Westport’s Own Meat Puppet

The Meat Puppets have a new CD.

That’s probably big news only to hard-core fans of the indie country-punk-alternative-rock-and-more band.

And to Westporters who know that a 1986 Staples grad is the group’s drummer.

Ted Marcus — who joined the band in 2006, after a career as an audio engineer and sound designer — was a Meat Puppet fan as a kid (the band was formed in 1980).

He was a drummer without formal training.  In 2007 he told Westport News writer Carol King that his band, Espionage, could not play at Staples functions because they were too loud.  He continued playing at UConn, where he earned a degree in psychology.

Sound always drew him in.  His audio career included a long stint at MTV, and work for films.

In 2006, when founder Cris Lockwood got out of prison (felony assault), the Meat Puppets rehearsed for a reunion tour.  Ted was filming the band in the recording studio.  The drummer did not show up, and Ted realized he was in the right place at the right time.

He knew all the songs.  So, he told King, “I conspired with their sound engineers and did a sound check on the drums.  I played nice, solid backbeat stuff for 5 minutes.”  He was hired instantly.

Fans quickly took to him, he told King.  He’s been a Meat Puppet ever since.

“Sewn Together” — the group’s 12th album — will be released May 12.  Click hear for a preview.