Fated

Knowing Jason Chung's previous output, and aware of his predilection for soundtracking chemically compromised mind states, it'd be justifiable to glance at the title of the beat producer's third album and misread it as Faded. Released two years after his previous album, Fated is indeed in line with the remainder of the Nosaj Thing discography, though it's a little blearier and a little more downcast, with an increase in torpid tempos. "Let You" even begins with funereal keyboard tones that resemble those of Angelo Badalamenti's Twin Peaks work, but the track slightly quickens and develops into a snarl of low-profile bass tones, an array of percussive accents, and chopped-up vocal samples. Chung snares another clutch of guest collaborators. This time, there's Chance the Rapper and the Social Experiment on "Cold Stares," a grim depiction of detoxification. Whoarei, whose visibility was increased by a track sampled for Kendrick Lamar's "u," appears on "Don't Mind Me," a hesitant, smeared highlight. Apart from the glassy melody in "Sci" and a hint of pep in "Realize," there's no respite from the dark, shadowy sketches. The album flows easier than Drift and Home, yet it somehow comes off as comparatively fragmentary, with 15 tracks playing out in just over half an hour. ~ Andy Kellman