I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. Did you know that Eric Clapton received his now—infamous nickname "Slowhand" during his tenure as lead guitarist in The Yardbirds in the early 1960s? Clapton could change broken guitar strings so quickly and fluidly that he wouldn't leave the stage to do so; the audience would simply give a slow handclap until he was finished.

There's no question that rock and roll has changed and evolved since its birth in the early 1950s, however beginning around the turn of the century, a shift occurred in the way we connect with music; much like the spell that protected baby Harry Potter from the Avada Kedavra curse, our love is protecting our favourite bands from simply passing away.

The relationship between a band and their fans used to be much more like a marriage. Once parted by death, a dark mourning period would begin, and the gaps left behind sometimes proved to be difficult to fill. In the years since 2000, mind you, a growing number of bands that have broken up or disbanded have found their way to reuniting and returning to popularity.

Take the example of Blink—182: after they released their Take Off Your Pants And Jacket album in 2001, they began experimenting with different sounds through collaborations and side projects, resulting in the creation of Box Car Racer, +44, Angels & Airwaves and Travis Barker's solo career, not to mention their tonally mature self—titled album in 2003 and reunion despite their sometimes turbulent history.

every step of the way, Blink—182 fans supported Barker, Mark Hoppus and Tom DeLonge in every one of their endeavours, whether in music, journalism or even retail. Their fans encouraged them to reinvent and rediscover themselves, and led to the band reinvigorating their love for their work together.

Death From Above 1979 found their way to performing together again this year, as did The Tea Party after spending several years apart. Bush and Jane's Addiction are both charting very well in the States right now, and even Men Without Hats reformed to do The Safety Dance all across the country this year.

Bands may break up, but the emerging trend in the last decade seems to suggest that the music they create and the connection they develop with their fans is powerful enough over time to heal the band, particularly where those bands or artists regularly network with their fans. Bands don't break up forever, and if you're patient, your favourites will return to their place in the spotlight sure enough.

At least, one can dare to hope. This year saw the unfortunate end of The White Stripes, REM, Alexisonfire, Thursday, O Pioneers, Silverchair, Landmines, Gay For Johnny Depp and planned hiatus for Thrice — not to mention Ben Gibbard's divorce with Zooey Deschanel, which is a bummer — but with a little hope and a lot of fan encouragement, perhaps they'll return to stages and music halls sooner rather than later.

For more of the latest music news, views and streams, follow this column on Twitter @fsu_bobbyisms or with Tumblr at bobbyisms.com. There's also the Music Recommendations thread in our FSU social network for student suggestions for new music to check out.

Spend some time with music this holiday; music has a great way of reminding you of great times, so have plenty of both. I'm out of words.