I was reading an article recently that explained why adults identify so strongly with the music we listened to as teenagers. Apparently, as our teenage years are all about identity formation, we form an unconscious link between the music we listened to and our identities. Ergo, once our identities are (somewhat) established, the music stays with us throughout our lives.
I also read a related article about how teenagers find new music. Musical tastes are strongly influenced by our peers’ opinions. That is why there are general generational trends in musical style. I was surprised to learn that the basic mechanism is the same, pre and post internet. The only differences are in the tools we use to share the information.
I was thinking about this because I have been driving my parents’ and sister-in-laws cars around while I am in New York. They both have XM radio in their cars and I have been listening to XM’s First Wave station nonstop. The First Wave station has something that neither Spotify nor Mog nor Google’s streaming services have. It has some of the same DJs I listened to as a teenager.
It truly feels like a blast from the past. Between the DJ’s voices and the music, I am instantly transported back to my teen years. I will admit, it is not entirely a good experience. The wave of nostalgia comes with a whiff of teen angst and a small dose of sadness. I feel particularly sad when I hear a band I went to go see with my best friend Rachel, who died this past December.
I have also noticed that I am not the only one hooked on nostalgia. This summer the B52’s, Go-Gos. Howard Jones, OMD, Men Without Hats, New Order, Peter Murphy and Depeche Mode are touring (I know there are more, these are the ones I was just able to pull off the top of my head). Not only that, but several are picking up on the trend of playing an entire album, in order. And really, for those of us who grew up on vinyl, where we rarely skipped around, what could be better than listening to your favorite album performed live in its entirety?