REVIEW: Welcome to 'Pastels World,' a utopian escape to y2k futurism and nostalgic R&B

Sometimes, music has the power not only to soundtrack our lives, but transport us to a different world entirely. Annie Bui, aka pastels, does this in her latest instrumental album, Pastels World (released on July 23rd). The LA-based, Melbourne raised songwriter and producer distills her love for liminal spaces, dreamcore, and the Frutiger Aero aesthetic into seven dreamy tracks that feel like stepping into a nostalgic, somewhat sexy, underwater video game. It’s the sound of the future we all imagined growing up in the early 2000s - blue skies and green pastures intermingling seamlessly with sleek and environmentally friendly technology. A world where technology and nature work together in perfect harmony to create a peaceful equilibrium. And right now, it’s a really nice world to imagine versus the one we have (read: burning warehouses in LA, Europe on fire, AI depleting precious resources, etc). Walk with me…

Pastels World opens with an elevator ding followed by twinkling synths and bubble sounds in “Coconut Island,” officially welcoming the listener to enter this alternate dimension. R&B & jazz keys progressions are accompanied with lush underwater soundscapes, melding both Bui’s aesthetic influences, like Super Mario World and y2k website landing pages with her sonic influences of D’Angelo, Janet Jackson, and SOS Band. Also a classically trained pianist, Bui often weaves in unexpected, shimmery melodies that you wouldn’t expect to be paired with a traditional R&B progression.

Bui explains that writing a solo instrumental record leaves her a lot more space to experiment with melody and structure, as opposed to when she collaborates with other artists and vocalists (definitely go listen to Blue Fantasy, a collab with vocalist Jessica Domingo released this past April that has a similar vibe but with ethereal r&b vocals). With a background in film scoring, she let her obsession with y2k screensavers, liminal spaces, and anything aquatic take the lead while she constructed a sonic landscape around them. The names of each track perfectly encapsulate the feeling of the song and where it’s supposed to transport you too - i.e. “Screensaver Dreams,” “Aqua Vista,” or “Ocean Milk.” The result is a cohesive and auditorily satisfying escape from our current world into a wet, pastel, sensory-depriving utopian alternative.

But don’t mistake its calming effect for simplicity - Pastels World is scattered with intricate delights, like the horn arrangement on “Peace of Mind” or percussion that sounds like Dolphin sonar on “Bubble Memory.” I welcome you to head to put your headphones on, clothes your eyes, and see where it takes you.