Podcast Spotlight: Methodically Processing Systems

This podcast examines systems in the world, because “systems are worth a thousand words”. Methodically Processing Systems teaches listeners something new in each episode, including the details behind cooking and why zero-g might not be all that bad. The episodes on success and failure are thought provoking and, in the end, encouraging. Listeners can approach the podcast how they like, either looking to understand complex and messy systems or just interested in learning something new. The host’s soothing voice mixed with the calming background music makes Methodically Processing Systems a great podcast to listen to as you begin your morning or clean up the kitchen after dinner. 

The host cares about the content he makes, even suggesting further readings for systems too complex to fully cover in twenty minutes. Episodes are short and start at episode eight on Apple Podcasts. They are not released very often, so it is easy to binge the whole catalog!

We were fortunate to talk with Assa about the podcast, how they differentiate from other podcasts, and their future plans in podcasting. See below for our full Q&A.

Listen: Apple Podcasts 

DISCOVER PODS: How’d you get into podcasting?

Assa: I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to dabble in the audio-visual space since I was a little kid. I’ve created little video, audio, and music recordings since then. There was a good portion of my childhood where I wanted to work in making films or putting together a production company. So maybe this podcast is my little way of appeasing my inner child. 

DISCOVER PODS: In your own words, why should listeners tune in to Methodically Processing Systems?

Assa: Frankly, not everyone should. It’s a different kind of podcast, with a different kind of perspective. We get into those areas of life and the modern world where if you start to look at things too long it may start to grate on your soul, if you still have one. It’s a show about systems, so naturally we look at how things work together. Most of us are trained to break things down and look at them piece by piece, maybe solve them, and then put them back together. The whole point of this show is that there some things (complex systems) that you can’t break apart and put back together. You can only appreciate them as a whole. The show is about appreciating complex things as a whole and what happens when less-than-wise people try to break them down. 

Plus, it’s a unique production, there’s sound design and music created just for each episode. I prefer not to work with canned stuff, because again the goal is to offer the listener something different. I can’t guarantee that you’ll like it, but I can guarantee that you can’t hear this stuff anywhere else. 

DISCOVER PODS: What kind of feedback have you heard from your listeners?

Assa: I had one listener, who I am sure was not trying to compliment me, say that it’s a bit overrated and like a gloomy, irreverent, evil mirror universe version of Carl Sagan’s Cosmos. It’s a great disservice to the great Carl Sagan to draw any such comparison, but I did enjoy the description. And they’re still listening as far as I know…

DISCOVER PODS: Describe your recording set up? What equipment are you using?

Assa: It’s all been built up over time, again I’ve been dabbling in this space since I was a kid. The main mic is the classic Shure SM7B hooked up to a MacBook Pro. The SM7B is a finicky microphone actually.  I don’t understand why any professional would actually use it. You’d think they’d want something consistent. The sound quality changes dramatically based on which way the wind is blowing, the alignment of the stars, and literally how many microns your mouth is from the mic. But it lets you achieve all kinds of aural textures and levels of intimacy with minor adjustments, which is great fun when it isn’t driving you insane. 

Also coffee makes your mouth more clicky sounding. Something to do with how it changes your spit chemistry. So I’ve ditched it as recording equipment…

DISCOVER PODS: What’s the biggest challenge you face as an indie podcaster?

Assa: There’s a lot of stuff out there, so if you get too serious about it you realize you’re one person out of a really big number. But this is more of a fun hobby, an opportunity to play, so not much really.  I am not trying to win anything, so I get to play around with this stuff for fun and try out crazy ideas. 

DISCOVER PODS: Where do you want to take your podcast?

Assa: Listeners of the show know that plans are best when they are put together loosely and half-stuck to with lots of opportunity to get distracted. The truth is the show gives me something fun to do when I get bored with being bored. As long as I can keep exploring some new idea or some recording technique, or some new musical idea, or some crazy audio storytelling structure, I’ll be happy. 

DISCOVER PODS: What other podcasts are you listening to now?

Assa: Funny thing, the more you get involved in making something the less time and interest you have in consuming it. So I listen to fewer podcasts than I used to.  It’s like cooking: the more I got into it, the less I wanted to eat out. I still like to tune into Dan Carlin’s shows and there’s a gem of an interview podcast called EconTalk by Russ Roberts that I listen to from time to time. I also enjoy old-timey radio dramas.