The Magnetic Fields, whose new album, 50 Song Memoir, is due March 10 on Nonesuch, have unveiled the video for the album track "'83 Foxx and I," via its new official YouTube channel. The song, which may be downloaded now with pre-orders of the album on iTunes and the Nonesuch Store, 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 below.
The video was directed by Alex Basco Koch and produced by José Zayas for Ghost Corporeal. It was originally created for the Magnetic Fields' 50 Song Memoir concert tour directed by Zayas. Fans at the first performances of the piece at MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA, and at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) last year got an early look at the great visuals that are part of the stage extravaganza. Audiences across the country can catch them in person as well, when the tour begins in full swing on March 15. For tickets, visit nonesuch.com/on-tour.
For another sneak peek at the live show's visuals, the band has begun a visual fifty-day countdown to the album's release on its Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts.
50 Song Memoir is available to pre-order now at iTunes and in the Nonesuch Store, where "'83 Foxx and I" plus one song from each decade of Merritt's life may be downloaded immediately: "'74: No," "'86: How I Failed Ethics," "'93: Me and Fred and Dave and Ted," "'02: Be True to Your Bar," and "'13: Big Enough for Both of Us." 50 Song Memoir is available in five-LP and five-CD editions including an extensive interview by Daniel Handler and facsimile handwritten lyrics by Merritt, and as a standalone bound book with a full-album download card. For a limited time, pre-orders at the Nonesuch Store also come with an exclusive print signed by Merritt.