Stephin Merritt

Latest Articles

Stephin Merritt documentary at SPACE Gallery

Try as I might (and believe me, I did), I eventually couldn't resist the charms of the Magnetic Fields, whose lovable chief operative, Stephin Merritt,...
By webteam | November 30, 2010

Tribute: Friends remember Billy Ruane

Billy Ruane died on a Tuesday night.
The heart of Boston rock
By PHOENIX STAFF | November 12, 2010

Rick Berlin | Paper Airplane

Hi-N-Dry
Hi-N-Dry
By JON GARELICK | October 15, 2010

Review: Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields

Stephin Merritt, the inscrutable and reluctant frontman of Magnetic Fields, is short, gay, and owns a chihuahua. Otherwise, details are scarce.
Slim portrait of a mysterious, monosyllabic man
By CARLY CARIOLI | April 23, 2010

Harlem | Hippies

There’s a Flying V–shaped hole in my heart left by the death of Jay Reatard.
Matador (2010)
By EUGENIA WILLIAMSON | April 09, 2010

Review: Magnetic Fields live Wilbur

“Similarly, here’s another song about miserable death,” Stephen Merritt drolly informed us between songs.
Magnetic Fields, live Wilbur Theatre, February 11, 2010
By DANIEL BROCKMAN | February 19, 2010

Photos: The Magnetic Fields at the Wilbur Theatre

Photos of the Magnetic Fields, live at the Wilbur Theatre, on February 11, 2010
The Magnetic Fields, live at the Wilbur Theatre, on February 11, 2010
By ERIN BALDASSARI | February 19, 2010

Various Artists | Songs For Chris Knox

On June 11 of last year, Chris Knox suffered a life-altering stroke.
Merge (2010)
By JONATHAN DONALDSON | February 19, 2010

Real talk

"If you're not writing about yourself, you can say anything you want, and it will probably be more revealing of your personality than if you're writing openly about your own life."
Stephin Merritt and Magnetic Fields consider Realism
By MICHAEL BRODEUR | February 05, 2010

The Magnetic Fields | Realism

This will be labeled as the Magnetic Fields' folk album, and fairly so.
Nonesuch (2010)
By JONATHAN DONALDSON | January 29, 2010

The future is now

Even with all the promise of the new year ahead, it's hard not to feel a little stiffed in the Future of Mankind department. Here it is, 2010, and there's nary a flying car to be seen.
No teleportation, but lots of rad new albums
By MICHAEL BRODEUR | January 01, 2010

Beirut | March of the Zapotecs | Realpeople | Holland

Willed into existence when the commercial needs of the mid-20th-century record industry required something in the intermediate price point between a single and a then-pricy album, the lowly EP has developed into the musical equivalent of the novella.
Pompeii/Revolver (2009)
By GUSTAVO TURNER | February 18, 2009

Momus | Joemus

Since the 1980s, Momus has been the recording guise of Scotsman bon vivant Nick Currie, a man of many masks and endless curiosity.
American Patchwork/Darla (2008)
By GUSTAVO TURNER | November 11, 2008

Indie gets the blues

White rockers generally come by the blues one of two ways.

The Gossip, the Black Keys, and the Kills

By MATT ASHARE | April 23, 2008

Rough power

Watching Bill Gage perform with his band, BILL, is an eye-opening experience.
Bill Gage has Down syndrome. And his band rocks
By IAN SANDS | March 27, 2008

Lonely hearts night

Merritt had a tummy ache from dinner at Porter Exchange. (“So don’t fuck with me,” he warned.)
The Magnetic Fields at Somerville Theatre, February 14, 2008
By LIZA WEISSTUCH | February 19, 2008

Cold remedies

One suspects all colds are terrible in the world of Stephin Merritt.
Stephin Merritt warms up on Distortion
By MATT ASHARE | January 07, 2008

Show and tell

After a brief late-December break from the usual boatload of good shows, the flood picks up right where it left off in early January.
A whole new year of live music
By WILL SPITZ | January 04, 2008

Start with some Spice

The game is on for the reunited Spice Girls.
A recipe for a tuneful 2008
By MATT ASHARE | December 26, 2007

Pop’s fairer image

After the Fantasy Mirrors show at Great Scott last Thursday, singer Nathanael Bluhm wasn’t feeling so hot, and since he was already wearing pajamas, I offered him and his bike a lift home.
Fantasy Mirrors take a good long look at themselves
By MICHAEL BRODEUR | December 04, 2007

Night falls

Boston clubland is starting to get a bit dark. DJ Mothra, "Demo Mix" (mp3)
Industrial makes a comeback
By DAVID DAY | May 15, 2007

Hidden Cameras

Much like Stephin Merritt’s Magnetic Fields, the Hidden Cameras have evolved from something of a bedroom-demo recording project into a fully orchestrated studio band complete with cello, viola, glockenspiel, upright bass, and the like. Hidden Camera
Awoo | Arts & Crafts
By MATT ASHARE | November 07, 2006

A dreadful night

It was a dreadful night for a number of reasons.
Lemony Snicket in Natick
By BILL JENSEN | October 23, 2006

On the racks: October 10, 2006

Plus Robert Pollard, Sting, and the Cure.
From Gothic Archies to Mod Rods to little Lohans
By MATT ASHARE | October 10, 2006

'Urge' overkill

Windows Media files may be the 8-track-tapes of the digital-music universe, but Urge figures 13-year-olds will suck it up to get their mitts on exclusive TRL outtakes and AFI playlists.
Microsoft and MTV deliver too much of a bad thing
By CARLY CARIOLI | May 31, 2006

ID Check: The Best Thing Ever

It’s 11:15 pm on Monday night when Alex Billig enters the fancy men’s bathroom at the Top of the Hub lounge.
Men’s-room rockers
By CAMILLE DODERO | May 10, 2006

The road to Boston

Sometimes you just have to hear a band before shelling out that cover charge. Here are four tracks by four artists heading our way this week . . .
Don Lennon, Rahim, and Pela
By MATT ASHARE | April 24, 2006

Friends' Activity

Popular