Continuing my look at the albums of 1986…

I was prepared to put English rock band XTC’s Skylarking on my list of the best 1986 albums, remembering my fondness for it during college. But when I listened to it for the first time in years, maybe the first time in decades, it didn’t grab me the way it used to.

‘Dear God’ still hits hard, but much of the rest is a bit too much. Too strident, too weirdly psychedelic.

Obviously the music hasn’t changed, so what does my reaction say about how I have? Is it as simple as an older man preferring less challenging music? Does that explain my growing affection for yacht rock and 70s cheese, while I turn my back on more bracing and experimental music?

Am I becoming boring and bland in my old age?

Maybe that’s a lot to hang on a tepid reaction to a pop album. Maybe it’s just that Andy Partridge’s voice turns me off now in a way it didn’t 30 years ago. Maybe it’s temporary and I’ll change my mind again one of these days.

Anyway… XTC’s Skylarking. A good 1986 album that’s worth checking out (and maybe worth revisiting if it’s been awhile).