1980tal

1980tal is a fictional multimedia concept used in speculative fiction and collaborative online storytelling. It denotes a loose imagined archive of works—fictional music, video, prose, and visual art—crafted as if part of a countercultural movement that blends late 1970s and 1980s aesthetics with speculative near-future technology.

Originating in online writing circles around 2015, 1980tal was created by a collective using the pseudonym 1980tal. The name pairs the year 1980 with tal, a stylized suffix intended to evoke tales, archives, and transmission. The project deliberately resists a single narrative, inviting reinterpretation.

Characteristics of 1980tal works tend to be diverse in medium but cohesive in mood: retro-futuristic visuals, DIY electronics, glitch textures, and speculative narratives presented as artifacts from an imagined archive. Pieces are released as if discovered or recovered from a forgotten era, with metadata and author notes that blur fact and fiction.

Reception has been mostly within online communities and media studies circles, where 1980tal is discussed as an example of participatory culture and archival aesthetics. Critics emphasize its openness to remix, collaboration, and ongoing expansion rather than a closed canon.

See also retro-futurism, glitch art, participatory culture, found footage.