Time Crisis with Ezra Koenig

Internet radio show

Time Crisis (referred to as Time Crisis with Ezra Koenig) is a fortnightly internet radio show hosted by Ezra Koenig and Jake Longstreth. The show began airing on July 12, 2015 on Apple Music’s radio service, Beats 1 (now known as Apple Music 1.^[1] The show covers a variety of topics, such as politics, corporate food history, 1970s rock music, city living, as well as frequently analyzing the latest in contemporary pop music by contrasting it with music released in another era. In addition to Koenig, a variety of guest hosts have appeared over the show’s history, including Jonah Hill, Rashida Jones and Jamie Foxx.^[2] Since 2017, Koenig is accompanied by co-host, Jake Longstreth, who regularly describes his love for the “tasteful palette” of early 1970s classic rock, plus music from the Grateful Dead, Ween and Guided by Voices.^[3]

The show typically airs every two weeks. In March 2020, due to the increased number remote workers as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Time Crisis began airing on a weekly basis, before returning to its normal biweekly schedule in 2021. In total, 190 episodes aired and the show is in its ninth season.^[4]

Format and Segments[edit]

The show follows a general format each episode during its two-hour runtime, usually with listener emails and other discussions in the first half of the show and the Top Five on iTunes at the episode’s conclusion.

News Discussions[edit]

The most common segment on the call, in which Koenig and his co-hosts discuss the most relevant and obscure news topics of the week, generally relating to politics or current happenings in the world of entertainment.^[5][6]

The Time Crisis Mail Bag[edit]

This has been a regular segment since the show’s third season. Initially, the segment began after a fan located Jake Longstreth’s personal email. The segment now utilizes the email [email protected] a reference to an episode aired in July 2017 where they joked about the prospect of an 8 minute Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa to be played on the next Vampire Weekend tour.^[7]

Fans generally send in questions regarding 1970s music and suggest artists to the hosts that they believe are “tasteful” and fit Longstreth’s ideal palette. Another popular topic submitted by fans relates to the corporate food history segment of the show.

Corporate Food History Discussions[edit]

Frequently, Koenig and guests analyse the current landscape of the corporate food industry, as well as looking back on the history of snack foods across the world. In 2016, Jennifer Saenz, chief marketing executive of the Frito-Lay corporation appeared.^[8] Additionally, the show has discussed Subway on multiple episodes and their obscure promotions, such as the Five Dollar Footlong deal. In 2018, the show highly criticised the Lady Dorito proposition by hosting a Lady Dorito’s Town Hall,^[9] featuring Rashida Jones and Longstreth’s wife and filmmaker, Hannah Fidell.

Time Crisis Hotline[edit]

Koenig regularly takes phone calls and has intimate discussions with notable journalists, political commentators, corporate food professionals and celebrities. Notable calls have included Seinfeld theme composer Jonathan Wolff, Reading Rainbow composer Steve Horelick,^[10] and more.

Jake’s Takes[edit]

A recurring segment in which Longstreth recommends or discusses music, with notable recommendations such as the Grateful Dead, Guided by Voices, Ween, Phish, Neil Young, Small Faces and more. Occasionally, Longstreth compiles playlists for Apple Music, notably The Tasteful Palette of Seventies Rock^[11] and more recently, Jake’s Old Wisdom Playlist.^[12]

Sweet Chili Heat World Premiere[edit]

A segment in which the crew premiere fan generated music. The music is often inspired by events that take place on previous episodes of the show.

Top Five on iTunes[edit]

Koenig and Longstreth regularly compare and contrast the iTunes chart from the current week with another music chart from the same week in another year. Notably, the show has regularly jokingly criticized the music of Ed Sheeran, such as his 2017 hit, Shape of You.^[13] Koenig and Longstreth commonly refer to the song as Bed Sheets, in reference to one of the song’s lines. Fan response to this criticism has been overwhelmingly positive, with one particular fan even compiling the discussions into a complete 32-minute compilation.^[14]

Other Segments[edit]

Other segments have included New York News.

