The Magnetic Fields: Classic or Dud?

naw, i think it's just a few rows at the front, you should keep an eye on the site, maybe they'll release some more as the day goes on? otherwise you could chance your arm with general public tomorrow

I see. ... all seats are going to be same price, aren't they: best part of £30?

amazing what Merritt can get away with these days.

i paid 51 quid for two with booking fee, i've had a look at the seating plan and the hall looks lovely, i can't imagine theres a bad seat

both nights now appear sold out, for this limited edition pre-order shenanigan.

m'kay, so neither of the only two enlightened souls I know who would be prepared to pay £25 to go to this can make it. do i buy two anyway and hope I find someone nearer the time who's prepared to take one, or just the one and go all on my lonesome?

The "limited" in the Friday release just seemed to mean they were only selling tickets in the stalls, rather than they were not available to the public. Slightly douchey demand-creation through artificial scarcity. Meh.

Anyway, stalls are sold out the first night, but the other night and the gallery on the first night are still available. I got two right in the middle of the front row (!)

I don't think I've ever sat in the front row at a gig before. I don't think I'm going to like it.

I get the impression Wed is all sold out now, and Thu seems to be a bare handful of places left. He really has become a fastselling exclusive draw. Maybe this venue is actually not that big and that helps to give this impression?

It is odd to remember what scuffed and modest indie-pop type venues / events Merritt used to play. I said 'remember' but don't really know (never saw him before Queen Elizabeth Hall 7.2000), but I get that impression from live recordings, other people's anecdotes, etc.

I was under the impression that he doesn't like playing live due to some aural medical condition. Probably explained in this thread somewhere.

As Cadogan Hall's website informs me the capacity is 900, which is big but not huge considering the catchment area is the pretty much the whole of London. Still a bit surprised that he's sold out so quickly though.

word is merge is releasing vinyl editions of 'the charm of the highway strip' and 'get lost', possibly others.

-- omar little, Thursday, 10 April 2008 04:45 (1 week ago) Bookmark Link

Confirmed: http://houseoftomorrow.com/archives/000068.php

From what I heard of Magnetic Fields, I figure them to be a band of lots of misses and a few strong hits.. like Guided By Voices.

From what I heard of Magnetic Fields, I figure them to be a band of lots of misses and a few strong hits.. like Guided By Voices.

Not a bad comparison, but I find Magnetic Fields to be much more consistent than GBV. Pollard's release-it-all approach results in patchy albums but you're right that the strong hits are there for both bands. It seems people have a strong reaction, positive or negative, to Magnetic Fields. Personally I think _69 Loves Songs_ is just about perfect whereas a good friend of mine can't stand it. *shrug*

Tickets for the London shows seem to be available again from http://www.livenation.co.uk/event/getEvent/eventId/324552

did stephen merrit ever record a version of 100,000 fireflies (I might have asked this on here already) with him singing? because I swear to god I heard one on the radio once. might have been a radio session or something.

if he has i've never heard of it.. though i gather there were MF demos circulating pre-distant plastic trees, so maybe there's something out there..

there are live versions, certainly, which exist as mp3s.

The 6ths song, "Just Like A Movie Star," has a line that is about the most twee thing I've ever heard in a pop song.

"Quit your job, dear
Then you can stay here at home beside me
You be James Dean, I'll be Sal Mineo
You can hide me"

Oh dear.

New record, Realism, out January 26.

http://stereogum.com/archives/album_art/the_magnetic_fields_return_with_realism_100221.html

http://cdn.pitchfork.com/media/strange_powers.jpg

This film is terrific!

I thought it was probably about 94% as good as it could reasonably be.

they have sucked for 11 years now, we should celebrate.

I'll see it sometime soon

wanna see this movie

they have sucked for 11 years now, we should celebrate.

