Zona by Cheem Album Review

Reviewed by Luke Winnicki

It’s hard to say what this new Cheem single sounds like. Here’s my best shot: It’s a mash-up of G-Funk Nujabes and Cap’n Jazz with a Lil Peep feature. The drums have the crisp hit of A Day to Remember mixed with the laid-back swing of J Dilla, while the guitars shift back and forth from math-y twinkles to in-the-pocket RnB. The vocal call and response sounds squeaky clean and, might I add, grooves hard. I do kind of wish the song was longer; the addition of a contrasting bridge section or maybe a beat switch could really bring a song like this to the next level.

‘Zona’ calls on the Arizona iced tea themed aesthetic of vaporwave and Yung Lean while also inhabiting a noticeably contemporary party-emo niche. The verse from ISO fits surprisingly well into the Cheem team. Even with their myriad influences they manage to create something funky fresh, retro, and a breath of fresh air for their genre, whatever genre that is.

Cheem’s new album “CheemTV” comes out on 11/2. Pre-order here: https://cheem.bandcamp.com/

Slaps/5