The first episode of Stereogum’s weekly call-in talk show Callin Me Maybe aired live yesterday on the new Callin app. For those who missed yesterday’s introductory post, Callin is a hybrid podcast/live audio chat that allows listeners to call in and interact with the hosts, sort of like a radio broadcast within an app. Callin Me Maybe will feature Stereogum staffers discussing new music, interviewing musicians, and whatever other fun stuff we can come up with.

In the debut installment, Ryan Leas and I looked back on the year in music: the awkward return to semi-normalcy in the long tail of the pandemic, some of 2021’s more disappointing indie and pop albums, the biggest albums of the year, a few of our sleeper favorites, and a preview of contenders for the site’s annual best-albums list. We also heard from some listeners — including our own founder and editor-in-chief Scott Lapatine — about their own Album Of The Year picks. We had a blast, and you can listen back to it right here.

We’ll be back with a second episode of Callin Me Maybe next week; keep an eye on the site and our social accounts for information about when to tune in. Until then, thanks so much to everyone who listened and called in to the first episode. This has the potential to be a really cool aspect of our Stereogum community going forward.