Saturday, December 10, 2011

The Season Finale of BACast.com ...catch it now ...and catch-up on all the previous episodes too!

For two guys to even think of embarking upon the task of muddling through all the myriad topics of life here in both the shiny, happy streets as well as the gritty streets of the "Paris of the Palmtrees" ...the proposition should have been enough for them to give up after the fourth beer ...or, in their cases, the 4th fernet y vaso de vino.

But no.  Their latest episode marks the end of their second season and there's no sign of them stopping ...or failing to add something new ...nor ceasing to delve into subjects that could offend those without a sense of humor and/or those without a recognition that any walk through the true experience of Buenos Aires leaves you with so much of the palpable distinctiveness of our fair burg that you have to brush yourself off before entering your tiny apartment.

Long-time US expat Dan Karlin has been here so long and has integrated himself into Buenos Aires to the point that you have to wonder if he is just keeping up the appearances of the naïve clinging to his yanqui attitudes.  But who knows, he plays his part so well that even I wonder.  

Dan has spent years here building a successful business with his lovely wife, Lourdes.  That experience could actually harden a fellow countryman in attitudes against the lack of streamlined capitalism here ...or could result in an nuanced opinion of how economic transactions here are so very much based in and on personal relationships.  Either way, Danny sticks to character to great creative and comic effect.

Fernando Farias plays the part of "the local" and has none of the same pressure to assimilate.  He also brings the expertise from the English language service of Argentine public radio and all the technical expertise that entails.  Fer never shrinks from his end of the two-man-show and is even less inclined to be a straight-man than Karlin ...although, when the cultural vicissitudes of the show corner him, I´ve never heard him shirk from laughing at himself.

Fer also brings his radio man's commitment to the Theater of the Mind.  The pacing and the sound and the choice of music lend so very much to luring listeners to sit still for more than the 5, 10, 15 minute broadcast (podcast) that a more shallow duo would settle upon.  Truthfully, sometimes I wish I could SEE them doing it in the studio via webvideo ...but I have to admit to myself that would destroy my imagination´s ability to paint what I already think is going on in the sound booth.

Personally, I´m always intimidated by the prospect of their usual 45 minute podcasts.  But after only a very few minutes, I´m hooked and I listen to every minute.  Dan and Fer always get my head spinning in a really very cinematic way at what they choose to throw at listeners every few minutes or so ...without making their episodes frantic.  That´s a fine line to toe ...and I don´t think they´ve ever failed.  There has never been an episode that wasn´t entertaining.  I can´t count the times I´ve laughed out loud.

They generally have a light touch even though they never seem to hesitate to occasionally tackle some pretty heavy topics.  Those have been the times in which I´ve noticed bacast.com dealing wth serious topics more seriously than any other media in town.  I applaud them for that and love it when they do it ...but I understand that the humor and humanity of situations in Buenos Aires is their stock in trade.  But that doesn´t detract from any of anyone´s enjoyment of their labor of love.

Fer and Dan are like two co-pilots, taking it upon themselves to fight the controls at high-altitude to give you the ability to see the big picture of a complicated city, nation, and culture ...but never afraid to buzz the tower when a closer look would let you see something that you might never have seen otherwise.

Catch-up on your episodes!  If you ask me, next year is only going to be better.

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