I think there is a tendency for people who have been listening to music for a long time to compare lousy pop music from today with music they liked from other eras. I'm around your age. I have friends who always complain about the crap music of today and yearn for the "good old days when music was good." They focus on today's silly Bruno Mars song and compare it to the great albums they remember from the 70s -- conveniently forgetting the Pina Colada songs of yesteryear. There is good music being made today. And there is pop pablum. I don't think it is much different today. If you are just listening to drive-time radio, you'll get a bunch of crap. If you want to find it, there is a lot that is interesting, inventive, complex, and artistic.