― by another name (amateurist), Saturday, October 16, 2010 2:47 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark

otm

I = very, very, very underrated album

Other Music, NYC:

Stephin Merritt & Magnetic Fields Exhibition Opening Reception
October 28 @ 5-7PM

they have sucked for 11 years now, we should celebrate.

Can't tell whether you're rating "69 Love Songs" as first sucky record or last non-sucky record, but either way, Distortion is really good so I disagree.

I wonder if amateurist means relatively suck, or suck compared to the huge mountain of musical suck that ILM is engulfed in.

further OM info:

Coinciding with the New York City premiere of "Strange Powers" is "All Our Friends are in New York," an exhibition of the band's history, featuring memorabilia and photographs by filmmaker Gail O'Hara, writer Emma Straub, and the band's own John Woo, among others. Other Music will host the exhibition as well as an opening reception -- with Stephin Merritt assuming DJ duties -- on Thursday, October 28 from 5 to 7:00PM at 15 East 4th Street.

http://www.strangepowersfilm.com/

I though the film conveyed about as much of the essence of his persona/art as was likely possible in 85 minutes. I have no idea what nonfans will think, but at least they'll come away knowing Claudia is the engine of their career.

(also, I thing I'm hungover because I've never seen a documentary featuring that many ppl I've drunk with)

Photos of Stephin and Claudia in mid '80s look like they're from a Warhol adaptation of Twilight!

i saw this @ outfest in los angeles a few months. really good, the q&a was hilariously awkward and semi-hostile.

awkward and semi-hostile.

like SM himself?

details! SM, CG, Sam and John did Q&A last week here, but I didn't go.

well SM brought some musical instrument he'd just purchased onstage with him and the moderator asked, "are you going to play a little something for us? what do you say, would you guys like to hear stephin play a song??" and everyone applauded and those who didn't kinda slowly slunk down in their chairs as SM gave the mod a death stare and then the questioning moved on.

another one i remember was some guy tried to give stephin merrit gay bar recommendations (because he'd been having trouble finding a good one in l.a.) and another somehow turned a question into a verbal link to a website. neither really went over very well.

btw while the Good Morning Atlanta clip was funny, I didn't find it as mortifying as everyone has always claimed.

http://www.engrish.com//wp-content/uploads/2010/11/do-as-bunnies-do.jpg

anyone seen these videos from '96? Stephen is on top form. "I can't hear your heckling while I'm talking, so if you wish to heckle please wait until I have finished... talking"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63SttwOM-XU

haven't. but I went to a lot of their shows then.

I saw them probably within a week of this performance, and this was my favorite song from the show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkz0UruvXSc

I sure hope at some point he does something like Randy Newman did recently with simple piano-and-voice recordings. He sounds amazing live doing "A Thousand Lovers in a Day," and the Future Bible Heroes version doesn't come too near it.

http://www.metro.co.uk/showbiz/interviews/1019-molly-ringwald

15th anniversary of 69 love songs coming up in a little over a month. posting about it now because i am going to forget.

i've found that the magnetic fields are a tough sell for people around my age. their sensibility is too gen x maybe? or maybe they just aren't cool? whatever it is, i can't get people to the point where they grasp the point of the band, which is to rescue the old cliches about love from their own lameness by refusing to hide from it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W97YAYPFGw

do you think that is still a reasonable description of their project?

No. Idk. Their post-love songs output has never excited me outside of a few songs here and there.

man, "i" is one of my favorite albums ever. ilm seems to hate all the music i love

weird if the kids don't get 69 anymore. back when i was young everyone was at least impressed by the bigness of it.

"I" is great.

ppl who are Definitely Younger Than Me (early to mid 20s) seem to get it. but younger than that, i don't know. slick over twee, competency over complicated sentiment.

i think the stuff after 69ls (well, after 'i') is a deliberate and definite and listener-hostile refutation of their earlier project, but not a well-executed or a consistent or a coherent one, so i can see why, as an ongoing project, they're a hard sell