Core Crisis Crew[edit]

• Ezra Koenig Host
• Jake Longstreth Co-host
• Jason Richards (a.k.a. Seinfeld2000) – Notable internet pseudonym. Also producer of the show.
• Despot
• Asher Sarlin (a.k.a. Cousin Asher) – New York-based graphic designer, and Ezra’s second cousin.
• Nick Weidenfeld – Producer, less commonly on the mic.^[15]

Friends of the Show[edit]

Enemies of the Show

Episodes[edit]

Season 1 (2015-2016)[edit]

Season 1 aired from 2015 to 2016. Notable guests included Rashida Jones, Jamie Foxx, Mark Ronson, Jonah Hill and Azealia Banks.

• Episode 1. Mark Ronson, Desus & Mero
• Episode 2. Florence Welch, Another Round
• Episode 3. In L.A. with Azealia Banks
• Episode 4. With Jamie Foxx
• Episode 5. Emma Koenig & Ethan Silverman
• Episode 6. Jake and Dave Longstreth
• Episode 7. Rashida Jones
• Episode 8. Jonah Hill & ILoveMakonnen
• Episode 9. Jerrod Carmichael & Rashida Jones
• Episode 10. Seinfeld and Starbucks
• Episode 11. Chromeo’s Dave 1
• Episode 12. Alana Haim & Jerrod Carmichael
• Episode 13. Christmas Special
• Episode 14. The Campaign Trail

Season 2 (2016)[edit]

Season 2 aired in 2016. Notable guests included Jerrod Carmichael, Jonah Hill, Jennifer Saenz and Ariel Rechtshaid.

• Episode 15. Town Hall
• Episode 16. A Tribute to Prince
• Episode 17. Ariel Rechtshaid
• Episode 18. New York Style
• Episode 19. Harambe & PepsiCo
• Episode 20. Grizzly Bear’s Ed Droste
• Episode 21. 4th of July Spectacular
• Episode 22. With Mike D
• Episode 23. Primary Season
• Episode 24. Olympics Fever
• Episode 25. Jerrod Carmichael
• Episode 26. Fashion Week
• Episode 27. Where Are They Now?
• Episode 28. Flamin’ Hot Cheetos
• Episode 29. Old Dudes and Snack Foods
• Episode 30. Frito-Lay’s Jennifer Saenz
• Episode 31. Trump Wins
• Episode 32. What is a Liberal?
• Episode 33. East Meets West
• Episode 34. The Chrismukkah Show

Season 3 (2017)[edit]

Season 3 aired in 2017. Notable guests included Jerrod Carmichael, Cazzie David, Tim Heidecker, Zachary Fox and Seinfeld theme composer, Jonathan Wolff.

• Episode 35. Coca-Cola & The Founder
• Episode 36. GRAMMY Special
• Episode 37. Oscars & Corporate Playlists
• Episode 38. The Rock vs. Vin Diesel 2020
• Episode 39. The Seinfeld Theme Song
• Episode 40. About That Pepsi Ad
• Episode 41. Coachella Vibes
• Episode 42. Let’s Talk Niall Horan
• Episode 43. NYC with Lizzy Goodman
• Episode 44. Post-Punk
• Episode 45. POP Quiz with Cazzie David
• Episode 46. The Dorito Effect
• Episode 47. Live Concerts and TV Jingles
• Episode 48. Jerrod, Steve & RJ
• Episode 49. Vermont’s Finest
• Episode 50. The Full Crisis Crew
• Episode 51. Zachary Fox
• Episode 52. Surprise! It’s James Corden
• Episode 53. Tribute to Tom Petty
• Episode 54. Eminem & The Tragically Hip
• Episode 55. Tim Heidecker and Portugal. The Man
• Episode 56. Grateful T-shirts
• Episode 57. Cazzie David & Grammy Nominees
• Episode 58. A Charli XCX Christmas

Season 4 (2018)[edit]

Season 4 aired in 2018. Notable guest stars included Carson Mell, Rashida Jones, T-Pain, Chris Baio, Alanis Morissette, Dave Longstreth, Cazzie David, Jason Mantzoukas and Hannah Fidell.

