Silent Generation

Brutalism was an architectural style that was popular from the 1950s to early 1980s that consisted of raw concrete surfaces, monochrome colors, minimal ornamentation, and exposed structural elements. It is the architectural style that is referenced in the title of The Brutalist, a film directed by Brady Corbet that has been nominated for numerous accolades this year. On this week's episode of Silent Generation they boys share their thoughts on The Brutalist before discussing Brutalism as an architectural style. Amongst other things they discuss how the the life of local Chicago architect and Holocaust survivor John Macsai differed from that of Laszlo Toth’s, how Notre Dame’s Brutalist library features a large mural religious mural that is colloquially known as “Touchdown Jesus,” and how UIC’s Brutalist campus was not in fact designed to quell student protests. Links: Brutalism Pinterest board: https://pin.it/5WbTWzVSo The Brutalist ending explained: Director Brady Corbet reflects on building that transformative epilogue by Wesley Stenzel Interview with 'The Brutalist' Filmmakers Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold by Susan Kouguell The Trauma of Inevitability: Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold on “The Brutalist” by Isaac Feldberg Oral history of John Macsai interviewed by Betty J. Blum. Stroger Switch + Purple Rain Redux (Ep. 90 of 99% Invisible) Were Brutalist Buildings on College Campuses Really Designed to Thwart Student Riots? by J Bryan Lowder Boston City Hall is officially a landmark by Roberto Scalese Ugly Buildings Tour Recorded on 1/26/2024

This week the boys discuss Joseph’s favorite decade: the 1960’s. They begin by touching on what life was like for everyday Americans in the ‘60s before detailing several movements (the civil rights movement, the gay rights movement, and the antiwar movement) that contributed to the decade earning the nickname “the countercultural decade.” They then talk about hippies and the elements of hippie culture that they appreciate (tie dye, flower power, rock music, and healthy living). They go on to discuss how the color baby blue stands out as the defining color of the decade, how California became the subject of many ‘60s songs after it became the largest state in the country in 1962, and how the 1963 film Charade has much funnier writing than modern CGI-reliant slapstick comedies. Links: Coming Apart : The State of White America by Charles Murray Flower Power (photograph) by Bernie Boston Shoes as a Source of First Impressions Joan Didion’s quote about Los Angeles Charade (1963) Artwork: Aubrey Hepburn and Cary Grant in Charade (1963) Recorded on 1/22/2025

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration This week the boys are joined by Nick and Cris from the Thot Topics podcast to talk about “party cities,” cities whose economies cater to debaucherous tourists. They begin by surveying the following party cities and the types of partiers they attract: Las Vegas, New Orleans, Cancun, Berlin, and Miami. They then detail some of the negative effects of overtourism on locals before sharing where each of them would go if they had the opportunity to party anywhere on Earth. Amongst other things they discuss how the carpeted areas of casinos in Las Vegas designate which areas are adults-only, how Bourbon Street in New Orleans was almost destroyed to build the Vieux Carré Riverfront Expressway, how resorts in Cancun import food from the United States so as not to upset American tourists’ stomachs, and how the Nacht Club Berlin Instagram account has documented Berlin’s decline as a cultural hub. Links: Thot Topics podcast Thot Topics Patreon Thot Topics Instagram List of party cities from Facebook Nacht Club Berlin Instagram page 'It's Tourist Hunting Season': The Street Art That's Seething About Mass Tourism by Lee Moran Reveillon in Rio de Janeiro My Weekend as a 28-year-old in Chicago Artwork: Ericlindesvard, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia CommonsCC BY-SA 4.0 Recorded on 1/16/2025

Y2K futurism is an aesthetic that emerged in the late ‘90s and early-2000s that consists of the color silver, consumer electronics, large sunglasses, and "blobjects." Its depictions of what the future could look like in the 2000s were utopian and optimistic, simultaneously celebrating the new millennium and the early internet. On this week’s episode Joseph and Nathan start by listing the key elements of Y2K Futurism before detailing the various ways the aesthetic materialized in the physical world, from Capri Sun ads to airport lounges. Amongst other things they discuss how the video game Space Channel 5 took the aesthetic in a campy and extraterrestrial direction, how the availability of CAD software in the design world led to popularity of blobjects, and how the artwork of Mariko Mori incorporated an impressive number of elements from the esthetic. Links: Y2K futurism Pinterest board: https://pin.it/6KzgiZwZ3 Nathan’s Y2K Too Unlimited shirt post Terrell Davis Changed Digital Art Forever by Claudia Costa The Untold Story of the Most Bonkers Sunglasses in Olympic History by Mahalia Chang Groove Is In The Heart by Deee Lite Breathe U In by Sipper & Adore Playstation 2 condom ad The Cyberfrontier and America at the Turn of the 21st Century by Jeffrey R. Cooper The Y2K aesthetic: who knew the look of the year 2000 would endure? By Leigh Alexander Miko No Inori by Mariko Mori Artwork: Focus Dailies CM (1999) Recorded on 1/5/2025

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration This week Joseph and Nathan are joined by local architecture influencer Steve (otherwise known as Marquisdefacade) to discuss historic preservation. They begin by weighing the pros and cons of historic preservation before detailing how the historic preservation movement in Chicago succeeded (or failed) to preserve the neighborhoods of Old Town, Bronzeville, and Logan Square. Amongst other things they discuss how Logan Square Preservation uses “preservation” to advance their NIMBY agenda in Logan Square, how Jober’s Canyon in Omaha, NE got demolished despite being listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and how 9 highrises and skyscrapers in Chicago could potentially become the Early Chicago Skyscrapers UNESCO World Heritage Site. Links: Marquisdefacade’s Instagram The Marquisdefacade Podcast Historic Preservation - Treating the Symptom Instead of the Cause by Andrew Price Housing experts say there just aren't enough homes in the U.S. by By Mary Louise Kelly Glasner Studio Virtual Tour The Architectural Record - 1907 (the article contrasting NYC and Chicago apartment buildings) Proposed Tower In Old Town Gets More Brick, Warmer Colors, But Traffic Concerns Persist by Jake Wittich Losing Track by J. W. Mason WIN: Logan Square Preservation Raises Funds to Restore Church’s Stained Glass Andy Schneider, President Of Logan Square Preservation, Running For 1st Ward Alderperson by Mina Bloom Plan To Preserve Building Character On Milwaukee Avenue In Logan Square, Avondale Moves Forward by Ariel Parrella-Aureli Historic structures are set to be demolished at Wells/Superior by Lukas Kugler Artwork: Photo provided by Marquisdefacade Recorded on 12/29/2024

New religious movements are religions that are peripheral to a society's dominant religious culture, the earliest and most enduring example being Mormonism (which began in 1830). The majority of practitioners in new religious movements are recent converts and NRMs often get labeled the pejorative term “cult.” On this week’s episode of Silent Generation the boys explore how NRMs emerged in response to the problems of modernity by examining Mormonism, The Baháʼí Faith, The Enthusiastic Sobriety Movement, The People’s Temple Movement, The Rajneesh Movement, Twin Flames Universe, and Love Has Won. Amongst other things they discuss how NRMs appeal to people raised in the suburbs because of the communal living arrangements they offer, how federal interference is often the tipping point that leads to mass casualty events, and how Nathan’s brother once worked for a restaurant operated by an NRM. Links: What are New Religious Movements ft. Professor Eileen Barker Death of a Scientologist by Tori Marlan Hunter x Hunter Intro Snowflake, Arizona LDS Temple The Love Bomb by Daniel Kolitz Wild Wild Country (2018) Escaping Twin Flames (2023) How ‘Twin Flames Universe’ leader pretends to be Jesus to create an abusive multi-level marketing scheme by Mallory Challis Cult Info Since 1979 by the The International Cultic Studies Association Artwork: The Baháʼí House of Worship in Wilmette, Illinois (1969) Recorded on 12/25/2024

