My experience is probably similar to many of you. In my teens with the British Invasion and the Beatles changing the sound of rock and roll, I was entranced. I became passionate about music. Most of my friends were the same. I explored jazz, blues, British blues, progressive rock, bought cut-outs for 99 cents each and 4 for a buck on sale just to hear… NEW. My reinforcing social/music circle of high-school buddies continued and actually strengthen in college as part time jobs funded our first audiophile equipment where the sound was fantastic. There was guidance from the ether too. All through high school and college, local progressive rock disc jockeys reinforced and broadened The Journey. One DJ in particular would play the Jefferson Airplane, and then the next tune was an obscure cut off a Dave Brubeck album he liked. New music! Always discovering, always searching for the next heavenly sound.
When the national media corporations took over in the mid to late 70s, everything was different. Top 40 was it, Top 40 was all. DJs no longer could play what they liked, they had to play what corporate marketing research told them to play, and nothing else. This came at a time when my social circle began to disintegrate and spread out across the country as we all got jobs, families and careers. We got busy. Too busy to sit back and just listen except in the car. But there wasn’t anything to listen to new in the car and our circle was gone. Plus, some of us got wives who absolutely refused to accept speakers and wires and a bunch of black boxes in the living room. Change.
With all of the changes, my ability to find new music and interesting artists, even with satellite radio in the car, was diminished substantially. Besides, what could I play it on as my stereo was now limited to a small home office with smaller speakers that I really didn’t like and an amp that sucked. Music didn’t matter anymore. it was just something in the background keeping me company.
Then came streaming (for me two years ago) along with YouTube audio reviewers, a new circle element had formed, it was basically one-way, but hey, you can’t have everything. I learned about this from one of my old high school friends whom I still speak with semi regularly even though we are a thousand miles apart. He suggested I watch a video from John Darko. I have always been open to new technology and streaming and servers (I love databases) seemed like something I would like. Technology brought me back. The You Tubers have replaced the local DJ and streaming has opened up the world of music like nothing ever has. I am now listening to genres that I never knew existed a couple years ago, much less hearing them. And I am back in love with music and the audiophile journey towards the perfect sound. BTW, I now have two systems, one in my office for experimentation and one in my great room. Things change.