I have seen analysis done on how people are frequently most nostalgic of music that came from either their childhood or teenage years, and perhaps college as well. However the older they get the more and more disconnected they get with new music.
I have seen this with my own friends and family as well. Boomers being most fond of 60s and 70s music, Gen X with 80s and 90s, and older Millennials looking fondly at 90s and early-mid 2000s music. Many not keeping up with music coming out after they are 30-35 and their music tastes freezing.
As an elder Millennial I will admit grunge and 90s alternative music had a strong effect with me as a kid and while in high school I was kind of a contrarian and hated the popular late 90s and early 2000s music of the era. I acted like a grumpy old man already and just dug deeper into 80s and 90s music. Post-Punk, Shoegaze, and Trip-Hop while still enjoying grunge as it was approaching 10 years old.
With that said, I had a music revival and my favorite music era of all start when I was in my late 20s and approaching 30. Felt like contemporary music of the late 2000s/early-mid 2010s was doing what I really wanted it to do and accomplish. Bands like Grizzly Bear, Deerhunter, Beach House, Washed Out, Mac Demarco, DIIV, Tame Impala, Melody’s Echo Chamber, The War On Drugs, the return from hiatus of My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive, plus many more.
Most of all this taking place in my late 20s/early 30s. When I look back this was my favorite era of music. I kept up with looking for new music for several more years but myself started to turn into a Boomer in the 2020s. Music started to have less and less prominence in my life and I catch myself mostly listening to podcasts and YouTube clips now. Every once in a while a new song will catch my eye and I will listen to them but nothing really excites me in a comparable way.
For instance my most recent listens are White Fence’s new album “Orange”, Kim Gordon’s “PLAY ME”, and Ulrika Spacek’s “EXPO.” So compared to my friends and sibling that literally don’t listen to any albums coming out in 2026, I still do but have to admit I don’t get that rush from music like I previously did.