Turning thirty may be a kick in the nuts but there are a few mitigating factors: A) it’s better than the alternative; B) twenty is way worse because overnight ‘Teenage Kicks’ no longer applies to you; and C) when you write about pop music your thirtieth is a liberation of sorts— there’s no way anyone expects you to be cool any more so you don’t have to go around convincing yourself you really, really like Scissor Sisters and Dizzee Rascal and Squarepusher and the Stills/Thrills/Kills cult.