Much discussion surrounding data sonification for musical and artistic purposes focuses on seeming contradictions that arise from the ways in which this practice differs from that of data sonification as a scientific tool. Over the past 30 years, this debate has become a rabbit hole of questions and arguments regarding the nature of music/sound-art and data sonification, and of their relationships with one another. In the following article, the authors identify three areas/classifications of artistic sonification, using a “strata” metaphor with the hope of bringing clarity to this discussion, as well as enabling reflection on the nature of science-art collaborations using this approach.