Magnetic Fields - The Flowers She Sent and the Flowers She Said She Sent

Well look who's back. Despite an exhausting day of orientation and various assemblies, I'm really happy with my new school. It suits me so much better than my previous university, and I have high hopes for the next two years.

But that's enough about me...onwards with the Pete & Pete!
As I said with the possibly of this entry, I would bring gifts of the Merritt kind. Well here it comes, "The Flowers She Said and the Flowers She Said She Sent," one of my favorite songs from the Magnetic Fields most consistent and concise record, Holiday. I know the song was in several episodes, but I can only say for certain was that it was prominent in "What We Did On Our Summer Vacation." I participated in my annual summer's end ritual last night, and it was, like always, rewarding. If there's one episode that can neatly summarize my love for the show, that's the one.

The Magnetic Fields - The Flowers She Sent and the Flowers She Said She Sent

"I saw you standing at the airport
With your chihuahua in your hand
Crying on the moving sidewalk
On your way to Disneyland

And the flowers she sent and the flowers she said she sent
Are all equally dead
You don't care anymore, she said
And the books she read and the books that she said she read
Are all spread on the floor
You don't care about them anymore

I saw you closing your antique shop
With a boa 'round your throat
And you tremble like an ostrich
In your ostrich feather coat

And the flowers she sent and the flowers she said she sent
Are all equally dead
You don't care anymore, she said
And the books she read and the books that she said she read
Are all spread on the floor
You don't care about them anymore"

For the Magnetic Fields' album, I cannot recommend it enough. Though I'll always love 69 Love Songs best, as that's what introduced me to the band (and that there's so many brilliant songs on it,) but for a quick fix of the band, I always turn to Holiday. One thing about the record that's missing from their later albums is the production. All pre-69 releases were produced by Stephin Merritt, and his lack of engineering expertise is incredibly charming. Actually, I cannot say for myself, since as far as I know Stephin could know worlds about producing music, but just chooses to take the lo-fi route. The thing with the early Magnetic Fields albums, all typically in lo-fi synth pop style, is that they sound unlike anything else I've heard. Electronic music has been done to death in this day and age, and sometimes it's hard not to just yawn at the thought of another "indie act" with a synthesizer. Also with all the presets and compression, it's difficult to hear so called electric music that doesn't sound plastic coated, cold, and utterly dead. The Magnetic Fields on the other hand are very much alive and well, sounding as honest as the sing-song recordings a little kid makes with a pocket tape recorder. However there's a significant difference between the two: musical expertise and innate songwriting chops. Of course I'm talking about Merrit here, unless the name of the little kid is Brian Wilson. Then again, he's actually a big fan of the Magnetic Fields... for real.

The Adventures of Pete & Pete 2x02 Fields of Pete

The episode that introduced the world to the Orange Lazarus. Only on this show could take something as prototypical and predictable as the big-game baseball episode and make it entirely their own. To be honest, this is one of my least favorite episodes, but that's probably just due to the sports connection. Not really my thing. Still, it's fantastic, which is a real testament to the quality of this series.



The Magnetic Fields @ Merge Records

Adventures of Pete & Pete Season 1 DVD @Amazon.com
Adventures of Pete & Pete Season 2 DVD @Amazon.com