Vulfpeck, a small-time funk band with a couple of retro-styled albums under its belt, recently released Sleepify, an album made up of nothing but silence. This isn’t a completely new concept: Anyone with a pompous theory streak will insist that it’s really the silence between the notes that matter—and congratulations if you’re already thinking of John Cage’s 4’33,” a composition performed by sitting there without playing.

OK, that’s cool. John Cage is a highly regarded artist and his 1953 composition 4’33” is a highly regarded work. In fact, there’s a fantastic exhibit at New York’s Museum of Modern Art dedicated to the creation and performance of 4’33”. It runs until June 22nd.

But I digress.

Vulfpeck’s latest album is a business experiment, not a musical one. The idea behind the project is for fans to stream the “songs” constantly, generating royalties for the band in their spare time. Vulfpeck plans to use the proceeds to go on tour. It’s an ingenious publicity stunt and, if you squint hard enough, a commentary on the way music is valued in the digital age.

Um, what? Is this art or is it theft?

At first blush, I immediately went to the latter. But then I thought, what if this music was more traditional. What if Vulfpeck did the traditional thing and pushed their fans to listen to their music via Spotify to help fund their tour. Nothing wrong with that, right? So if the music is composed of silence, does that cross some line?

Interesting.