This week Joseph and Nathan examine the various aesthetics that have come out of hunting fashion. They begin by discussing how shooting and hunting in the United Kingdom are leisure activities that have historically only been available to the most wealthy, and why British clothing associated with the activity looks more formal and more conspicuous than its American counterpart (such as red fox hunting coats). The boys then go into a deep dive of how hunting camouflage developed out of military camouflage before detailing why it's worn so often by everyday people in the United States. Amongst other things they discuss how buffalo skins worn by Native Americans during buffalo jumps are an early example of camouflage, how the Harris/ Walz campaign released a camo campaign hat in response to Chappel Roan’s Midwest Princess tour camo hat, how high-visibility blaze orange is more liberal-coded than hunting camo, and how deer aren’t able to see high-visibility blaze orange because they are red-green colorblind. Links: Hunting fashion Pinterest board: https://pin.it/60F92bfWP Ep. 37: Male Desire w/ Charles Livingston [UNLOCKED] The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions by Thorstein Veblen Gentlemanly Pursuits: Hunting & Shooting Attire by J. A. Shapira Dressed to Kill: A History of British Sporting Fashion by Kim Cady What to Wear Game Shooting by Alan Paine The Density Divide and the Southernification of Rural America by Will Wilkinson Tim Walz Struggles With Shotgun At Pheasant Hunt, Gets Mocked Elusive deer spotted wearing high-vis jacket in Canada: ‘Who is responsible?’ by Leland Cecco Blaze Orange Regulations for Every State by Teri Williams Can Deer See Blaze Orange? by Lindsay Thomas Jr. Artwork: Origin unknown Recorded on 12/22/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration Futurism was an Italian art movement focused on speed, technology, and violence that began in 1909 after Filippo Tommaso Marinetti published the Manifesto of Futurism. Italian Futurists thought that their nascently-industrialized country was developing at a slow pace due to the weight of Italy’s past and they wanted to break free; artists like Umberto Boccioni, Giacomo Balla, Luigi Russolo, and Tullio Crali depicted “futuristic” subjects like cars, trains, and airplanes in dynamic ways that challenged existing cultural conventions. On this week’s episode of Silent Generation Nathan and Joseph analyze Futurism using an urbanist lens. Amongst other things they discuss the problematic link between Futurism and Fascism in post-WW1 Italy, the Cubo-Futurist style of the short lived Russian Futurist movement, the absurdity of Futurist food, and the beauty of Tullio Crali’s Aeropittura paintings of airplanes and aerial landscapes. Links: Futurism Pinterest board: https://www.pinterest.com/silentgeneration/futurism/ Manifesto of Futurism by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti Scene of Filippo Tommaso Marinetti's accident, 15 October 1908 Screenshot from Italian Futurism: Speed, dynamism, and the fight at La Fenice Manifesto of Futurist Woman by Valentine de Saint-Point Italian Futurism, 1909–1944: Reconstructing the Universe Boccioni Recreated Recreating Boccioni's striding sculptures from 1913 How Italian Futurism Influenced the Rise of Fascism by Jad Dahsan When Futurism Led to Fascism—and Why It Could Happen Again What Is Russian Futurism? by Anastasiia S. Kirpalov Kseniya Boguslavskaya https://www.tulliocrali.com/en/ Crali and Aeropainting (Tullio Crali: A Futurist Life) Lingotto factory in Turin Modernist Architecture in Eritrea Artwork: Before the Parachute Opens (Prima che si apra il paracadute), 1939 by Tullio Crali Recorded on 12/9/2024

How is modern masculinity different from classical masculinity? This week the boys are joined by local menswear influencer Gent Z to discuss how men in the modern era intentionally refine their masculinity through self improvement. Amongst other things they discuss what the end goal of self-improvement should be, what male role models they personally look up to, and what they think about the idea that there is a “crisis of masculinity.” Links: How to Build New Habits by Taking Advantage of Old Ones by James Clear Artwork: Paul Newman photographed by Stewart Stern, 1973

McBling is a mid-2000s aesthetic characterized by tacky displays of wealth, celebrity culture, fake tans, and bleach blonde hair. According to Vogue magazine it emerged in “2003, following the American invasion of Iraq, and ended with the onset of the Great Recession in 2008.” McBling arose organically in popular culture and was only later identified as an aesthetic by the Consumer Aesthetic Research Institute, and this is the first Silent Generation episode to cover an aesthetic identified by their organization. Amongst other things on this week’s episode, the boys discuss how the term McBling first came out of a poll in a “post-Y2K” Facebook group, how Gen Z’s interpretation of McBling favors Von Dutch too heavily, how the mid-2000s reality TV show Bad Girls Club captured the McBling zeitgeist, and how TikTok accounts like Bronzedupbrat are making McBling reach record popularity in 2024. Links: McBling Pinterest board The Consumer Aesthetic Research Institute McBling CARI description The original McBling Facebook Group Evan Collins’ McBling “joke” post Brittney Spears’ half Y2k/ half McBling outfit The second poll in the McBling Facebook group What Is McBling and How Is it Different From Y2K? by Abrigail Williams McBling on Google Trends The Antisemitic History of Early 2000s Fashion Brand Von Dutch by Sam Miller Paris Hilton changing her voice to sound more feminine Paris Hilton’s “stop being poor” meme Bad Girls Club Tanisha slamming pots and pans in season 2 Bad Girls Club Judi Jai breakfast cereal fight in season 7 The Y2K Attitude Era - A Cultural Middle Finger How do you stay so authentically 2000s? by Bronzedupbrat 4Chan mannerisms displayed by Boxxy The McBling Subreddit Trashy McBling Spotify playlist NGSUNC by Ayesha Erotica Do I Look Like a Slut by Avenue D OlderBrotherCore Tiktok McMansion Hell Artwork: Paris Hilton Recorded on 11/17/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration This week Joseph and Nathan are joined by Breanna, a Silent Generation listener who works as a software engineer for a major online dating company, to discuss online dating. They detail the early history of online dating (such as how the first person to develop a computer based dating service was a working class British woman named Joan Ball) before sharing their experiences with online dating websites and apps such as Match.com, Hinge, Tinder, Okcupid, and The League. Amongst other things they discuss how dating apps replaced ELO algorithms with Gale-Shapley algorithms, how a recent study found that NYC was the worst major US city for dating, and how Chicago attracts “coastal dating app refugees” who seek an easier dating market. Links: How heterosexual couples met graph The Mother of All Swipes by Mar Hicks Whitney Wolfe, founder of dating app Bumble, has had quite the year. She just can’t discuss parts of it by Todd C. Frankel Hinge’s newest feature claims to use machine learning to find your best match by Ashley Carman Towards a statistical physics of dating apps by Fabrizio Olmeda The Uncanny Swipe Drive: The Return of a Racist Mode of Algorithmic Thought on Dating Apps by Greggory Narr Not My Type: Automating Sexual Racism in Online Dating by Apryl Williams and Kendra Albert Race and Attraction, 2009 – 2014 from Oktrends NYC is the ‘worst’ US city for dating by Asia Grace River Page Grindr Tweet Hot Gays, Body Image, & Comparison by Hellvetika What is the dating culture in Chicago like? Reddit post Asian gay immigrant looking to relocate to Chicago from LA? Reddit post Artwork: First boot in 17 years, all on 90’s equipment Recorded on 11/10/2024