• Episode 59. Sandwich Math (January 14, 2018)
• Episode 60. Sublime Goldfish (January 28, 2018)
• Episode 61. Dystopian Diet Coke (February 11, 2018)
• Episode 62. Lady Doritos Town Hall (February 25, 2018)
• Episode 63. The Two-Fridge Vibe (March 11, 2018)^[16]
• Episode 64. It Wasn’t Baio (March 25, 2018)
• Episode 65. Life Hacks with T-Pain (April 8, 2018)
• Episode 66. Juice Island (April 22, 2018)
• Episode 67. Dev, Dave, Ariel, Despot (May 6, 2018)
• Episode 68. Sweet Chili Heat (May 20, 2018)
• Episode 69. OMG It’s Alanis Morissette (June 3, 2018)
• Episode 70. Live From Ojai (June 17, 2018)
• Episode 71. Dear Nora & Summer Hits (July 1, 2018)
• Episode 72. Dave Longstreth (July 15, 2018)
• Episode 73. ’77 vs ‘84 (July 29, 2018)
• Episode 74. This Show Rules (August 12, 2018)
• Episode 75. Cazzie David Returns (August 26, 2018)
• Episode 76. Seinfeld2000’s Origin Story (September 9, 2018)
• Episode 77. Classic Rock Icons (September 23, 2018)
• Episode 78. Welcome To My Life (October 7, 2018)
• Episode 79. A Star Is Born 2: Armageddon (October 21, 2018)
• Episode 80. Jason Mantzoukas & Hannah Fidell (November 4, 2018)
• Episode 81. Be Grateful (November 18, 2018)
• Episode 82. Jokerman (December 2, 2018)
• Episode 83. Baio and the Hot Sauce Challenge (December 16, 2018)

Season 5 (2019)[edit]

Season 5 began on January 13, 2019 and ended on December 15, 2019. Due to the launch of Vampire Weekend’s album, Father of the Bride, and subsequent touring, many episodes were pre-recorded and are known as banked episodes or ‘banked eps’.

• Episode 84. Jamflowman (January 13, 2019)
• Episode 85. “Harmony Hall” / “2021” (January 27, 2019)
• Episode 86. The Grammys (February 10, 2019)
• Episode 87. Despot Returns (February 24, 2019)
• Episode 88. No Country for Jamflowman (March 10, 2019)
• Episode 89. Winter Returns (March 24, 2019)
• Episode 90. Unbearably Buff (April 7, 2019)
• Episode 91. With Bardo Martinez (April 21, 2019)
• Episode 92. Father of the Bride (May 5, 2019)
• Episode 93. Live from NYC (May 19, 2019)
• Episode 94. Scott Aukerman and Adam Scott (June 2, 2019)
• Episode 95. The Mailbag (June 16, 2019)
• Episode 96. Live from Chicago (June 30, 2019)
• Episode 97. TC AMA (July 14, 2019)
• Episode 98. Rock Beefs (August 11, 2019)
• Episode 99. Conspiracy Theories with Mark Foster (August 18, 2019)
• Episode 100. Episode 100 (September 8, 2019)
• Episode 101. Hella Mega Flaming Hot (September 22, 2019)
• Episode 102. With Justin Vernon (October 6, 2019)
• Episode 103. With Huey Lewis (October 20, 2019)
• Episode 104. Rise and Shine with Cazzie David (November 3, 2019)
• Episode 105. Bernie, Beto and Bob (November 17, 2019)
• Episode 106. Gratefulsgiving with Hannah Fidell and Kyle Field (December 1, 2019)
• Episode 107. Grammys, Garcia and Goose (December 15, 2019)

Season 6 (2020)[edit]

