Song You Need: Nosaj Thing and Jacques Greene’s moody collaboration

“Too Close” marks the start of the joint project between the two producers.

August 23, 2023
Song You Need: Nosaj Thing and Jacques Greene’s moody collaboration Nosaj Thing and Jacques Greene. Photo by Donovan Novotny  

The FADER’s “Songs You Need” are the tracks we can’t stop playing. Check back every day for new music and follow along on our Spotify playlist.

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If there’s one thing Nosaj Thing and Jacques Greene have in common, it’s their notoriety for creating hauntingly introspective — and often melancholic — music. Now, the two producers have teamed up for a collaborative, as-yet-unnamed EP and started its rollout with a new a track titled “Too Close” featuring Canadian singer Ouri.

“Too Close” is a breaks-loaded track that puts the spotlight on Ouri’s eager vocals, which continuously plead, “Don’t get too close.” Nosaj and Jacques’ production is simple yet effective, creating burning atmospheres that evoke the passionate push and pull of uncertain love. As the drums build throughout the track, so does the intensity of emotions. But whether the beat fizzling out is allegorical to the relationship or means the protagonist is finally letting their walls down is up to the listener.

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“In my mind, the context of this record is ‘what if a trip hop record was played at 45 [rpm]?,’” Jacques Greene said in a press statement regarding the song’s production. There’s a hazy moodiness and the breaks don’t really feel like the run-of-the-mill nu-breaks of Bandcamp.”

Nosaj Thing and Jacques Greene’s collaborative EP is set to arrive later this year. Until then, stream “Too Close” below.

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Song You Need: Nosaj Thing and Jacques Greene’s moody collaboration