2021 in Review

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I'm bringing you a very similar format for this year-in-review - because who couldn't use a little stability right now? Also, let's be honest, after laboring over ye olde spreadsheet(my annual list of my favorite new music), I have very little left in the tank for creative formatting and layout work. Here is but a small sample of some of my favorite things I heard in 2021.

THE LIST

1. Nice Try! - "The Keeper"
Avery Trufelman is at her best in this finale to season two of Nice Try, and that's saying something! I was completely charmed by the way this episode melded journalistic exploration and editorializing. It's flooded with nostalgia and reckons with object permanence in the digital age, and it has a sincerity to it that I couldn't shake. It's whimsical and impactful all at once. 

2. Richard's Famous Food Podcast - "The Last Mojo"
RFFP has skewered conventions in podcasting (and food journalism, and just general culture) since episode one, but this episode takes it to the next level. Not only is it a fantastic sendup of both true crime and the inconsequential quest narrative type that is popping up on a lot of pods, but also manages to be an effective iteration of both. Like, the story is really compelling even if the stakes are laughably low. .
Can Osama Bin Laden be a protagonist? This entry from the newest Dan Taberksi joint is beautifully provocative, and offers a compelling alternative take on the typically more somber and patriotic/conspiratorial remembrances of September 11th. As does the rest of the series - it’s all really great.

4. Still Processing - "The N-Word"
I’d love to hear a Still Processing episode on the cultural significance of any word, but after starting with this word I’m not sure anything could top it. Jenna and Wesley are so thoughtful, always, but this one gets pretty personal in a way I am sure I don’t fully understand. I’d also love to hear Wesley in conversation with Mike Pesca about the reasons behind Pesca’s (Seemingly open-ended? Still ongoing?) dismissal, though with each passing day of silence it feel like some sort of NDA may prevent such a thing from ever happening.

Max Linsky, most notable for his work with the excellent Longform podcast (and website, I suppose, which I’ve long spurned for the pod), has embarked on a journey to interview 70 people over the age of 70 in an attempt to glean wisdom for those who have made their fair share of rotations around the sun. This is the first episode and it is excellent. Sister Helen drops truth bombs like it’s her job, which it kind of is. If only we all could have her courage, conviction, and yet, lack of off-putting zeal that so often accompanies those bolder traits.
Dude, books are cool! There’s the obvious - that they contain earth-shaking knowledge and narrative wonder to transform the lives of anyone who reads them. But then there’s the more subtle angle - books being a vessel for an author’s message to travel the globe. Sure, the internet also contains this (often abused) power, but it’s so much more fleeting than sitting with something that at minimum takes several hours of undivided attention (or, if you’re like me, several months). John Green riffs on those themes as he reflects on signing hundreds of thousands of copies of the recently released book version of this excellent podcast. And the hot dog stand review isn’t too shabby either.

STATS
Total Episodes : 3,053 (Every year I think I can't possibly listen to more episodes, and every year I am wrong. 2,885 episodes in 2020Every year I think I can't possibly listen to more episodes, and every year I am wrong 3,053 > 2,885 episodes in 2020)

Pod Piper issues in 2021 : 11

Most listened-to shows : 365 Stories to Tell You Before I Die (362); Today, Explained (114); Suns JAM Session (88); The Mismatch (84); The Press Box (71)

SOMETHINGS NEW

Edith
It might be the most enjoyable audio fiction I've encountered. Not without it's flaws, but a really good time from start to finish.

The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill
Far from a perfect show, but one that I found deeply compelling at times. And the staggered release schedule really helped build anticipation episode to episode.

9/12
The most satisfying September 11th pod; not a traditionally complete historical retrospective, but one with a unique lens 20 years later.

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