Marcus Bell

Marcus toured the world as a session drummer for fifteen years — you have heard his playing on at least three records you own. When the touring stopped, he walked into Copperline with a simple pitch: an interview show hosted by someone who had actually been in the band.

It worked because Marcus listens differently. Guests consistently say the same thing afterwards: he heard the answer inside the answer. The Crate Challenge — three mystery records, one improvised set — has produced moments listeners still call in about years later, including the afternoon a punk legend built a gospel harmony out of a polka 45.

He keeps every episode unedited, warts and all, and keeps all of them online for 30 days. “If we laughed, you should hear us laugh,” he says. “Perfection is somebody else’s station.”