Pokémon is the highest grossest media franchise of all time, but has it declined in quality? On this week’s episode Joseph and Nathan use Pokemon as a case study to talk about gamer culture, nostalgia, and fandoms more broadly. After breaking down the history of Pokémon into three booms and one bust, the boys detail what they like about the franchise (Ken Sugimori’s artwork, HM moves, and their favorite Pokémon) and the things they dislike about it (competitive Pokémon play, shiny hunting, and legendary Pokémon). Amongst other things they discuss how Poliwhirl almost became the main mascot for the Pokémon franchise, how Pokémon became uncool in the mid-2000s, how the designs of Pokémon became rounder and cuter over time, and how a terabyte of information stolen from Game Freak’s servers (dubbed “the teraleak”) recently leaked to the public. Links: Pokémon – from bugs to blockbuster by Simon Parkin Poliwhirl: The Mascot You Never Knew Pokémon Trainer Norm MacDonald “Pokémon” on Google Trends Pokémon Go - Vaporeon stampede Central Park, NYC Target Pokémon card scalper stampede video Ken Sugimori’s artwork for the original 151 Pokémon Oh Wow, The Best Pokémon Card Art All Comes From The Same Person by John Walker How Pokémon's Art Style & Design Has 'Evolved' Generic Pokémon Design by Generation What Would Gen 8 Pokémon Look Like in Gen 1? (Part 2) The Evolution of Pokémon Design Pokemon Gold & Silver beta Pokémon Gorochu’s back sprite Project Bauer/ Pokemon Movie 24 Palworld vs. Pokémon Comparison: Just How Similar Are the Designs? by Joshua Yehl Pokemon Sword and Shield Controversy and 'Dexit', Explained by Casey DeFreitas & Matt Kim Taechichu’s Youtube Regi Noises Victreebel Scream Artwork: Charizard Pokémon Carddass artwork by Ken Sugimori Recorded on 11/3/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration Why did Joseph go to Copenhagen last week? Did he bike around a lot? How many hot dogs did he eat? How was Malmo, Sweden? These are some of the important questions Nathan asked Joseph on this week’s episode. Artwork: Street photo Copenhagen ... Summer and sun by Ivan Naurholm Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) Recorded on 10/27/2024

Hyperpop is a music genre that is noted for its hyperfeminine, artificial, and childlike sound. The term “hyperpop” came into popular use after Spotify staff created a hyperpop playlist in 2019. The music the term described emerged much earlier however, with the earliest examples coming out of the renowned UK record label PC Music starting in 2013. This week Nathan is joined by his friend E to delineate the three main subgenres of hyperpop: future pop, internet pop and digicore. They discuss music by Danny L Harle, A. G. Cook, Hannah Diamond, QT, SOPHIE, Charli XCX, 100 Gecs, Alice Gas, Food House, and others. Amongst other things they discuss how how they first came to find PC Music, how digicore is NEET music, and how both Hannah Diamond and Dis Magazine used “superreal” aesthetics. Links: Nathan and E’s Hyperpop Spotify Playlist GFOTY vs. LITTLE MIX - The Interview PC Music’s GFOTY criticised after calling Toumani & Sidiki Diabaté “Bombay Bicycle Club blacked up” Why did GFOTY leave PC Music? Reddit post THE 3 PILLARS OF HYPERPOP Reddit post Two Bloods Called by I’m so Popular https://studio.hannahdiamond.com/ MEAT’s AW12 I LUV U campaign MEAT’s AW13 Believe campaign Ur Not a Baller by Serious Thugs Alis Pelleschi’s Instagram Hey QT - The Story of a Popstar Who Never Existed Baby Bubbles by QT Hood By Air AW 2014 runway show Vroom vroom vine Hyperpop: How Charli XCX Created a New Genre 100 Gecs opening for Deftones video 404 Error, Genre Not Found: The Life Cycle of Internet Scenes by Sophie Walker Alice Gas, Alice Glass, 100 gecs Drama Explained Reddit post Dis Magazine/ PC Music collaborations Artwork: Artwork for Pink and Blue by Hannah Diamond Recorded on 10/27/2024

Kevin Heckart is a Kansas City based artist who created the artwork behind seapunk’s original aesthetic. This special episode coincides with both the one year anniversary of Silent Generation and the relaunch of the seapunk clothing line Mainframe, which features many of Heckart’s designs. The first half of episode is an interview with Heckart that serves as a spiritual threequel to Silent Generation’s prior two seapunk episodes while the later half is a broader conversation about net art and net artists such as Brad Troemel, Hito Steyerl, Laturbo Avendon, and Lorna Mills. Amongst other things they discuss how Heckart has gone viral on Tiktok for hacking animatronic fish and furby toys, how Nathan and Brad Troemel did the same undergrad program, how Hito Steyerl incorporated real life biographies into Factory of the Sun, and how Skibbidy Toilet shows how thoroughly post-internet aesthetics have permeated popular culture. Links: mainframehq.net Mainframe’s Instagram Kevin Heckart’s Instagram Kevin Heckart’s Tiktok I hacked a singing fish. - Kevin Heckart “and yet a trace of the true self exists in the false self” meme HIS BRAIN? NO. HIS HEART Brad Troemel meme The Post-internet Culture Report by Brad Troemel Untitled, 2016 by Laura Owens Trojan Horses: Activist Art and Power by Lucy R. Lippard Color(ed) Theory Series by Amanda Williams Rhizome’s Net Art Anthology My Boyfriend Came Back from the War by Olia Lialina Madison Beer #NoFilter by Dis Magazine I was Raised on the Internet exhibition at the MCA Transdimensional Serpent by Jon Rafman The Jogging Tumblr blog Army of Ants by Brad Troemel Giant Arthropods Eating Doritos early meme Liquidity Inc. by Hito Steyerl screenshot Factory of the Sun by Hito Steyerl takeSomeCrime Youtube channel In Defense of the Poor Image by Hito Steyerl In Defense of the Poor Image-esque Instagram post GIFS by Lorna Mills Repetition Mindset: Artists as Snowflakes by Brad Troemel Artwork: Provided by Kevin Heckart Recorded on 10/16/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration For this week’s episode Joseph and Nathan watched Francis Coppola’s latest (and likely final) film, Megalopolis. The film draws parallels between Ancient Rome and modern day New York City and has been met with widespread confusion. The boys discuss the film in the first half of the episode, detailing the performance of several actors (notably Aubrey Plaza’s role as the brilliantly named Wow Platinum) and the film's various references to Ancient Rome. In the second half of the episode the boys discuss megalopolises more broadly, including ones in real life (the Northeast Megalopolis, the European Megalopolis, Japan's Taiheiyo Belt, and China’s various megalopolises) and fictional examples (the megalopolis depicted in the 1927 film Metropolis, Mega-City One in Judge Dredd, and Coruscant in Star Wars). Links: Martin Scorsese Had a Cinema Epiphany ‘Too Late’ Megalopolis Plot meme Megalopolis Movie Clip - Cesar is Mine (Wow Platinum elevator scene) Nymphet Alumni’s Ep. 90: The Baby Name Game with Sophie Kim Francis Ford Coppola Didn’t Want ‘Megalopolis’ To Be “Some Woke Hollywood Production,” Casting “Canceled” Actors from Deadline Tell Your Children by Alex Berensen Megalopolis: The Urbanized Northeastern Seaboard of the United States by Jean Gottman What if the cities of Jersey City, Elizabeth, Union, Newark, Hoboken, and others became one larger city like NYC? Reddit post Why is there no major city here? (Boroughitis) by Urban Jersey Guy The location of Gotham city Cars.destroyed.our.cities Hartford, Connecticut post Blue Java Banana Review by Weird Explorer Artwork: From Megalopolis' Interactive Scene Explained: What Happens In It Recorded on 10/6/2024

