A few years ago, we weren't even enjoying the 1980s ironically. Save for the odd quiet kid worshipping The Smiths or mulletted gentlemen in Metallica T-shirts, every self-respecting music fan knew it was an era best forgotten - and they'd rather have been caught with Hootie and the Blowfish on their CD rack than Duran Duran.

Then for a while, we had a good laugh. It started with retro nights and The Wedding Singer. Then periodic appearances by some '80s icon - Billy Idol! Axl Rose! The Bangles! - on a nostalgia tour.

Now, the joke's on us.

When Franz Ferdinand's debut disc (now topping no shortage of year-end lists) was released to rave reviews early in 2004, we could at least say that its obvious '80s art-rock leanings were balanced off by some Strokesesque '70s-style garage rock. But then the Killers burst on the scene, and there could be no more pretending.

If Morrissey and Simon Le Bon sat down to write an album together, it would sound very much like Hot Fuss. And the thing is, The Killers would take that as a ringing endorsement - which, given the Las Vegas foursome's meteoric rise on both sides of the Atlantic, it now is.

By the end of the year, it wasn't just the Duran Duran imitators who were cashing in; the real thing had also re-emerged, albeit with a single not nearly as catchy as Somebody Told Me.

It's not just glossy pop that's feeling the love. Go on all you like about how The Darkness are heirs to Queen - you're just kidding yourself that it's not '80s hair metal. And by the way, make sure to pick up tickets for Motley Crue's comeback tour.

Surprised? You shouldn't be. Give any era a couple of decades, tops, and we'll either have forgotten how bad it was or be too young to remember it. The '80s revival is living proof: With the passage of enough time, it's possible to get nostalgic for absolutely anything.