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Sunday, November 7, 2021

Stephin Merritt's Project Song at NPR

 Stephen Merritt is about my favourite musician, along with Robyn Hitchcock. He's the guy behind the Magnetic Fields, The 6ths, Gothic Archies, and with Christopher Ewen (on keyboards /electronics) the fabulous Future Bible Heroes. In this video he's been given the task to create a song in two days, and I think everyone is pretty impressed. It's psychedelic eccentric pop, which tends to have a very small audience, so might not suit most people. I thought this was very interesting, but then I like the music. 

Stephen Merritt can only write music while drinking in bars listening to loud music, so the covid restrictions hit him very hard. He's a very good lyricist / poet, but he's had a troubled love life, so his lyrics tend to be gloomy, although very charming. 


From a group of six photos and six words, Magnetic Fields guru Stephin Merritt picked "1974" — and an image of a man wearing a kind of suit covered with baby dolls. Two days later, the song they inspired was finished.




Stephin Merritt's Project Song at NPR


Absolutely Cuckoo 


https://youtu.be/z7XmHuT0N88


The Magnetic Fields - '68 A Cat Called Dionysus (Official Video)

https://youtu.be/SAAkUmNZf34


Strange Powers - Magnetic Fields 

https://youtu.be/xwS77fWZ8_0


Hopeless - Future Bible Heroes


https://youtu.be/S1KTuYXc2Gw


The 6ths - Falling Out of Love


https://youtu.be/tm1guEsyBR8


I think the lyrics are brilliant in this, well, the way that it rhymes. 

When My Boy Walks Down The Street


https://youtu.be/amy7LoYNIZA

1 comment:

  1. Many thanks for these. I love them.

    Stephen Merritt’s singing style reminds me of Dane Taylor, who is with the Australian group “Shining Bird.”

    If you like the Magnetic Fields, you might like these . . .

    “Let’s Float” by Dane Taylor (2016)
    https://soundcloud.com/leboogierecords/dane-taylor-lets-float

    “Hot Summer Nights” by Shining Bird (2012)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgZTBS46UEk

    “Shade of the Sea” by Shining bird (2012)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHz-VwG_juQ

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