The band was originally formed in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1990 by friends Merritt and (percussionist/pianist/vocalist) Claudia Gonson. While 1991's Distant Plastic Trees and 1992's The Wayward Bus (now most easily available together as a compilation, The Wayward Bus / Distant Plastic Trees) are sung by Susan Anway (b. 1951 - d. 2021), all subsequent albums are principally sung by Merritt himself.
Longtime members include: Gonson, (cellist) Sam Davol, and (banjo player/guitarist) John Woo. Contributors include (but are not limited to) the singers Susan Anway, Dudley Klute, Shirley Simms, and LD Beghtol, and the accordionist/writer Daniel Handler (famous for writing the childrens' books A Series of Unfortunate Events under the alias Lemony Snicket).
Their most popular and best-selling album to date is 69 Love Songs issued on Merge Records as a triple album filled with many fairly short songs that are reminiscent of early Beatles productions.
The album is notable for its employment of many unorthodox musical arrangements and downright impressive quantity of material presented. Instruments used on this album include the ukulele, banjo, accordion, cello, mandolin, piano, flute, xylophone guitars, various percussion instruments, and a standard setup of synths and effects. It features several guest vocalists on several different tracks. The album is a three CD set, released in the US as three separate albums (also available as a boxed set) and in the UK as a triple album.
The album i (2004, Nonesuch Records) continues Merritt's fixation on the concept album, with each of the 14 songs beginning with the letter (and often the pronoun) "I".
The album Distortion, was released through Nonesuch on the 15th January 2008 and introduced noise pop to the array of styles utilized in their music. The album's release was followed by a sold-out U.S. tour starting in February. Additional albums followed in 2010, 2012, 2017, and 2020.
Stephin Merritt is involved in several other musical projects: The 6ths (featuring different guest performers on every track), The Gothic Archies (songs dealing humorously with dark themes) and Future Bible Heroes (with music written by Chris Ewen)
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Your Girlfriend's ...
The Magnetic Fields Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I have hired a hitman to do what they do
He will do his best to do his worst
After he's messed up your girlfriend first
I said he'll do his worst
To your girlfriend first
For stealing my lover and making me blue
He'll have to hose off your twisting place
After he blows off your girlfriend's face
I want the whole bloody place
Wet with your girlfriend's face
So I've taken a contract out on y'all
For make me feel infinitely small
In the evenings I devise your death
Being buried alive on crystal meth
Baby, I'd give you death
By, by, by crystal meth
The Magnetic Fields' song "Your Girlfriend's..." is a darkly humorous and satirical take on revenge and jealousy. In the song, the singer, who has been wronged by their ex-lover and their new girlfriend, hires a hitman to take care of them both. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of the violence and gore that will ensue, with references to shooting, blowing up, and disfiguring the targets. However, the singer's main focus is on making their ex and their girlfriend pay for their actions and feel the same pain and humiliation.
The lyrics are meant to be tongue-in-cheek and over-the-top, but they also speak to the feelings of anger and hurt that can arise from betrayal and heartbreak. The singer's desire for revenge is a primal and human response to being hurt, even if the methods they use are extreme and unlikely to be taken seriously. The use of crystal meth as a means of killing is also a darkly ironic nod to the destructive power of addiction and the ways in which it can consume and destroy lives.
Overall, "Your Girlfriend's..." is a macabre yet humorous take on the theme of revenge and the ways in which it can consume and destroy lives. It is a reminder that even in our darkest moments, there is a twisted humor and a sense of absurdity to be found in the human experience.
Line by Line Meaning
So I've taken a contract out on you
I have taken a contract to kill you.
I have hired a hitman to do what they do
I have employed a professional killer to do the job.
He will do his best to do his worst
He will try his hardest to make things worse for you.
After he's messed up your girlfriend first
He will hurt your girlfriend first.
I said he'll do his worst
I warned you he will cause you a lot of pain.
To your girlfriend first
He will hurt your girlfriend before coming for you.
'Cause I've hired the fixer for her too
I have also hired someone to fix your girlfriend's situation.
For stealing my lover and making me blue
Your girlfriend stole my lover and made me upset.
He'll have to hose off your twisting place
The fixer will clean up your place after causing chaos.
After he blows off your girlfriend's face
He will hurt your girlfriend badly.
I want the whole bloody place
I want everything to be a mess.
Wet with your girlfriend's face
Her blood will be all over the place.
So I've taken a contract out on y'all
I have taken a contract to kill both of you.
For make me feel infinitely small
Because you made me feel insignificant.
In the evenings I devise your death
I plan how to kill you every evening.
Being buried alive on crystal meth
I will make sure you die painfully and badly by burying you alive while you are high on crystal meth.
Baby, I'd give you death
I wish death upon you.
By, by, by crystal meth
I would like you to die while high on crystal meth.
Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: STEPHIN MERRITT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind