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Silent Generation

Silent Generation

Written by: Silent Generation
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About this listen

Silent Generation is a Chicago-based cultural analysis podcast that surveys the cultural consequences of car-oriented development in the mid-20th century. It explores what was lost between the Silent Generation and Generation Z. Topics discussed include aesthetics, fashion, history, and urbanism.

Find us on Instagram: silent.generation

Copyright 2023 All rights reserved.
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Episodes
  • Bidding Farewell to Joseph
    Dec 8 2025

    In this important announcement, Joseph shares his plans to leave Silent Generation and Nathan shares his plans to continue it. The podcast will relaunch in two to three months with a new co-host that is familiar to the community. Nathan also shares that he is open to adding other regular contributors, and that a Discord member named Juniper is going to make a commemorative zine for the first iteration of the podcast.

    Links:

    Nathan’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nathan_knize/

    Silent Generation’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/silent.generation/

    Recorded on 12/3/2025

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    4 mins
  • Ep. 93: Bicoastal Lifestyles w/ Nevadastyles
    Dec 1 2025

    Nevada (also known as Nevadastyles on Instagram) is a hair artist from New York City who has lived a bicoastal lifestyle for the last half decade. For the majority of that time she has lived and worked in both New York City and Los Angeles, but her career as a hair artist has brought her all over the world. On this week’s episode of Silent Generation, she joins Nathan for a conversation about why she and other creatives aspire to live bicoastal lifestyles. They begin with a conversation about the pros and cons of New York City and Los Angeles, focusing on key geographic and cultural differences. Nathan then argues that the rise of bicoastal living represents the latest stage in the elite’s drift toward rootlessness and cosmopolitanism, a pattern described by Christopher Lasch in The Revolt of the Elites. The episode concludes with a discussion about whether having roots (and not being bicoastal) is a status symbol and the common traits shared by big city natives.

    Links:

    @nevadastyles - Instagram Profile

    https://www.nevadaraffaele.com/

    New Data Tool and Research Show Where People Move as Young Adults by

    Nathaniel Hendren, Sonya R. Porter and Ben Sprung-Keyser

    The Death and Life of the Great Lakes by Dan Egan

    The Revolt of the Elites by Christopher Lasch

    The messy, viral fight over America's fourth 'major' city by Tessa Mclean

    What are the 4 major US cities? The internet can't decide. Vote for your picks by Melina Khan

    Artwork:

    New York 1971 by Hans-Peter Balfanz

    CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

    Boyle Heights, 1979 by John Humble

    Recorded on 11/19/2025

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    1 hr
  • Ep. 92: Adult Contemporary
    Nov 17 2025

    Adult contemporary is a radio format and marketing category originally created by Billboard magazine. It has encompassed many genres, starting with easy listening in the 1960s. What could be considered adult contemporary changed over the decades as genres like rock and roll and electronic music grew older, and older listeners found their sounds more palatable. But what does “adult contemporary” mean, and why do the songs that get grouped into the category appeal to adults so much?

    This week’s episode of Silent Generation focuses on adult contemporary music in the 1990s and 2000s. Joseph and Nathan begin by outlining the history of the radio format before discussing the common features of adult contemporary songs. They then review the music of U2, Vanessa Carlton, The Verve, Zero 7, Ivy, and After. The episode concludes with a discussion of what happened to adult contemporary, focusing on why the radio format no longer has a distinct sound.

    Links:

    Adult Contemporary Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/…

    Adult Contemporary Music Guide: What Is Adult Contemporary?

    The Adult Contemporary Billboard Chart

    When Rock Bands Become Adult Contemporary (part 1) by Eduard Banulescu

    90s Adult Contemporary - Totally 80s and 90s Recall

    Clocks by Coldplay

    Beautiful Day by U2

    A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton

    Bitter Sweet Symphony by The Verve

    Destiny by Zero 7

    Disappointed by Ivy

    Deep Diving by After

    Most craziest American Idol contestant ever, Mary Roach

    U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere

    The Story of 'A Thousand Miles' by Vanessa Carlton

    White Chicks (2004) - A Thousand Miles Terry Crews Scene

    The greatest songwriting theft of all time - David Hartly

    Ivy Talks Making the Seminal Y2K Dreampop LP ‘Long Distance’ by Myke Dodge Weiskopf

    Meet After, the L.A. Duo Making Y2k-Inspired Pop That Feels Like Right Now by Jeff Ihaza

    You’re deep diving - @aftertheband

    Gen X Soft Club - CARI page

    List of Billboard Adult Contemporary number ones of 2025

    Adult Contemporary 100 week of 11/09/2025

    Where Have All the Adult Contemporary Artists Gone? - Daniel Montoya Jr.

    Artwork:

    U2 at the Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris, Summer 2000

    Recorded on 11/12/2025

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    1 hr and 5 mins
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