The 80s aesthetic never fails to please. The flashy colors, sharp and punchy synths, and big hooks of pop music from the 1980s has held a firm grip even has time lurches further and further away from that era. “Time”, the latest single from Nottingham producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Magenta Dusk (or “Ross”), is a dreamy, laid-back example of how this style of music continues to thrive in the modern day. Formed during the lockdown in 2021, and influenced by musicians such as Electric Youth and Elliott Smith, as well as writers like Philip K. Dick, Ross’s sound features a synth-heavy base with twinkling guitars that recall the playing of guitarists like The Edge of U2 fame.
Interestingly, Magenta Dusk doesn’t necessarily have a single vocalist, instead featuring vocalists all across the world in its music to perhaps show a wider range of musical and sonic flexibility. The unknown singer in question realizes the track’s 80s ambitions while at the same time bringing a fresh modern pop sound that hooks listeners in with its shine and clarity. The lyrics talk about lingering in the past, waiting for something to happen, at the same time realizing that the only place to look in a life of impermanence is forward at the inevitable. A somber, emotive song, “Time” is a nostalgia-laden trip through a reflective point in one’s life.
