Bands you’ve grown up with
 

Currently listening to Idlewild’s ‘Interview Music’ album from last year and realised that I’ve been buying their music for 22 years, and although very much in my mid forties, they have been a constant in my adult life, including one of my top 5 all time favourite albums in 100 Broken Windows (seriously, check it out, it’s awesome!)

It made me think which other bands have had both the longevity and quality to accompany me through life, and I reckon I’m down to three.

Chilli Peppers were close, but have tailed off enough in recent years that although i still class them as one of my favourite bands, I’ve not bought the last couple of albums.

So I’m down to Idlewild, Suicidal Tendencies and Perry Farrell/Jane’s Addiction in their various forms.

Anyone else got similar bands that they have lived life alongside?

You ask this question on the same week as I turn 53 and Iron Maiden's self-titled album turns 40?

Maiden have occasionally crossed my horizon, but never been a huge fan TBH. But they would definitely have the longevity to be a band that would work if it struck you the same way the aforementioned bands did for me

What 80's bands or solo artists are still active?

I could only think of Journey and then found this as of 2016

80's Concert Tour Dates - 80s Music at The 80's child.com

I think where this question gets trickier for me other than that obvious answer are things like "do they have to remain at least semi-active currently" or does simply retaining their catalog in my listening consistently through the decades count? Dio would be a perfect example of that sort of band for me.

It’s a rapidly reducing list to be sure, but also was part of the reason for asking the question. Sometimes familiarity is as a food as good as quality!

Congratulations BTW! Commiserations? Respect for continuing to breathe? :D

Weird Al for me.

I was born in 84 and one of my older brother was a fan so I grew up listening to him. And I still try to listen to any song he puts out.

Oh man, there's a pretty fair number of those. At least as long as you count those retaining some portion of original members. Hell, Rick Springfield is still working even.

Tom Kiefer (Cinderella) is back as a solo artist and in the active rock chart right now. The various members of Dokken not named Don have worked steadily in various bands all along. The Pantera legacy continued through Hellyeah. Ozzy is very much back on the airwaves again. Joe Satriani just dropped a pretty good track last week. There was new music from Motley Crue in 2019. Slash has certainly continued to work steadily (though not with GnR). Judas Priest had a great 2019 album. Tygers of Pan Tang are still out & about and had a solid 2019 album. Metal Church dropped a new album recently, they formed in 1980. Pretty Maids formed in '81, still working. After Lemmy's death, Phil Campbell extends the Motorhead legacy as a solo act now. Whitesnake continues to record & tour regularly. Saxon has continued both as a unit and with the first ever Biff Byford solo album in the past year.

And if you're wondering about the odd order of those, that's just me going back through my playlist spreadsheet from current back to about April 2019.
Those names are all active in just the past year.

If you count active since 2018 or 2017 (since three year album cycles aren't all that odd anymore) then the list grows a lot.

Thanks.

Mostly just another day at this point really. Hell, my kid turns 22 tomorrow and even HE ain't excited over a birthday anymore lol

Oh yeah, pour some sugar on me!

There's a handful of bands that might qualify if I counted the reunion concert circuit, but that seems like a stretch. Likewise there's probably another handful of bands that have been around for 25-40 years that are still recording, and I still listen to them technically....but not anything they released in the last 10 years.

the only band that fully meets all those terms for me is Melvins.


RHCP were the first concert I ever went to on my own volition, New Year's Eve 1987, and it has boggled my mind that they got so big and stuck around so long. For my part, I probably haven't purposely listened to a Chili Peppers song in 25 years.

Wrong on at least two levels...

Radiohead and the Flaming Lips are probably the two bands for me, although both have trailed off for me. All their latest stuff has songs worth listening to, but haven't really grabbed me as a whole or had repeat listens lately either.

Def Leppard. They’ve been my favorite since ‘83.

I hope this was a joke....

I hope it wasnt...

Me neither.

Motley Crue became my favorite band around Dr. Feelgood time. I got all of their albums through Columbia House and I listen to them constantly.

In early adulthood, Live was my new favorite. I saw them in concert 3 times in the same week, Atlanta, Birmingham and Nashville.

Over the last few years I've gained quite the appreciation for the Eagles. I've watched their documentary probably 30 times in the last 2-3 years.

Damn. Here I go again ...

Pearl Jam is the obvious easy answer for me. It might be the only truly fitting one, too.

Jon mentioned Slash in many iterations and that might qualify for me as well. I had tickets to see him in Fort Wayne this year but some travel came up and I had to miss it.

As an individual James Taylor's music has been with me since about 1982 when mom first trusted 6 year old me to not scratch up her records and I found his Sweet Baby James album. I don't pick up new albums as they come out anymore, but I'll give a listen and can find a song or two I like reliably.

Those are it really.

Pearl Jam are an interesting band for me. I've heard their first 5 albums countless times, and I still listen to them on occasion, especially Yield. Of the 6 albums since then, I honestly couldn't say just looking at their titles or album covers which I've even listened to at all - no doubt the last couple I haven't, Binaural and Riot Act a strong maybe. Something for me to explore over the coming months...

You're on your own.

For me it's Toadies. Local band I discovered in high school. I saw them play live 40+ times, mostly from the mid-90s to the early-00s. They took a brief hiatus but they are still putting out albums and shows, though I haven't been to one since 2013ish. I'm 43 now, married, two kids, that drill.

It's almost like your a drifter born to walk alone

... in the still of the night.

Has to be Cheap Trick for me, discovered them when I was 15 and they have pretty much been my favorite since.

I had snuck out to get high with a girl in the school parking lot before the last class of the day. She stuck in the Heaven Tonight 8 track and I remember laughing because it had a picture of two typical rock star looking guys on the front, and an accountant and everyone's creepy uncle on the back, an I was like, who the hell are these guys?

Then Surrender kicked in and I was hooked! Never made it to our last class LOL.

Just a bump as listened to 100 Broken Windows again and I knew I must have posted about it before!

King's X, John Waite, Judas Priest.

40+ years on the latter 2, 35+ years on the former. Haven't had a chance to meet any of the Priest guys (although I had a slim chance in the 80s that didn't pan out), but I've met the other two (with KX, it's been multiple times).

Last Saturday was show number 54 for me as I've been able to catch many of their annual Texas tour dates the last few years. I keep a listing of all the shows I've gone to (in notepad no less!)

I know (hope) this was tongue in cheek saying that this is a Whitesnake song. But Def Leppard has been my favorite band (pretty much uncontested) since 1983. Apple Music tells me they still got the most play time for me in 2024. They've had a couple of recent albums (one new material, one where they reworked old songs with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra), and they still tour regularly. The new material included a handful of songs that I worked into my rotation and a handful that I never listen to. A couple from the Philharmonic album are in light rotation.

Heh. Didn't realize this was a bumped thread and replied before reading on. At least my story remains consistent. :)