Jeun has had a busy first half of 2026. He released a single called “Wink,” followed by his debut album out via Transcendental Revolution, This is a Genuine Expression of Love and All the Ways I Don’t Understand It, and wrapped up the rollout by touring the South in support of the album, making his way from Kentucky to Florida then back to his town of Nashville, Tennessee. As winter turned to spring, he continued the momentum with a move to NYC. But before the year rolled out all that was in store, Jeun, artist moniker of Zachary Hamilton, began with “Wink,” his lead single into this debut album era, and, as later revealed, the seventh track on his album.
If his album title didn’t already make certified alternative music listeners think Jeun may be pulling inspiration from tried and trues The 1975, tapped in stans may find “Wink” reflective of the Notes on a Conditional Form era but with a more classic shoegaze sound overall. The chords and reverb effects connect back to Cocteau Twins’ discography, rather than the more modern rock and hardcore-adjacent shoegaze sound buoyed up by TikTok trends. “Wink” is mellow yet wandering, establishing a minute-long intro that soon blends into a muted background as Hamilton’s vocals wrap the listener around the first verse and into the song’s main melodic hook and vocal chorus. The bridge, short and to the point, gives just enough variety to the listener’s ears before leading back into the chorus a final time. The song has a quick wrap up after this, and sits just under three-and-a-half minutes long. Not necessarily a rarity, but something to be appreciated in an era of bite-sized tracks and diminishing attention spans. Overall, a lovely, dreamy moment, right on the edge of expansive.
- Joslin Keim