What is Chautauqua? Chautauqua began in 1874 in Chautauqua, New York as a Summer camp that trained laymen to be Sunday school teachers. President Ulyses S Grant visited the assembly shortly after its founding in 1875, which gave Chautauqua widespread attention and engendered a national movement; the original Chautauqua (now known in the modern day as the Chautauqua Institution) gave rise to hundreds of “daughter” Chautauquas. They offered week long or month long retreats to religiously minded vacationers who wanted to enjoy nature but also wanted to stay productive by watching edifying sermons, lectures, historical impersonations, and concerts. On this week’s episode the boys discuss how the popular Chautauqua speech Acres of Diamonds resembles the 21st century self help book The Secret, how Chautauqua acts differed from vaudeville acts, and how a specific type of historical impersonation popular in circuit Chautauquas became synonymous with Chautauqua in the modern day. This is the third and final installment of a three part series that explores interconnected topics that deal with American culture and the outdoors. Links: The Chautauqua Institution Chautauqua: An American Narrative (2011) The History of the Chautauqua Movement Acres of Diamonds by Russell Conwell Bohumir Kryl The height of assassins versus that of their targets Reddit post Artwork: Participants of a Circuit Chautauqua at Gurdon (Clark County); circa 1919. Recorded on 9/22/2024

In a more anecdotal direction, this week’s episode is on American Summer camps. The boys detail how camping was first developed in 1861 by Frederick Gunn before discussing their own experiences as campers and counselors at American Summer camps. Amongst other things they discuss how modern Summer camps have felt the need to hyperspecialize and give parents an ROI, how Summer camp aesthetics are 1970’s by default, how Summer camps were depicted as WASPy in Addams Family Values, and how Summer camps were depicted as somewhat utopian in the 1964 Soviet film Welcome, or No Trespassing. This is the second installment of a three part series that explores interconnected topics that deal with American culture and the outdoors. Links: The Not So Happy Campers by Mimi Swartz About our Founder - The Frederick Gunn School Summer Camp Capitalism The History of American Jewish Summer Camps I can tell from her tweets that she had to go live with grandma for a lil bit meme Wednesday’s revolt from The Addams Family Values Long accused of Indigenous misappropriation, Boy Scouts ask if it’s time to change Welcome, or No Trespassing (1964) Artwork: Photograph by Andy Sweet Recorded on 9/15/2023

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration Scouting is a grassroots, child-led movement that began in the early 1900’s after children discovered Robert Baden-Powell’s written accounts of his time working as a scout for the British Army. After learning of children’s interest in his work, Baden-Powell conducted an experimental scout camp at Brownsea Island in 1907 and subsequently published his seminal work Scouting for Boys in 1908. Dozens and hundreds of official scouting organizations followed, most of which still exist today. On this week’s episode the boys detail the history of various figures and organizations in the scouting movement. Amongst other things they discuss how arbitrary it was that the scouting movement was inspired by scouting, how scout badges and scouting uniforms create an archive of people’s childhoods, how Cub Scouts truthfully don’t create their own pinewood derby cars, and how the TTI industry and wilderness therapy are “dark scouting.” This is the first installment of a three part series that explores interconnected topics that deal with American culture and the outdoors. Links: Scouting for Boys by Robert Baden-Powell The Zoomer Question by Isaac Wilkes Remembering the Wandervogel by John Savage & Johnny Ryan David Hahn, The ‘Radioactive Boy Scout’ Who Tried To Build A Nuclear Reactor In His Backyard Joseph as a Cub Scout Nanook of the North (1922) Scouts Honor: The Secret Files of The Boy Scouts of America (2023) Artwork: Scouts with canoe - National Parks Gallery Creative Commons CC0 License Recorded on 9/9/2024

Why was Nathan in Rio de Janeiro last week? Why was he there in 2018? What did he do there? What new fruits did he try? These are some of the important questions Joseph asked Nathan on this week’s episode. Links: Brazil with a Z vs Brasil with an S - example 1 Brazil with a Z vs Brasil with an S - example 2 Artwork: Picture of Rio de Janeiro taken by Nathan from Pão de Açúcar Recorded on 9/2/2024

How did the spy-fi literary and cinematic genre come to be? This week Joseph and Nathan chronicle how detective fiction authors took inspiration from sensational espionage cases such as The Dreyfus Affair and The Rosenberg Trial to imagine what the front lines of The Cold War might look like. The boys cover “realistic” spy movies such as James Bond’s Dr. No, Three Days of the Condor, and The Bourne Trilogy before going into fantastical depictions of spies in Children’s media like The Spy Kids, Kim Possible, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Amongst other things they discuss the difference between state and industrial espionage, Austria’s constitutionally mandated status of neutrality, and Edward Snowden’s modeling portfolio. Links: Nathan’s Instagram Was the Rosenberg trial America’s Dreyfus Affair The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy The Thirty-Nine Steps by Charles Buchan Ep. 53: Bond Girl Summer by Nymphet Alumni Photos from young Edward Snowden’s brief modeling career Trying to Make Sense of Hannah Diamond and Post-Ringtone Music by VICE The Real Life Spy Behind Charlie And The Chocolate Factory Children of undercover Russian spy couple only learned their nationality on flight to Moscow Exclusive: Suspected Chinese spy targeted California politicians Artwork: Sean Connery playing James Bond in From Russia With Love Recorded on 8/16/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration This week the boys are joined by local filmmaker Charles Livingston to discuss male desire. They begin by first discussing straight male desire (the derision of the male gaze, male jealousy and possessiveness, and gender performance) before going into a deep exploration of Nathan’s thesis that yearning is the most universal and inexorable difficulty experienced by gay men. Amongst other things they discuss how the Ancient Romans conflated sexual conquest with imperial conquest, how Cleopatra in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra weaponized mens’ desire, and how straight men and gay men seem to equally match each other in terms of desire. Links: Charles Livingston’s Instagram Wings by Charles Livingston Oscars 2018: Facts and figures about the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - Orange County Register The VICE Guide to Being Gay Armond and Mark scene from the White Lotus Artwork: Germanic Warrior with Helmet, Osmar Schindler, 1902 Recorded on 8/11/2024

