The Story Behind "So Much time Wasted"

Wrestling with regret and routine, So Much Time Wasted is the second single from No Band Left, a reflective, electronic track that pairs chilled production with raw honesty. In this interview, Dexter Britain opens up about the frustrations that fuelled the lyrics, the blurred line between self-criticism and societal pressure, and why looking back is sometimes the only way forward.

Q&A

Q1. Where did the idea for So Much Time Wasted come from? Was there a moment, relationship, or experience that brought these lyrics out of you?

I had just left a retail job and moved back home. I was angry about my own decisions because I felt that I had wasted years of my life doing something I really didn’t want to be doing — just going through the motions of what I thought was expected of me.

Leave school, get a job, live, die, etc. It was cynical and I was annoyed, really.

Q2. The lyrics are honest and a bit raw — how much of this is autobiographical? How do you walk the line between vulnerability and universality in your songwriting?

The song is somewhat biographical in that I did feel like I had wasted four years of my life — going to work, getting drunk on nights out, rinse and repeat. No progress, not even a promotion, for which I was qualified but told I was too young for.

Songwriting, I believe, only works if it’s real and honest. If it’s not vulnerable, then it has to be relatable.

Q3. This track has a colder, more electronic feel than Wonderland — what was the sonic vision behind it? What did you want the production to convey emotionally?

It was originally a bit of a party track but with introspective lyrics. That style is still there but toned down to better match the lyrics.

Q4. The song seems to criticise routine, passivity, or regret. Who are you speaking to — yourself, someone else, society at large?

It was definitely a criticism of how I saw society at the time. I was young and a little bit arrogant in that I wanted so much more for myself — but I realised that it wouldn’t just come. I had to make real change to grow.

So it was both criticising society and myself.

Q5. What does the phrase “so much time wasted” mean to you now, looking back? Do you still feel that same weight, or has releasing the song helped process it?

I think it was silly of me to put so much emphasis on time wasted, but at that time that’s how it felt — and perhaps a part of me still thinks that if I could have focused on music sooner, my career would be very different.

That being said, I don’t resent my four wasted years.

Q6. As this is your second single as No Band Left, how do you feel it continues or contrasts with Wonderland?

Wonderland is the more poetic version of this song — a melancholic love letter to what I dream of.

So Much Time Wasted is the opposite — it’s a cold retrospect on not getting what I want.

Q7. What do you hope listeners take from this track — musically or emotionally?

It’s a song about resentment and not making the most of the time we have.

You’ve got to go for what you want, dream the dreams, and act on them. Time disappears on us all so quickly — so now is the time.

The song is about how the system is seen to be against someone, and that person wishing they did something more with their time. So go against it. Do what you need to. Get the most out of life and you won’t need to sing about wasting time.

So Much Time Wasted is available now on all major streaming platforms. If you’ve ever looked back and wondered what could’ve been, or felt stuck in a life that wasn’t quite yours, this one might hit home. Listen, reflect, and maybe let it push you toward something better.