What a time to be alive!: On the latest vibe shift

Dare we [not] hope? (& why you should attend the reading party)

I have been known to endlessly sing the praises of Caffe Reggio, the cramped Italian establishment that has been a staple of Manhattan’s West Village since the 1920s. The caffe is known for its walls covered in “byzantine clutter”—pieces of art ranging from Renaissance prints and originals by students of Caravaggio, to religious icons and busts of Nefertiti. It also boasts numerous claims to fame including having been featured in books and movies, being the home of the world’s first cappuccino machine (so they say), and being situated across the street from what was once the house of Louisa May Alcott.

It draws a bustling crowd of bohemians and NYU students—not so much for its overpriced coffee drinks and mediocre pastries—but for its “aesthetic.” Its over all vibe—the art, the playlist of Chopin and Italian opera in the background, and the owner who paces about in his coiffed hair and pressed suits—makes one feel like a character in a classic film. The ambiance is one of decadence; it incentivizes its patrons to go about their conversations, reading their books, or typing away on their laptops with a performative flair. I highly doubt those holding “subversive” books up nearly above their heads by authors like Camus and Houellebecq with the covers in plain view are doing so to see the words more clearly, but rather are trying to put on a show for those sitting near them.

Eavesdropping on others’ conversations at Reggio’s is an art in itself…and is a litmus test for gauging the direction of hipness and the artsy “counterculture.” Since I started frequenting the caffe nearly ten years ago, I’ve noticed a dramatic shift in the tone of conversations. Back in 2014, it was standard to use terms and concepts from poststructuralist discourse, critiquing the patriarchy and systemic oppression. Now, conversations focus more on aesthetics, the arts, and a brand of politics that is neither conventionally left nor right.

One recent trip to Reggio’s was with a friend whose political convictions are best categorized under the postliberal/integralist camp. As our conversation about Pope Leo XIII, Dobbs, and labor unions ensued, I couldn’t help but wonder if the M2F sitting next to us was bothered by the tone of our discourse. But to my surprise, she leaned over toward me while my friend was in the bathroom to compliment my shirt depicting the Trevi Fountain scene from La Dolce Vita. “I looove Marcello Mastroianni! Fellini’s films are amazing,” she exclaimed, putting down her copy of Simone Weil’s The Need for Roots. We then went on to discuss the films, including some of Fellini’s, that have been screened at the Film Forum down the block.

Inviting friends to their first coffee at Reggio’s is a spiritual experience for me. I successfully enticed another friend into joining me recently by telling her that the place had “Paglia vibes.” Over decaf almondmilk cappuccinos and day old cannolis, she asked me if I think Gen Z and the future in its hands is “screwed,” hopeless.

I couldn’t but say no…quite the opposite in fact. Perhaps ten years ago my response would have been different. But as of late, I’ve felt overwhelmingly exhilarated by the outcropping of freshness in the discourse. More importantly, I can’t help but feel that we are experiencing a collective moment of “coming back to our senses”…the vibe of chaos brought on by technocracy and transhumanist ideals has ignited a desire to rediscover what it means to be fully human. At its core, this “vibe shift” is the embodiment of a yearning for ontological rootedness and embracing of realities that have been suffocated for too long: the need for genuine beauty, the facticity of sexual dimorphism, the dignity of workers, and the role of interdependence and local community.

The fruit of dissident discourses on the fringes of the mainstream surging in popularity and blending with each other—making for what some call a “horseshoe effect”—this shift takes its cues from dirtbag leftism, the working class populism of the “New Right,” aestheticism a la Paglia and Wilde, and a revival of “trad”itionalism—whether in the realm of religiosity or ethics (think trad caths, trad wives, the manosphere and boot-strapping, etc). At its best, the vibe shift synthesizes the most essential elements of traditionalist and progressive discourses, without totally being reduced to the one or the other, and seeks to transcend either “woke” or “reactionary” platitudes and cliché, overplayed tropes. On the ideological level, I’ve noticed this shift especially in my interactions with students, coworkers, and friends. Here are just a few examples.

While diversity discourse tends to reduce ethnicity to an identitarian abstraction, it has inspired some assimilated people to seek to recover their ethnic roots (visiting the motherland, learning their ancestral tongue). “Therapy-speak” has left people disillusioned with therapeuticism, behaviorism (CBT), and the rewarding of victimhood complexes, and has opened the door to rediscovering Freudian psychoanalysis and Jungian archetyping. This new brand of therapy seeks to dig into rather than cover over childhood wounds, and values self-deprecation over self-righteousness…which ultimately makes for being less uptight and developing a better sense of humor. In general, I’ve observed a renewed appreciation of the virtue of having a good sense of humor and knowing how to take a joke…the turning away from self-seriousness and toward irony has given people license to be funny again.