On this week’s (sans Joseph) episode of Silent Generation, Nathan is joined by his friend Kamara to discuss antiques. They talk about how they first got into antiques, the best antiques that they own, and the defining characteristics of several antique furniture styles (Victorian, Arts & Crafts Movement, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Mid-century Modern). Amongst other things they discuss how Victorian antiques and houses are construed as being haunted, how antiques seem to be most popular in rural areas, and how the antiques industry acts as a point of intergenerational exchange between different generations of gay men. Links: Antiques Pinterest Board (Nathan’s antiques are at the bottom) A Lamp & Fixture Corp Tighlman Chicago Justanswer Antiques The Blue Fairy Book edited by Andrew Lang Campbell House Museum The Slav Epic by Alphonse Mucha THREATENED: Hector Guimard’s Art Nouveau Metra Entrance Restor-A-Finish Youtube demo The Roger Brown Study Collection Artwork: Art Deco Cubist Armchair in Vermilion Mohair Velvet and Maple, Belgium, 1920s Recorded on 8/4/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration This week the boys cover a listener suggested topic that is closely associated with their lines of work: unions. Nathan is currently a librarian represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and Joseph works in the heavily unionized construction industry. Amongst other things they discuss how violent strikes were prior to the formation of the NLRB in 1935, how the Haymarket Affair lead to creation of the 8 hour work day, how YIMBYs feel ambivalent toward unions, and how unions mitigate but don’t eliminate the deleterious effects of monopolization. Links: How Chicago’s Past Resulted in Disproportionate Lead Poisoning of Minority Children of the Present: A Narrative Review The Redneck Army Refuses to Stay Buried by Cassady Rosenblum Ep. 164: Labor Union Depictions in Hollywood by Citations Needed Ten cities facing the worst of the pension crisis CTA has only netted 4 rail operators this year Reddit post Noisy and Unsafe: Stop Fetishizing Old Homes by M. Nolan Gray A ton of variation in construction labor cost M. Nolan Gray tweet Artwork: Der Streik by Robert Koehler Recorded on 7/28/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration Christopher Lasch identified narcissism as the dominant pathology of the Baby Boomer generation in his seminal work The Culture of Narcissism and suggested that prior and future generations of Americans would also exhibit collective pathologies. What is the dominant pathology or ideology of the Millennial generation? On this week’s episode Joseph and Nathan are joined by their friend Bobby to present evidence that said ideology is nihilism. They examine the causes of Millennial nihilism (The Great Recession, 9/11, New Atheism) and the effects that nihilism has had on Millennials (“cutting off your family” discourse, distrust of authority, the proliferation of sexwork, and the increasing number of deaths of despair). Amongst other things they discuss what generation they personally identify with, how nihilism has been slowly accumulating from generation to generation, and how both Rick and Morty and Everything Everywhere All at Once use the idea of multiverses to create worlds in which nihilism is justified. Links: The Culture of Narcissism by Christopher Lasch The Revolt of the Elites by Christopher Lasch “Optimistic Nihilism” Tiktok Video The Nihilism of Generation X is an Artifact of Privilege by Shane Burley The End of History and the Last Man by Francis Fukuyama “I’m tired of living through historic events” meme The Case Against the Sexual Revolution by Louise Perry ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ in the Age of #StopAsianHate and Millennial Nihilism Recorded on 7/21/2024

Ivy Style, otherwise known as Ivy League, is a style of men’s dress that became mainstream at Ivy League schools during the 1950’s. Students started wearing casual versions of the traditional menswear staples worn by their fathers and started wearing clothing originally designed for recreational activities outside of sports fields. On this week’s episode Joseph and Nathan delineate various Ivy Style staples and talk about several groups that adopted the look: Jews who dressed Ivy in order to blend in in professional environments, female students at the Seven Sisters schools who dressed Ivy in a strikingly masculine way, and Black civil rights activists who dressed Ivy in order to persuade White Americans that they were equals. The boys then round off the episode by critiquing the Ivy League as an institution. Links: Ivy League Pinterest Board The Ivy Style Primer American Ivy: Chapter 1 - Articles of Interest Take Ivy by Hayashida, Teruyoshi The Weird and Glorious Culture Shock of “Take Ivy” Kiel James Patrick’s Instagram Man fired for being ‘too American,’ old, wearing khakis: EEOC complaint Visual snow syndrome grid pattern post What is Black Ivy, and why you've never heard of it The Zoomer Question by Isaac Wilks Air rage triggered by walking past first-class seating, study says Liquidated: An Ethnography of Wall Street by Karen Ho Pete Buttigieg McKinsey tweet Artwork: Sunday in the Ivy League from Take Ivy Recorded on 7/15/2024

This week Joseph and Nathan are joined by Marissa Macias, a local artist and fashion designer who owns the insect-inspired clothing brand Petrichor, to discuss insect aesthetics. They begin by examining 7 of the ~30 extant insect orders: hymenoptera (ants, bees, wasps), odonata (dragonflies), coleoptera (beetles), orthoptera (grasshoppers, crickets), mantodea (mantids), lepidoptera (butterflies, moths), and heteroptera (true bugs). Amongst other things they discuss Chicago’s recent dual cicada brood emergence, how insects appeared in pre-modern still lives because of their association with death, and how decline in insect biomass could result in systems collapse and a sixth extinction. Links: https://www.petrich0r.com/ (online shop) Petrichor (Instagram) Marissa’s Neurobasis Kaupi Are.na Channel Maria Sibylla Merian The Insect Asylum Cicada Parade-a Carravagio’s Basket of Fruit Durer’s Stag Beetle Eating Bugs to Save the Planet by Dana Goodyear The Collapse of Insects By Julia Janicki, Gloria Dickie, Simon Scarr and Jitesh Chowdhury Earth Is Not in the Midst of a Sixth Mass Extinction by Peter Brannen Ocean Trash Is a Lifesaver for Insects by Daniel Strain Artwork: Neurobasis Kaupi by Marissa Macias Recorded on 7/10/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration Originally started as a Facebook page by three Portland natives, health goth was an online internet aesthetic that proliferated from 2013 to 2015. Health goth imagery and fashion incorporated monochrome color schemes, performance wear brands (particularly Nike, Adidas, and Y-3), chav culture, light weaponry, face masks, and fitness culture. Where did it go, and why has it been erased from public memory to a greater degree than other early Tumblr aesthetics? On this week's episode the boys explore how the aesthetic was later commandeered and mishandled by the controversial former Chicago club kid Johnny Love. Amongst other things they discuss how the aesthetic side of Tumblr often made them feel “Tumblr fatigue,” how local DIY scenes are a recipe for drama and GoFundMe disasters, how goth clean girl looks eerily reminiscent to health goth, and how phonk seems to be health goth music incarnate. Links: Health Goth Pinterest Board Health Goth Facebook Page healthgoth.com Cottweiler: 2014 S/S Collection What Health Goth Actually Means by Adam Harper Health Goth Fitness Manifesto #HealthGoth - Hashtags Season II by Red Bull Music Academy execussion.tumblr.com 2012 by Celestial Youth Is the Health Goth Movement Selling Out to the Mainstream? meme about scene rants famous 2012 basement group photo w/ Johnny Love Johny Love’s recent health goth facebook post The DigiFairy’s goth clean girl Instagram reel Phonk Aesthetics Artwork: Jazzelle Zaughnatti wearing a Dead Worldwide shirt Recorded on 6/30/2024

While many recent episodes of Silent Generation have focused on decline, this episode explores how movie theaters have had multiple golden eras. Vaudeville theaters, nickelodeons, movie theaters, drive-ins, and multiplexes have each offered unique ways for moviegoers to enjoy films. Joseph and Nathan begin by discussing the history of movie theaters before examining four iconic movie palaces in Chicago: The Garrick Theater, The Chicago Theater, The Music Box, and the Ramova Theater. Amongst other things they discuss how movie studios used to bundle blockbusters and B-movies together in a now illegal practice called “block booking,” how the stars in the ceiling of The Music Box theater remind them of Grand Central Station, how modern movie theaters have an Art Deco-esque aesthetic that is called Decoplex, and how Alamo Drafthouse Cinema workers are unionizing. Links: Downtown Chicago’s Historic Movie Theaters by Schiecke, Konrad Avondale Time Machine posts about movie theaters in Avondale All Extant Louis Sullivan Buildings in Chicago The Last American Possession screening at the Music Box on July 24th CTA Bus Hit, Damaged Ramova Theatre Days After Building Earned Initial Landmark Status Alamo Drafthouse Made Millions. Exhausted Workers Said Enough Artwork: The Music Box Recorded on 6/23/2023

