On the Road (True Life/Play, 2003)

Not to be confused with the female roots singer Zema (or the beverage Zima, for that matter), Zeno (real name: Dwight Brown) is an up-and-coming artist who, although compared by many to Mr. Vegas, reminds me more of Wayne Wonder (I’d guess that Zeno would prefer to emulate Wonder’s career, given his recent mainstream success), as he is more of a singer than Mr. Vegas, whom I tend to label a DJ who happens to have a sing-songy flow. Only a couple of tracks on Zeno’s On the Road feature the up-tempo digital dancehall flavor for which Mr. Vegas is known – "Roll Up," "Dancing All Night," and "Maria" – the rest having a more laid-back, lovers rock sound (or at least in a less aggressive digital style) that is more akin to Wayne Wonder, Sanchez, and Tony Curtis (a similarly overlooked singer).  Zeno actually compares quite favorably to Wayne Wonder; not only are his vocals similarly nasal yet smooth, but he has a similar penchant for crafting fun, infectious hooks to keep things jumping.  There are several really excellent hit-worthy tunes here, headed by the lovers jams "Hurt Yourself," "Talk to Me," and the title cut, along with the soulful, pop-tinged "Forever," and a couple of harder-edged tunes, the surprisingly rootsy "Freedom" and "Chalwa," which brilliantly combines a ganja anthem with a message to all those fleeting friends and lovers out there, culminating in one of the more memorable choruses I’ve heard in a while: "My best friend is my spliff / My soulmate is my herb / My lady is my chalwa / And she never lets me down."  Smoking! Really, the only thing I can find fault with on this solid album is the two tracks that veer away from the reggae sound and into questionable territory: "Realize" is an acoustic guitar-led ballad featuring a Kenny G-like horn that risks being a bit to saccharine, although the bigger gamble has to be "Woman Want a Man," an admirable attempt at experimentation, layering dancehall vocals over heavy hard rock music. It ultimately falls flat unfortunately because these two styles just don’t mix that well (a notable exception being the Heavy Metal riddim of a few years ago, which succeeded in part because it only used small snippets of rock guitars). Mixing roots and hard rock has been a bit more successful historically – witness Bad Brains – but it’s still a risky proposition. Still, the other 11 tracks on On the Road hold their own, creating an enjoyable diversion that Wayne Wonder fans – new and old alike – just might want to check out.