• Episode 108. Happy New Year (January 19, 2020)
• Episode 109. Breaking Down the Grammys (February 2, 2020)
• Episode 110. What About Vampire? (February 16, 2020)
• Episode 111. Time To Make The Donuts (March 1, 2020)
• Episode 112. FaceTime Crisis (March 15, 2020)
• Episode 113. Imagine What About Vampire (March 22, 2020)
• Episode 114. A TC Hangout (March 29, 2020)
• Episode 115. Dylan, The Dead, and Despot (April 5, 2020)
• Episode 116. Mask Off with Ed O’Brien and Jerry Saltz (April 12, 2020)
• Episode 117. In These Strange and Uncertain Times (April 19, 2020)
• Episode 118. Old Wisdom with David Crosby and The Bellamy Brothers (April 26, 2020)
• Episode 119. It’s Gonna Be May (May 3, 2020)
• Episode 120. HBD FOTB (May 10, 2020)
• Episode 121. Classic Rock Talk (May 17, 2020)
• Episode 122. Cheese Pizza and Chili Peppers (May 24, 2020)
• Episode 123. Alex, Winter, and Mero (June 7, 2020)
• Episode 124. The Lost Episode (June 14, 2020)
• Episode 125. What About Rage, Man? (June 21, 2020)
• Episode 126. Bruce Hornsby (July 5, 2020)
• Episode 127. Ben & Jerry’s & Nike’s (July 19, 2020)
• Episode 128. With Danielle Haim (August 2, 2020)
• Episode 129. Green Day and Yellow Mustard (August 16, 2020)
• Episode 130. TC Technology (August 30, 2020)
• Episode 131. Chaos and Candy (September 13, 2020)
• Episode 132. I Got What I Got and Floating Docks (September 27, 2020)
• Episode 133. What About PA with Daniel Ralston (October 11, 2020)
• Episode 134. Frederic Remmington: Cancelled (October 25, 2020)
• Episode 135. Time Crisis Election Special (November 8, 2020)
• Episode 136. Grateful Dead and Garfield Eats (November 12, 2020)
• Episode 137. Kind Vibes with Cazzie David (December 06, 2020)
• Episode 138. With Rashida Jones and Winter (December 20, 2020)

Season 7 (2021)[edit]

• Episode 139. Herm Yarl: Origins
• Episode 140. The Company Store
• Episode 141. Killer Hot Sauce and Iced Cold Coffee
• Episode 142. With Robert M. Rosenberg and Chris Baio
• Episode 143. Fungible Sandwich Technology
• Episode 144. Certified Forklift Operator
• Episode 145. Talking Dead Heads
• Episode 146. Government Website
• Episode 147. Avoid The Noid
• Episode 148. Flamin’ Hot Chaos
• Episode 149. 2221 What You Think About Me?
• Episode 150. With Despot and Bruce Hornsby
• Episode 151. Gentle Jesters
• Episode 152. Country Stuff
• Episode 153. Sour Rock with Hannah Fidell
• Episode 154. The Dog Days of Summer
• Episode 155. Do The Flamin’ Hot Brew
• Episode 156. With Chromeo
• Episode 157. The Gen X Top 5 Challange
• Episode 158. Another Boat in the Dock
• Episode 159. Greatful Genres with Kelefa Sanneh
• Episode 160. NFT Week with Despot
• Episode 161. With Rod Stewart
• Episode 162. The TC Singularity
• Episode 163. With Tom Scharpling and Despot

Season 8 (2022)[edit]

• Episode 164. The Four Quadrants of TC
• Episode 165. Sonic Simulations
• Episode 166. Goldfish and Guitar Rriffs
• Episode 167. Brown Haired Bands
• Episode 168. Hot Coffee and Cold Pop-Tarts
• Episode 169. The TC Music Industry Special
• Episode 170. Horsin’ Around
• Episode 171. Hornsby On The Horn
• Episode 172. Dr. Tealgood
• Episode 173. Welcome to the Jamily
• Episode 174. TC: Fully Loaded
• Episode 175. TC: Unfiltered
• Episode 176. Extreme TC
• Episode 177. Half Baked Potato
• Episode 178. Bare Bones Buffets
• Episode 179. Tangled Up in Brews
• Episode 180. BDGHV3P2
• Episode 181. False Fall
• Episode 182. Pump It Up with Thomas Mars
• Episode 183. That ’90s Show
• Episode 184. Coffee in Japan
• Episode 185. Big League Baio
• Episode 186. Chameleons and Cheesecake
• Episode 187. Desert Weirdness
• Episode 188. Hoodwink’d Holidays

Season 9 (2023)[edit]

• Episode 189. Popchip Away
• Episode 190. The Banshees of Inishiddily

Merchandising[edit]

There have been a few pieces of official Time Crisis merchandise, which have been available through various giveaways on Twitter. The most common have been T-shirts bearing the phrase, ‘8 Minute Cape Cod’ on the front, with various designs and colors.

Time Crisis Honorary Membership cards have also been given away, which mention the Core Values.

On November 3, 2019, Seinfeld2000 coined the term, ‘Popcorn and Raisins’ and promoted a line of merchandise based upon this phrase. Shirts were made available the following week.

See also[edit]

References[edit]