The Magnetic Fields is a band led by the New York City singer-songwriter Stephin Merritt. Albums released by Merritt under the name "The Magnetic Fields" usually consist of synth-pop music in a 1980s style underlying clever lyrics, often about love, that are sometimes ironic, sometimes bitter and sometimes celebratory. While The Wayward Bus and Distant Plastic Trees (now available together as a compilation) are sung by Susan Anway, all subsequent albums are principally sung by Merritt himself.

Their most significant, popular, and critically-acclaimed album to date is the triple album 69 Love Songs. It showcased Merritt's powerful songwriting abilities and the group's musicianship, demonstrated by the employment of unorthodox instrumental arrangements (including ukulele, banjo, accordion, cello, mandolin, piano, flute, xylophone, and various percussion instruments, in addition to their usual setup of synthesizers, guitars, and effects). The album also features several guest vocalists and Daniel Handler (a.k.a. Lemony Snicket) on accordion.

The album i continues Merritt's love of the concept album, with each of the 14 songs beginning with the letter (in the case of half the songs' titles, the pronoun) "I". It is possibly one of the only albums in which the track listing is in alphabetical order. The liner notes claim the album was made without synthesizers.

Members

• Stephin Merritt
• Claudia Gonson – percussion/piano/vocals (and group manager)
• Sam Davol – cello
• John Woo – banjo/guitar

Contributors include the singers Susan Anway, Dudley Klute, Shirley Simms, and LD Beghtol, as well as instrumentalists Daniel Handler and Chris Ewen.

Discography