Get unlimited access to everything VICE has to offer.

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

4 Magazines Delivered to Your Door

Why Older People Are Flocking to Adult Band Camps

Some childhood experiences really did offer something adult life struggles to replace.

Share on X (Opens in new window)X

Share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Facebook

Share using Native toolsShareCopied to clipboard

While I am a big believer in the concept of toxic nostalgia — the way people willingly romanticize the past into some glowing fantasy while bemoaning the present — there’s still something to be said for revisiting the communal rituals of youth when you’re older. Some childhood experiences really did offer something adult life struggles to replace. The connection, the sense of purpose, and the excuse to leave the house to hang with people who have a common passion.

For instance, take this Associated Press article about the growing popularity of adult music camps across the United States. Band camps, which probably took a bit of a reputation hit in the wake of the first American Pie movie, are, contrary to the version of it described in the movie, collections of kids who spend a summer honing a musical craft.

These kids eventually grow up, sell their tubas and trumpets for couches........

© Vice