folkies, science fiction fans, IT professionals and cyclists, have always been over-represented in the New Atheist ranks IMO

I'm sure it's a good deal wider than that, GM. Atheism is founded on an all inclusive universality in which the psychological causes of belief are just as much a part of things as the culture of the belief itself, or manifestations thereof (scripture, architecture, ritual etc.)   In other words, we're all in it together; all part of a greater human whole which is the context of everything. Christians like to believe they alone are privvy to Truth and Salvation; just as Folkies like to believe that the kind of music they like is inherently different to the myriad of other musical possbilities humanity has been exploring these past 50,000 years or so. But Music and Spirituality is the reserve of each and every one of us - it's as hard-wired as our sexuality and capacity for language, blurring in the hinterlands between Nature-Nurture, forever changing and always diverse - unless you believe that all Hip-Hop sounds the same, unlike Irish diddley-dee or Baroque sonatas or Indian ragas, which are all - er - so very - er - obviously - er - different - to the - er - uninitiated. Sorry, I think that bled through from another thread.

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Just as our generation has made its mind up about what constitutes folksong

As far as it exists at all, such a consensus is surely restricted to an elite of rabidly orthodox Trappist-Traddies. I think, for the rest of us there is too much of a glorious blurring of Popular Song idioms from Border Minstrely to Music Hall to Blues to Hip-Hop (and the folkloric usages thereof) to say for sure what might constitute a Folk Song other than the sort of thing you might have heard your teacher singing in a folk club circa 1973, but even then it wasn't so very clear cut. But then again, few things are, and for that fact alone I think we really ought to be very thankful.