2008 Begins with a bang, as the Magnetic Fields release their latest full length album, Distortion. The sound is different, the sound is heavier, but the songs are fantastic. Sure, my friend and former lead singer Rick says he likes the record best through his living room wall, where the sound is less harsh, but he is quick to admit that the songs are great.
The other big shock for fans of recent Stephin Merritt releases is that he splits singing duties on this record, something that he did on 69 Love Songs, to be sure, but I suppose we all considered that record an exception. Otherwise, it has been a long string of Merritt-only Magnetic Fields records: i, Charm of the Highway Strip, Get Lost, Holiday. Shirley Simms does a lot of the heavy lifting on the record.
A quick run down of my favorites from the 13 song record include "California Girls," "Old Fools," "Xavier Says," "Too Drunk to Dream," "The Nun's Litany," and "Courtesans." "Zombie Boy" almost makes it, but there is one line that really makes me cringe, which I will leave as an exercise to the reader. No obvious misses here, but I don't really need "Three-Way," the instrumental first track.
Fans of the Magnetic Fields should definitely pick this up. Most people considered i a missed step, but after a couple of listens, I believe most people will also consider Distortion a fine return to form. Me, I liked a lot of the tracks on i, and I consider this another fine record.