Old Man J by the Spree River and the famous TV tower in the background...

Recording of the first Casual Artscast began on the edge of the Spree River in what used to be East Berlin. The purpose of the first show was to establish a rough plan for future shows and to share some opinions about existing podcasts.

The conversation ranged from a bit of Berlin "soundseeing" to the state of the US Embassy in Berlin, personal creativity, imagination and a little criticism of the mainstream US media.

Also discussed were some ideas about podcasting theory and how it applies to some early German theories about the medium of radio.

But it wasn't boring.

Musically, the show was pretty funky, featuring two tracks by the great Hammond Organ virtuoso, Jimmy McGriff: "Bug Out" and "Groove Fly", both from the album Jumpin' the Blues (which we, incidentally, named incorrectly during the show).

Also featured were a couple of hip hop tracks: "Steppin' It Up" by A Tribe Called Quest (with Redman and Busta Rhymes) and "Take a Walk" by the great Masta Ace.

During the hip hop interlude, we had to move to another part of the city since it was damn cold in the shade along the river.

The Funk Doc with the Reichstag in the distance...

Doc on the edge of the new Holocaust Memorial in central Berlin

After a short walk, we continued the recording of Artscast #1 at the newly-opened Holocaust Memorial near the Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag and the former site of the Berlin Wall.

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