In response to the Berlin Crisis of 1961, President John F. Kennedy chose to encourage everyday Americans to construct homemade bunkers. Civilians could suddenly mitigate their fears of a nuclear holocaust through consumption, and thus prepper culture was born. This week the boys are joined by the writer and community builder Anna Savina to discuss preppers, survivalists, and other groups that have doomsday inspired “exit strategies.” They begin by examining the zine she created on bunkers, Bunker Mentality, to explain how bunkers fit into the story of how Americans shifted from being citizens to being consumers. Amongst other things they discuss how the towers that existed in medieval Italian cities were an early form of bunkers, how prepper culture seems to thrive in the interior of the United States rather than the coasts, and how the prepper aesthetics depicted in Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding were beautiful but ultimately not representative of prepper culture. Links: Prepper Aesthetics Pinterest Board Anya is Typing… Anna Savina's Zine on bunkers: Bunker Mentality Anna Savina’s Twitter Prepper Lingo: Terms, Slang, and Acronyms from A-Z Towers of Bologna, Italy in the 12th Century San Gimignano Preppers in Death Stranding New Survivalism by Parsons & Charlesworth, The Object Guardian Conservative guy afraid of cities meme Why We Love the Apocalypse - EP183 by The Casual Preppers Podcast Wikipedia Database download Graph of the Population of Rome Through History Artwork: How to build a fallout shelter, 1957 Creative Commons CC0 License Recorded on 6/19/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration Many themes thus far discussed on Silent Generation are present in fast food culture: car-centrism, postwar decline, Americanism, and uniforms. This week the boys are joined by Mathieu (who goes by Sleepy on Discord) to talk about McDonald’s, CosMc’s, Taco Bell, In-N-Out Burger, Wendy’s, and Culver’s in detail. Chicago has four (in)famous McDonald’s locations that they pay particular attention to: Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's, CrackDonald’s, Jungle McDonald’s, and the McDonald's Global Menu Restaurant. Amongst other things they discuss the decline of fast food architecture from its Googie architecture highs, chains that are holding on for dear life like KewPee Hamburgers and Quizno’s, and their favorite discontinued menu items. Links: White Castle #16 Googie 101: A Space-Age Pop-Architecture Primer Tokyo Toni 80 Pieces of Chicken McDonald’s Broke My Heart from Malcolm Gladwell’s Revisionist History Podcast Rock N Roll McDonalds by Wesley Willis Why McDonald’s looks sleek and boring now Nonstandard McDonalds The site of the former “jungle Mcdonald’s” on Google Maps The rise and fall of Wendy’s sun rooms Breaking Points: We Were TRICKED By Red Lobster Endless Shrimp Excuse! What Happened To Chipotle? Artwork: Art Deco McDonald’s from Nonstandard McDonald’s Clifton Hill, Melbourne, Australia Recorded on 6/9/2024

On this week’s episode Joseph and Nathan examine sportswear worn by both athletes and their fans. Episode 14 of Silent Generation already covered Olympic sports, so this week’s episode focuses on major league sports. They cover each of the following: baseball, basketball, football, golf, hockey, and soccer (plus rugby, road cycling, and tennis for good measure). Amongst other things they discuss how White Sox players briefly wore shorts in the 1970s, how rappers popularized hockey jerseys in the 1990s, how cyclists were depicted in The Triplets of Belleville, and how coaches (like Tom Landry and Pat Riley) dressed better prior to league-wide contracts. Links: Sportswear Pinterest Board American Apparel’s Poly Mesh Football Jersey Gay baseball raglan meme 1, Gay baseball raglan meme 2 How Hockey Jerseys Became Standard Wear for Fans When a Sweater Defined One of the Best Rivalries The Rise Of Athleisure In The Fashion Industry And What It Means For Brands Artwork: John Stockton Recorded on 6/2/2024

Why has the general public been skeptical of nuclear energy, seemingly even before the technology existed? Joining the boys on this week’s episode of Silent Generation is Madison Hilly, founder and director of the Campaign for a Green Nuclear Deal, to discuss how the discourse around nuclear energy has been heavily influenced by its depictions in popular culture. They examine The China Syndrome, The Simpsons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Chernobyl (2019) to examine how erroneous depictions of nuclear waste and nuclear meltdowns have fomented fear. Amongst other things they talk about when Madi went viral for taking a picture next to nuclear waste while pregnant, how the baby boomer strain of environmentalism leans more “conservationist,” why nuclear waste and slime in childrens’ media is always depicted as being green, and how left wing opposition to nuclear energy seems to come from subconscious fears that radioactive material isn’t “natural.” Links: The Campaign for a Green Nuclear Deal Madison Hilly’s Twitter Pregnant Woman Poses With 'Nuclear Waste' To Prove Point About Radiation (Newsweek) By the Waters of Babylon by Stephen Vincent Benét Cornelia Hesse-Honegger’s Mutations Science Behind Science Fiction: How do Teenage Turtles become Mutant Ninjas? Studies Show That, As We Age, Our Ability To See Vivid Colors Decline Holtec reports “remarkable progress” towards restart of Palisades Artwork: Nuclear power plant LCCN, Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division digital ID highsm.13019, CC0 Recorded on 5/26/2024

Full episode available on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SilentGeneration Many parents today tell their children to simply “be a good person” and do not offer them moral guidelines beyond that. “Being a good person” isn’t a robust enough moral framework to deal with the complexities of everyday life, so many people resort to creating their own moral codes (either completely independently, or through the help of internet gurus like Jordan Peterson). On this week’s episode of Silent Generation, Nathan and Joseph reflect on their own moral codes and talk about the origins and justifications of the rules they’ve made for themselves. Amongst other things they discuss how gay culture doesn’t offer gay men a moral framework, how you should aim to be contrarian only 50% of the time, how the public has become tired of plotlines that deal with moral gray areas, and how modern Hollywood has only offered the public antiheroes in place of actual heroes. Links: Jordan Peterson - Are You a Good Person? The Epidemic of Gay Loneliness Artwork: The School of Athens by Raphael Recorded on 5/19/2024

As previously noted, Nathan has a general aversion to bikes and bike infrastructure. But where does his “bike skepticism” come from, and why do many other Americans feel the same way? On this week’s episode of Silent Generation Joseph gets to the root of Nathan’s bias (the temperament of cyclists, tacky bike lane infrastructure, and the “aesthetics of control”) and makes the case for bike-oriented cities. Amongst other things they discuss how most Americans approach biking from a sports angle, the way streets were shared by multiple transit modes in the early 20th century, how biking becomes less viable in the Winter, and how Los Angeles has the potential to become America’s foremost biking city. Links: The new Silent Generation Patreon! San Francisco streetcar footage from a hundred years ago Years and Years by Russell T Davies On Adam Levine's tattoos Why Many Cities Suck (and Los Angeles Doesn't Have to) Strong Town’s idea of “complex vs. complicated” Artwork: AI generated Recorded on 5/12/2024

In Western culture men often wear little to no jewelry, often opting to only wear a wedding ring and/ or a watch. What meaning can be discerned from the jewelry that Western men do wear and why don’t they wear more? On this week’s episode of Silent Generation the boys begin by discussing the form and function of the types of jewelry men most commonly wear: rings, cufflinks, tie pins, watches, necklaces, and belt buckles. Amongst other things they discuss the popularity of pearl jewelry amongst male queerbaiters, when men’s jewelry becomes a red flag, why wearable tech lost its potential to be considered jewelry, Nathan’s time working in the jewelry industry, and how millennial pink was a stepping stone into alternative fashion for preppy people in the late 2010s. Links: Rings & Their Meaning by Gentleman’s Gazette Fran Lebowitz wearing Calder cufflinks in Scorsese’s “Pretend It’s a City” how’d you know im uncut meme “I got court” starterpack meme Artwork: Screenshot from The Talented Mr. Ripley Recorded on 5/5/2024

