I don’t think of the uncertainty and powerlessness that can sometimes accompany childhood — the inverse of its innocence and lack of responsibility.  Nostalgia paints our memories into cinematic narratives. It colors them gold and pink like a late summer sunset. Nostalgia gives us something to fantasize about — to take us out of the monotony of the present and into the excitement of the past.

The last time I saw The Orwells, its members were playing to a small crowd at Allston’s Great Scott in March 2014. Singer Mario Cuomo hurled his microphone stand into the crowd during the band’s...