The anti-therapeuticist bent has also turned many queer-identifying people off to the victimhood narrative and language policing, and are increasingly drawn to engaging with objective truth claims (I think of the surge of Paglia gays, as well as a trans person I know who is studying the Classics, not to deconstruct their cisnormative heteropatriarchal narratives, but because “they are beautiful to read”).

Anti-colonial, anti-capitalist, anti-racist discourses are shifting away from valorizing neoliberal individualist ideals and are drawing more people toward the principle of subsidiarity, supporting local businesses, and building up minority communities. While reading Rerum Novarum with my students, several of them asked to write papers about the need to support black families and encourage involvement in local politics. And after reading texts by Pope Francis, Cardinal Sarah, and Obianuju Ekeocha about “ideological colonization,” many pro-choice students (while maintaining their position that access to abortion should be legal) expressed their frustration toward globalist organizations imposing pro-abortion and other Western elitist ideals on developing countries.

In the media, was see the vibe shift gaining traction through the popularity of publications like COMPACT Magazine, The Plough Quarterly, The Mars Review of Books, RealClear Books & Media, Hedgehog Review, The Point, and The Sun, or more broadly within the alt literature scene (especially in the works of Jordan Castro, Sean Thor Conroe, and Madeline Cash, whose work has been featured on here). Or in partisan pundits like Rachel Maddow and Glenn Greenwald breaking character to report on their breathtakingly “human” discoveries. These outlets testify to the fact that monotheism is now “in.” Whereas in the past mentioning one is Christian in artistic or literary circles would be met with responses of concern or disgust, it now merits esteem and fascination. This has opened the door for religious people to be vocal in spaces that were once closed off to them.

The events linked to these outlets and the kinds of interactions and discussions they foster have been breathtakingly surprising and stimulating. I think of events hosted on the Lower East Side where I’ve very freely discussed topics ranging from Freud, Sufism, Paglia, destransitioning, spiritual warfare, and Carlo Acutis without having to worry someone was going to be scandalized. I also think of events hosted by Plough where Catholics, Protestants, Agnostics, socialists, integralists, liberals, queers, and parents with six plus kids engaged in impassioned discussions with each other over beer brewed by the (neo-amish-ish) Bruderhoff community, who graciously welcomed the motley crew to their home.

But beyond the ideological level, I’ve seen a major shift on the personal and interpersonal levels. Never before have I been able to have such frank existential discussions with friends—many of whom don’t identify with any particular religious or philosophical tradition. Perhaps the monastic-like claustration we were forced to undergo during the COVID lockdowns disposed us to exploring our need for healing, redemption, and transcendence. I’ve at times been shocked by the profundity of conversations with friends who normally have been closed off to anything that bordered on the profound or metaphysical.

At its worst, the vibe shift has churned out people who have overdosed on the irony pill, and who are so averse to sincerity that they don’t actually care about anything or anyone (

Matthew Gasda

’s article depicts what lies at the bottom of the vibe shift’s barrel). Our moment of “liquid modernity” and its detachment from cliched forms of thinking also carries with it a wave of extreme nihilism, with the potential to burst out in diabolical forms of misanthropy and violence.

My above analysis may be overly generous, but I’d dare to assert that we live in a time where generosity is more prudent than miserliness. We can no longer afford to be stingy on hope. Hans Urs von Balthasar made waves when he asked whether Christians can dare to hope that all may be saved. Though not putting forth a formally universalist argument, he was simply taking the ecumenical commitments of the Second Vatican Council to its ultimate conclusion. Thus Christians, theists, and anyone who isn’t a positivist, ought to prioritize looking for and capitalizing on the seeds of hope among the weeds of the current vibe shift.

No. Performative posturing and aestheticism will not save us. Oscar Wilde’s life is enough the prove that this is not where our hope lies. At the end of the day, only charity, concrete acts of love for God and neighbor, can serve as trustworthy beacons of hope. But we would be stupid not to look for the new opportunities afforded to us by the current vibe shift, nor to recognize the light at the end of the dark, decadent tunnel that was Wilde’s life.

For lack of a better term, postmodernity is cracking, and it is this platform’s mission to enter into those cracks and try to generate something meaningful and of value to all who read/listen. Our first launch event at the Catholic Worker—where drag queens, trad integralists, anarchist Catholic Workers, BPD art heauxs, and based Anglicans engaged in vivacious discussions about art, politics, and life—was emblematic of this.

So if you want to get a taste of the vibe shift in its finest form, you should come to our reading party at Sovereign House (185 East Broadway) on Thursday 10/12 at 7:30 pm. All the cool kids will be there.

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photo taken by Matthew De Nicola @mattiopattio