On this week’s first ever sequel episode the boys are joined by Shan Beaste, best known by her stage name Zombelle, who was one of the co-creators of the Seapunk movement and aesthetic. As detailed in episode 12, Seapunk (2011-2014) was a ‘90s inspired aquatic subculture that Nathan participated in during high school. Zombelle recently re-released her seminal seapunk album Tropicult (remastered by Myrrhkaba) which fortuitously led to her and Nathan connecting over Instagram and spurred this week’s episode. In this reexploration of seapunk, Shan and the boys discuss Shan’s early musical history and life story, confirm that she coined the term slimepunk, reiterate the place of mermaids in seapunk culture, attribute the idea of the “internet subculture formula” to Zombelle, and speculate what second wave seapunk (or “seapunk 2”) could look like. Any former (or current) seapunk listeners are encouraged by Shan to send testimonials, photographs, or other ephemera from Seapunk’s existence to [email protected] for an impending book she is writing on seapunk’s history! Links: Zombelle’s SoundCloud Zombelle’s Instagram Zombelle’s Seapunk Spotify playlist The Mainframe.im Instagram page The seapunk Wikipedia article Don't Call It #Tumblrwave The Complete CORAL RECORDS INTERNAZIONALE catalog from archive.org Random Aesthetic Generator New miracle weight loss drug! by Praefoco21 Artwork: Provided by Zombelle Intro song: Bad Creation by Zombelle Recorded on 4/28/2024

Americans generally travel domestically in four ways: road trips, air travel, train travel, and boat travel. The boys start by sharing anecdotes about their experiences with each type of domestic travel; Joseph says that he traveled for free on military aircraft as a child and Nathan shares how he grew up in a house with a boat in the backyard along the Chicago river. They then question if Americans prioritize cost, convenience, or culture when making decisions on how to travel both domestically and abroad. Amongst other things they discuss Joseph’s recent bachelor party road trip, national parks attendance, the Indiana Dunes, the South Shore Line, the Catskills, and RVs. Links: Top 10 Places to Build High Speed Rail In the U.S. by CityNerd Run Lola Run why would i fly it's only a 14 hour drive Notorious Gridlock of Colorado's I-70 (Upzoned Episode) Colorado’s I-70 Has America’s Most Notorious Ski Traffic. Is There a Solution? by Gloria Liu This Town Was Paradise, Then Everyone Started Working From Home (VICE documentary) Artwork: Meeting the train, 1954 by Ross Orr Recorded on 4/24/2024

Trailers for Alex Garland’s Civil War have tantalized the general public (and the hosts of Silent Generation) for months with scenes of explosions and themes of political polarization. This weekend the movie debuted as the #1 film in the nation, being the first A24 film to do so. On this week’s episode of Silent Generation the boys are joined by their friend Patrick to discuss the film and share personal theories of what a second civil war in America would look like. Amongst other things they discuss journalism, horseshoe theory, the role of sanctions in a second civil, Texit/ Calexit, and finally whether or not they personally support the idea of a national divorce. Links: Civil War trailer The Sound of Silence by Alfredo Jaar Richard Mosse’s photography Introducing the Idea of Hyperobjects Is CIVIL WAR Looming? ft. Kim Iversen Anthropology and Counterinsurgency by Montgomery McFate Recorded on 4/14/2024

This week Joseph and Nathan discuss an American cultural figure that can be found at the cross section of many themes thus far covered in Silent Generation: the early 1900s, train travel, ethical codes, and situational homosexuality. Hobos are perceived as yesteryear’s equivalent of the modern homeless person but they were vastly different, hobos were migrant workers with a complex system of rules and cultural values. During the episode the boys pay particular attention to hobo landmarks in Chicago such as West Madison Street, Bughouse Square, and Ben Reitman’s hobo college. Amongst other things they discuss Kitt Kittredge, the umwelt, how the word “gay” originated from hobo slang, The Dawn of Everything, and crust punks. Links: Hobos, Wandering in America, 1870-1940 by Richard Wormser On Hobos and Homelessness by Nels Anderson The Damndest Radical by Roger A. Bruns The Hobo Ethical Code The Case Against Travel by Agnes Collard Alex Kaschuta’s tweet about stigmatization Death of the American Hobo - VICE Welcome to Oogleville by Gordon Lamb Artwork: This photograph (from 1870 - 1930) is from the George Grantham Bain collection at the Library of Congress. There are no known copyright restrictions on the use of this work. Recorded on 4/8/2024

Electroclash is a musical genre that was most popular from 1999 to 2005 and is described as being a 50/50 mixture of electronic and rock music with an ‘80s bent. Unlike prior electronic genres, live singing, dancing, and stage performance were deployed by electroclash musicians who wanted to channel the theatricality and sex appeal of 1980s rock stars. To help explore the genre Joseph and Nathan are joined by Maya, also known as Mayalabae, a Chicago native who is now a DJ in Montreal. They begin by playing four of the biggest hits to come out of Electroclash and then identify common characteristics across the genre. Amongst other things they discuss Nathan’s favorite song as a child, Fischerspooner’s lecture at SAIC, the normie lows of the mid-2000s, the documentary Clash of Cultures: The Rise of the New Electro Scene, Liquid Sky (1982), and Lady Gaga’s accidental actualization of the electroclash agenda. Links: Maya’s Electroclash Playlist Nathan’s Electroclash Playlist Clash of Cultures: The Rise of the New Electro Scene (2002) Liquid Sky (1982) Party Monster (2003) Get Happy by Happy Thought Hall Electroclash: A Brief Cultural History Artwork: Hong Kong Counterfeit Discography: Vinyl, CDs, & More | Discogs All song clips used in this episode are claimed as fair use Recorded on 3/30/2024

Vaporwave is a 1980’s inspired musical genre and aesthetic that thrived on Tumblr from 2012-2020. Broadly, vaporwave musicians slow down and remix samples of 1980’s songs in order to evoke nostalgic memories of the Reagan era, Yuppies, and globalization. On this week’s vaporwave episode of Silent Generation, Joseph and Nathan are joined by Peter (a trance musician known as David James Drume), who previously made vaporwave music under the name Eleven Eastern. They begin by briefly discussing the genre’s musical origins before delineating the aesthetic elements of vaporwave art: early 3D graphics, Greek New Media Sh*t, Japanese text, Japanese fine art, and cityscapes. Amongst other things they discuss Joseph’s high school 3D animation class, New Classical architecture, fears of Japanese ascendency during the 1980s, vaporwave’s appeal to suburban men, and the perennial popularity of vaporwave music on Chinese urbanist Tiktok accounts. Links: Drume’s Soundcloud Resuscitation Hymn by Drume Eleven Eastern on Tumblr Greek New Media Sh*t Flossing by Six Dogs レッドYOLO Cityviews888 TradCath E-Girl Summit Artwork: AI Recorded on 3/17/2024

