging with these recordings offers a passage out of the doldrums of being a customer, even being a mere listener. They offer a clear path to the active experience of being a witness.