The Magnetic Fields

Singer-songwriter Stephen Merritt, who has also been associated with The 6ths, Future Bible Heroes and The Gothic Archies, formed The Magnetic Fields in Boston in 1990 as a project for his songwriting and it evolved into a band with a series of recordings from 'Distant Plastic Trees' through to their 2017 release, the five-disc '50 Song Memoir'.

Known for experimental pop love songs with ambitious concept albums, the band's line-up now features Merritt plus vocalist Claudia Gonson on piano and drums, Sam Davol on cello and flute, John Woo on banjo and guitar and singer Shirley Simms on autoharp and ukulele. Their 2008 release 'Distortion' went to number 19 on Billboard's Alternative Albums Chart and number 20 on the Top Rock Albums Chart followed by 'Realism' (2010) which reached number 25 on the Alternative and number 36 on the Rock and 'Love at the Bottom of the Sea' (2012) which peaked at number 14 on the Alternative, number 13 on the Independent Albums Chart and number 22 on the Rock. Their 2018 schedule included performances at the Bang On the Can Marathon in New York City and the Luminato Festival in Toronto with concerts in New York and Pittsburgh.