Yuppies get a bad rap. In his seminal work The Culture of Narcissism (1979), Christopher Lasch described how the coming generation of baby boomers would broadly exhibit symptoms of pathological narcissism such as hedonism, envy, greed, and an aversion to aging. Yuppies (young urban professionals) migrated en masse in cities during the1980s and were the apotheosis of their generation’s narcissistic pathology; they had wildly successful careers but each promotion and salary increase was never enough. On this week’s episode of Silent Generation, Joseph and Nathan begin by acknowledging these traits but then approach Yuppies from a warmer angle, examining the beauty of their clothing and expressing gratitude for the ways in which they helped revitalize cities during the 1980s. Amongst other things they discuss sweater vests, slicked back hair, shoulder pads, and if Trump was a Yuppie. They then conclude by discussing Yuppies in a modern context, addressing if they still exist and contemplating where you can find them in Chicago. Links: Yuppies Pinterest Board The Culture of Narcissism by Christopher Lasch The Yuppie Turns 35 by Luke Seemann The Political Distinctiveness of Young Professionals: "Yuppies" or "New Class"? Eric and Donald Trump jr.’s slicked back hair How the biggest yuppie of the 1980s became the white working class’s president Whatever Happened to the Yuppie by JPCrocks The Yuppie Rap Pajama Crawl The New Yorker’s politically polarized duplex cover Artwork: Lisa Diserio and Richard Ryan dressed for success on Fifth Avenue in New York City Recorded on 3/10/2024

Sky Cubacub is a local artist who designs custom clothing for the full spectrum of gender and ability through their clothing line Rebirth Garments. While the majority of the garments Sky now makes are made out of stretchy spandex material, much of their early work was made out of chainmail and they remain one of the World’s foremost chainmail artisans. On this week’s episode of Silent Generation, Nathan (former Rebirth Garments intern) gets to interview Sky and explore the symbolic meaning of chainmail in Sky’s work and in broader culture.Together they discuss buscars, Radical Visibility, Princess Irulan’s chainmail look in Dune pt. 2, and how listeners can get started making chainmail. Links: Sky’s Instagram Rebirth Garment’s Instagram Rebirth Garment’s Shop Sky’s YOUmedia chainmaille videos Chained by Rebecca Mojica The Ring Lord Artwork: Pansarskjorta - Livrustkammaren - 19247 Creative common liscense provided by Livrustkammaren (The Royal Armoury) Recorded on 3/3/2024

In anticipation of the impending Summer 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Joseph and Nathan question why the games seem to appeal to people who are otherwise uninterested in sports outside of the Olympics on this week’s episode. They point to the opening ceremony, “hometown” athletes, and (comparative) lack of corporate advertising. They then address the highlights and lowlights of the 5 most recent Summer Olympic Games: Athens (2004), Beijing (2008), London (2012), Rio de Janeiro (2016), and Tokyo (2020). Amongst other things they discuss host city public transit expansion projects, the velodrome in the Chicago suburbs, the dark side of the Olympics, their favorite Olympians, rugby, and how cute the 2024 game’s mascots are. Links: London 2012: Indian Gatecrasher at Opening Ceremony Identified The Tokyo Olympic’s Gymnasium Poland by Lil Yachty The Good, the Bad, & the Snowy of Salt Lake City Transit IOC Salaries Artwork: Flickr: Rome Olympics 1960 - Opening Day Recorded on 3/3/2024

Shifting to fresh water, why does America undervalue one of its greatest natural resources? The Great Lakes are in many ways culturally invisible; many Americans underestimate their size and economic importance. On this week’s episode of Silent Generation the boys are joined by their friend David (a recent transplant and Great Lakes enthusiast) to discuss how the Midwest needs to be divided into the Great Lakes and the Great Plains in order to boost the region. The former should be rebranded as America’s third coast, the “Fresh Coast,” in order to start making the region more attractive to incoming climate refugees from the Sun Belt. They also discuss the “Dirty Coast,” the idea of the logo map, Michigan’s Pure Michigan ad campaign, their predictions for A24’s upcoming Civil War film, and the “Jell-O Belt.” Links: The Great Lakes shipping routes graphic The Death and Life of The Great Lakes by Dan Eagan How to Hide an Empire by Daniel Immerwahr Immewahr’s Logo Map tweet Pure Michigan’s Steam Locomotive Ad Great Lakes’ ice cover doing almost the unthinkable Artwork: Great Lakes including Canals and Tributary Navigable Streams, 1948 David Rumsey Map Collection, David Rumsey Map Center, Stanford Libraries Recorded on 2/18/2024

Seapunk was a subculture and musical genre that emerged in 2011 after people started sharing ‘90s aquatic imagery on Tumblr, and Nathan (Silent Generation host and ex-Seapunk) gravitated toward it while he was a diver in high school and adopted the aesthetic. While Seapunk, Nathan created an extensive 120 slide slideshow that documented the Seapunk subculture as it was actively happening that he shares with Joseph on week’s episode of Silent Generation. They walk through Seapunk’s origins, founders (Lill Internet, Ultrademon, Zombelle, Unicorn Kid), fashion, music, fame, lull period, resurgence, and permanent decline. Amongst other things they detail Grimes’s involvement with Seapunk, the week when both Rinhanna performed Diamonds on SNL & Azealia Banks dropped her Atlantis music video, Slimepunk, Icepunk, and Nathan's many close calls with meeting other Seapunks. Links: Nathan’s Seapunk Slidedeck Artwork: Kevin Heckart Recorded on 2/11/2024 All song clips used in this episode are claimed as fair use

The ‘70s can be construed as being one of the darkest decades in American history. Crises such as stagflation, declining union membership, the 1973-1975 recession, the Energy Crisis, and the Vietnam War all occurred simultaneously. Said clothing produced during the ‘70s showed a shallow optimism which can be seen in garments like newsboy caps, satin shirts, bell bottom jeans, tube socks, and platform shoes. In addition they discuss the dominant colors of the ‘70s (brown, avocado green, and harvest gold), the consumer rights movement, yoga pants, and share intel they gathered from family members who were alive during the ‘70s. Links: The ‘70s Pinterest Board How Color Choices Echo the Economic Climate and Why It Matters The Last Days of Disco men_satinshirts Artwork: Pauline and Dairn, New York, 1970 CC BY 2.0 DEED, Attribution 2.0 Generic Recorded on 2/8/2024

This week the boys are joined by Kone, a local fashion designer who co-owns the eponymous Kone Ranger clothing brand along with his brother Kevin. Kone Ranger opened up a permanent location in Avondale in 2022 to offer Chicagoans the opportunity to buy handmade Western-inspirted garments. But what do cowboys mean to Kone? To answer this question, they begin by critiquing both the function and form of the various elements that make up a cowboy’s’ outfit: cowboy hats, handkerchiefs, Western shirts, chaps, and cowboy boots. They then address broader ideas such as the connection between cowboys and knights, the appropriation of Western clothing in other regions of the country, the difference between cowboy uniforms and cowboy costumes, and gay cowboy films (Broke Back Mountain and Power of the Dog). Links: The Cultural Myth of the Cowboy, or, How the West Was Won by Jennifer Moskowitz Mark Maggiori’s paintings ‘Hey Y’all!’ Tries Friend From New Jersey Sweetgrass by Lucien Castaing-Taylor Artwork provided by Kone Ranger Recorded on 1/28/2024

Department stores are in many ways the ultimate third place. You can use them to meet up with friends, to avoid the elements, to get a bite to eat, to look at interesting displays, to get advice on your wardrobe, and to buy a wide variety of consumer products. So why are they declining and what can be done about it? This week Joseph and Nathan begin by talking about the early history of department stores (with particularly sharp focus on Chicago) before talking about their personal experiences in department stores. Amongst other things they discuss The Crystal Palace, Goth Target, Richard Nickel, the connection between department stores and the death of the flaneur, and Chicago’s North Lawndale community area. Links: On the Birth of the Flaneuse by the Flaneuse Project IT’SUGAR The Robinson-Patman Act Levy’s in Nashville, TN The Department Store is Dead by Lovewhatyousell Glitching through the matrix at the State Street Macy’s by its.murt Recorded on 1/27/2024