Stephin Merritt, currently on tour with The Magnetic Fields performing 50 Song Memoir, recently took director Barbara Anastacio on a tour of his home in Hudson, New York, for the latest episode of the Nowness series My Place. "If I'd known they'd be tacking on buzzy trumpets," says Merritt, "I would have enunciated and declaimed." You can watch it here.

The Magnetic Fields have unveiled the video for "'01 Have You Seen It in the Snow?," from their new album, 50 Song Memoir. The song is one of fifty on the five-disc set that chronicles the fifty years of songwriter Stephin Merritt's life with one song per year. You can watch the video here. The video was created by Alex Basco Koch and José Zayas, produced by Ghost Corporeal. It was originally created for the Magnetic Fields' 50 Song Memoir concert tour directed by Zayas.

The Magnetic Fields' 50 Song Memoir, which chronicles the fifty years of songwriter Stephin Merritt's life with one song per year, is available in five-LP and five-CD editions including a 100-page book with an extensive interview by Daniel Handler and facsimile handwritten lyrics by Merritt, and as a standalone book with a full-album download card. Now you can take a quick look inside the package in a new "unboxing" video here.

The Magnetic Fields have unveiled the video for "'92 Weird Diseases," from their new album, 50 Song Memoir. The song is one of fifty on the five-disc set that chronicles the fifty years of songwriter Stephin Merritt's life with one song per year. You can watch the video here. The video was created by Stephanie Beattie, Alex Basco Koch, and José Zayas; produced by Ghost Corporeal. It was originally created for the Magnetic Fields' 50 Song Memoir concert tour directed by Zayas.

The Magnetic Fields' 50 Song Memoir album is out, the tour is on, and we're giving away a copy of the 5-LP vinyl set and a life-sized Stephin Merritt standee! For your chance to win: 1. Visit the merch table at any stop on the US tour. 2. Take a selfie with the cardboard Stephin standee standing there. 3. Post the pic to Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook with the hashtag #StephinStandee. Can't make it to a show? Tour not coming to your town? To enter, print out this photo of Stephin at home (it doesn't need to be life-sized!), then follow steps 2 and 3 above. 

The Magnetic Fields have unveiled the video for "'88 Ethan Frome," from their new album, 50 Song Memoir. The song is one of fifty on the five-disc set that chronicles the fifty years of songwriter Stephin Merritt's life with one song per year. You can watch the video here. The video features illustrations by Alexander Petrowsky and animation by John Erickson. It was produced by Alex Basco Koch and José Zayas for Ghost Corporeal. The video was originally created for the Magnetic Fields' 50 Song Memoir concert tour directed by Zayas, which began last week.

Stephin Merritt is a guest on the latest episode of the public radio show Studio 360 from PRI and WNYC. He talks with host Kurt Andersen about the making of the new Magnetic Fields album, 50 Song Memoir, which chronicles the 50 years of songwriter his life with one song per year, and performs solo takes on two songs from the album: "'71 I Think I'll Make Another World" and "'91 The Day I Finally ..." You can hear the interview and performance here and on public radio stations across the US.

The Magnetic Fields, now touring the US, have announced that they will be bringing the 50 Song Memoir tour to the UK and Ireland this summer. The tour, which begins with two nights at the Edinburgh International Festival on August 25 and 26, will make stops at the National Concert Hall in Dublin, Colston Hall in Bristol, Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, and the Brighton Dome, culminating at Barbican Hall in London on September 9 and 10. Along with their June appearance at Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona, these are the only European tour dates that the band has planned this year.

The Magnetic Fields have unveiled the video for "'85 Why I Am Not a Teenager," a song on their new album, 50 Song Memoir. The song is one of fifty on the five-disc set that chronicles the fifty years of songwriter Stephin Merritt's life with one song per year. Watch it here. The video was directed by Alexander Petrowsky, who created the animation along with Ryan Powell, the video's editor. It was produced by Alex Basco Koch and José Zayas for Flying Fish Productions. The video was originally created for the Magnetic Fields' 50 Song Memoir concert tour directed by Zayas, which begins in full swing tonight. 

The Magnetic Fields have unveiled the video for "'71 I Think I'll Make Another World," from the new album 50 Song Memoir. The song is one of fifty on the five-disc set that chronicles the fifty years of songwriter Stephin Merritt's life with one song per year. You can watch it here. The video was created by Alex Basco Koch, Roger Miller, and José Zayas and features illustrations by Roger Miller. It was produced by Ghost Corporeal. It was originally created for the Magnetic Fields 50 Song Memoir concert tour directed by Zayas, which picks up on Wednesday.

The Magnetic Fields’ 50 Song Memoir, chronicling the 50 years of songwriter Stephin Merritt’s life with one song per year, is out now. It's "quite an achievement," says NPR Music. "Some of its wordplay is truly remarkable ... More importantly, Memoir is a tour-de-farce of melody and arrangement." Pitchfork calls it "an immersive, incisive listen," with "his catalog 50 songs richer as a result." It's "a highly entertaining summary of pop culture of the past half-century," says the Wall Street Journal. "50 Song Memoir is a treat." Exclaim! exclaims: "Stephin Merritt is a genius." The video for the album track "'68 A Cat Called Dionysus" premiered today and can be seen here.

The Magnetic Fields' new five-LP / five-CD collection, 50 Song Memoir, is due out on this Friday, March 10. But you don't need to wait till then to hear it: the album is streaming as an NPR First Listen, with the songs from one disc—one decade of singer/songwriter Stephin Merritt's life—being added each day. It's "quite an achievement," says NPR Music. "Some of its wordplay is truly remarkable ... More importantly, Memoirs is a tour-de-farce of melody and arrangement."