There are not many poetical singer/songerwriters that have created beauty within anti-romanticized haunting songs as Stephin Merritt has done with the Magnetic Fields over the last 20 years (he can make Leonard Cohen sound like a angst-ridden teen) and 2010 seems to be his year of fruition and redemption on those who have missed the ball on their work.
Firstly, the Magnetic Fields are releasing a 69 Love Songs Vinyl Box Set that will be out April 20th through Merge. 69 Love Songs is the Magnetic Fields magnum opus that was released in 1999 and stretched over three seperate discs as a collection of this and thats from the bottomless bag of styles that the Magnetic Fields successfully create. The box set will include remastered versions of all 69 songs spread out over six 10" LPs and will also include an MP3 download coupon, which is becoming more and more standard these days. The 10" LPs will also be joined with 10" versions of the extensive booklets that came with the original collection and if you pre-order the collection from Merge then you will receive a $10 dollar discount and a e-valentine's day card!
Second on the agenda is the newly released LP by the Magnetic Fields entitled Realism that has been released this year. On it, Merritt takes a jab at the more folky side of the Magnetic Fields (dating back to 1990's Distant Plastic Trees as a contrast album to 2008's Distortion.
Thirdly, if you know Stephin Merritt and have tried to find every interview and video spot that he has done, you'll know that it's a pain in the ass.. he reluctantly keeps to himself. Fortunately, directors Kerthy Fix and Gail O'Hara have spent the last 10 years filming Merritt's life and will be releasing the documentary entitled Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields. The first screening will be at the San Francisco Film Society on Feb 28th, and they have released a trailer which you can watch right now:
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