Etudes Study Group is one of those acts that challenge the very idea of categorization—experimental doesn’t fully cover it, avant-garde barely touches it, and musical? Let’s just say the word starts feeling stretched when we talk about this trio. Jo Morrison, Ningrui Liu, and Felix X Tigersonic make up this London-based project, and what they do sits somewhere between performance art, guided meditation, and spontaneous ritual.

It’s weird, it’s fascinating, and it’s exactly the kind of thing that would make your friend glance at your Spotify queue and silently wonder if everything’s okay at home. Their recent collection includes three distinct pieces: “Get Some Ears,” “Beginning,” and “Slow Without Losing the Flow.” These recordings are pretty much live artifacts, capturing improvised performances guided by a set of instruction cards—Etudes—created by artist Sharon Gal. To call this a conventional album would undersell how fluid and ephemeral each session is. Nothing scripted, it’s pure presence channeled into sound and movement.

But let’s get specific. “Slow Without Losing the Flow” and “Get Some Ears” especially pull your attention into a space that goes far beyond simple listening. These tracks dive straight into a shamanic, almost ritualistic dimension. Think of this as sonic anthropology—something folklorists would chase after, something scholars might dissect, puzzled yet intrigued by how deeply this work resists being pinned down.

Vocals on these tracks go far beyond conventional singing; they’re vocalizations, chants, murmurs, whispers. Ningrui Liu, in particular, emerges as a kind of shamanic presence. Her performance carries a ceremonial, intentional quality. It becomes a ritual, bridging human experience with the natural and spiritual world around her. Animals, forests, rivers: all those natural spirits seem to pass through the textures and layers created by her voice. It feels intimate yet distant, primitive yet sophisticated, somewhere between ancestral traditions and avant-garde theater.

Jo Morrison’s contribution complements this vibe perfectly—she injects moments of tension, vulnerability, and unexpected warmth. Her live presence offers emotional anchors, grounding the performance before it drifts into abstraction. And then there’s Felix X Tigersonic, whose electronic bass focuses less on rhythm or melody and more on atmosphere. Felix builds the sonic space, layering textures and electronic pulses to shape a loose structure that holds everything together and channels the surrounding chaos.

Now, the question of accessibility inevitably pops up. Would the average listener casually spin Etudes Study Group while cooking dinner or driving around town? Probably not. This is the kind of music that demands attention, patience, and open-mindedness. You’re signing up for an experience rather than a soundtrack. In fact, the word “listening” doesn’t quite capture the right idea here—this feels closer to participation.

“Beginning,” the most subtle of the three pieces, builds slowly, and demands that listeners lean in close. You’re actively working through the uncertainty, letting go of expectations. The piece teeters on the edge of silence, periodically disrupted by bursts of sound that are as surprising as they are compelling. It’s minimalism taken to extremes, where emptiness and silence become instruments in themselves.

If you’re someone who regularly dips your toes into experimental or ritualistic musical waters, Etudes Study Group will feel fresh, innovative, and engaging. It might even become something you return to regularly, exploring the nuances hidden within each improvisational session. But for those with a more casual approach to music, this could seem alienating, abstract to the point of confusion. It’s the auditory equivalent of modern performance art: intriguing, but not necessarily enjoyable in a conventional sense.

Yet, there’s undeniably something magnetic about the trio’s fearless dedication to spontaneity. They make vulnerability a central feature—uncertainty becomes a strength, and this openness can be deeply rewarding if you’re willing to meet the artists halfway.

Etudes Study Group is like stepping into a modern-day ritual ceremony—one performed not around fires in remote tundras, but in intimate theaters or basement galleries in London. It’s artistic expression that defies clear boundaries, embraces improvisation as an act of devotion, and offers audiences something genuinely rare: an experience completely unconcerned with conventional structure or commercial appeal.

They’re pushing boundaries in ways that few groups dare, embracing the unknown, and bringing listeners along for a ride that’s equally bewildering and captivating. If you’re up for the challenge, Etudes Study Group offers something truly original. But fair warning: after experiencing it, the way you define music might just shift a little further into the unknown.

I might be slightly overwhelmed here, but honestly, I’ve always had a thing for this kind of experimental madness. Hearing something like this in 2025 hits on a whole different level of wild, yet somehow it draws me in deeper. Count me in as fully intrigued. That’s chaos in the best possible way.

This goes way past left-field—it’s off the damn map, and I love that. It hits with an intensity that regular releases simply don’t offer. I’m absolutely staying alert for any hint of a live show, because seeing these three do this in person—watching them build these strange ceremonies in real time—feels like the kind of thing that would burn itself into memory. One of those rare experiences that sticks with you, sharp and vivid, long after it’s over. Whatever it takes, I want to be in the room when it happens.

*This review was made possible by SubmitHub