Listening to Clare Maguire‘s latest single, “The Last Dance,” it would be fair to assume her musical psyche must have been formed by the sounds of the ’80s. But then you’d have to remember that singer from Birmingham, England is only 23, confusing matters more than a little.

Somehow, however, the decade’s pop music did become ingrained in her consciousness, with particularly strong personal meaning in at least one case. “The Last Dance” was written in response to the death of Michael Jackson, whom Maguire considers a personal hero. “I was a huge, huge, huge fan of his,” she told BlackBook late last year, penning the tune when the sad news reached her.

With lyrical inspiration via MJ, Maguire’s vocals on “The Last Dance” channel the strength and conviction of Annie Lennox. The song also shares an instrumental kinship with Eurythmics, with a shimmering wink to Kim Carnes’ “Bette Davis Eyes” for good measure, because, well, why not?

Though “The Last Dance” has been around the blogosphere for a bit (thanks in part to the clip above), the single was only released for download today. Maguire’s debut album, Light After Dark, was produced by Fraser T. Smith (Adele, Cee Lo Green, Taio Cruz) and arrives in the UK next week. No word on a U.S. release yet.

Purchase Clare Maguire – “The Last Dance” via iTunes, Amazon MP3. Grab a free Chase & Status Remix via RCRD LBL. For two additional free downloads, visit Maguire’s website.