It's actually becoming quite difficult to figure out what decade it is.

First came the Raconteurs and we all thought Fantastic! A Zeppelin sound alike band. Not heard anything like it in years. Then came Led Zeppelin The Return and everybody in the world seemed to want a ticket. I would love to know the typical demographic profile of one of these applicants. My imagination says male and over 40, with a large cd collection that mostly duplicates the vinyl stashed in the attic, and a strictly private archive of photos of himself, long-haired with a joint on, dressed in the denim and leather he finally threw out a few years ago when the spare room was turned into the nursery for .

Perhaps I'm just a walking cliché who's overlooked the growth of a whole new generation desperate to listen to a hairy man beat the hell out of a herd of cow hides with a pair of big sticks for half an hour while the musicians in the band drink beer backstage. Or perhaps Mr Ex-rocker is about to regret discarding his uniform. Either way, the truth will be revealed this summer when a line up straight out of 1980 takes the stage at a series of gigs designed to test the noise restriction policies of various councils to the limit.

I can hardly bring myself to type out the roster. Even mentioning some of these names should be breaking the law. Judas Priest for instance, who will once again unveil their 'twin guitar sound' to an expectant audience at Donington Park, scene of innumerable 'Monsters of rock' triumphs nearly thirty years ago. Joining them on the bill at the Download festival will be Kiss, Motorhead and Saxon. Why don't they just move the thing to Reading and have done with it?

Meanwhile Iron Maiden who, in fairness, have been back on the road for nearly ten years, will be reviving their 1980s heyday when they play a show based on their apparently seminal 1984 'Powerslave' album to 50,000 people at Twickenham. And if that wasn't bad enough, retro fans will have the chance to see Whitesnake and Def Leppard strutting their stuff as they share the billing for an arena tour across the UK.

Apparently it's cool once again to listen to this sort of music. Which is remarkable, as it certainly wasn't cool when I was a long-haired, greasy, spotty, denim-clad youth. Let's just say I liked Kiss but didn't get to do too much kissing. Who knows, maybe this will be the last chance for a whole load of regretful 40 somethings to make up for lost time.