Empire of Silence
Book Playlist

Empire of Silence Playlist

by Christopher Ruocchio

20 tracks
balanced
Nov 8, 2026
2 mixes for this book

The instrumental opening pairs spacious electronic and post-rock textures with more intimate passages, evoking the scale of the Empire and Hadrian's personal escape from his father's expectations. The vocal half follows that arc through songs about defiance, isolation, ambition, and the terrible cost of becoming a legend.

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Track List

20 songs
1

Pulstar

Vangelis · Synthesizer Greats, Vol. 3 (REMASTERED 2023)

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2

World of Sleepers

Carbon Based Lifeforms · World of Sleepers

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3

Steep Hills of Vicodin Tears

A Winged Victory for the Sullen · Erased Tapes Collection IV

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4

Équinoxe, Pt. 4

Jean-Michel Jarre · Équinoxe

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5

The Great Below

Nine Inch Nails · The Fragile

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6

Space Oddity - 2015 Remaster

David Bowie · David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) [2015 Remaster]

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7

Starlight

Muse · Black Holes and Revelations

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8

Planet Caravan - 2009 Remaster

Black Sabbath · Paranoid

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9

The Great Gig in the Sky

Pink Floyd · The Dark Side of the Moon

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10

Personal Jesus

Depeche Mode · Violator (Deluxe)

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11

No More "I Love You's"

Annie Lennox · Medusa

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12

Hurt

Johnny Cash · American IV: The Man Comes Around

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13

The Last Day of Our Acquaintance - 2009 Remaster

Sinéad O'Connor · I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got (Deluxe Version)

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14

Everybody Wants To Rule The World

Tears For Fears · Songs From The Big Chair

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15

A Forest

The Cure · Seventeen Seconds

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16

The Big Ship - 2004 Remaster

Brian Eno · Another Green World (2004 Remaster)

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17

Vessel

Jon Hopkins · Insides

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18

Order from Chaos

Max Cooper · Emergence

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19

Silhouettes (I, II & III)

Floating Points · Elaenia

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20

Matsuri

Kitaro · Kojiki

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Playlist Settings

The preferences requested for this mix.

Mood balanced
Genre match
Era any
Length medium
Instrumental request 50%
Environment balanced

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  1. Matched to the book 50% instrumental 21 tracks · Feb 23, 2026Open