I didn't get many of the references, either, but it's inspired me to go out and get some of this music, to see what the characters are talking about. And I think, to a degree, the fact that you don't get the references might not matter, so long as you understand the passion a particular character has for their chosen tunes, or the disdain they feel toward some particular songs, like how Emily Aster describes the Manics, cruelly, as a 'training bra', I think, and displays a total loathing of anyone willing to die for their music.
So I'd disagree that the point is lost, but it is perhaps a little more difficult to understand. The glossary they printed in the back of the trade was a massive help to me.