The Magnetic Fields (named after the André Breton/Philippe Soupault novel Les Champs Magnétiques) is an American indie pop group founded and led by Stephin Merritt. He is the group's primary songwriter, producer and vocalist, as well as frequent multi-instrumentalist. The Magnetic Fields is essentially a vehicle for Merritt's songwriting, as are various side-projects, such as The 6ths, Future Bible Heroes and The Gothic Archies. While the musical style of the band is as malleable as Merritt's songwriting, its songs are commonly attributed to pop genres such as synthpop, indie pop, Baroque pop and noise pop. The band is often cited as being recognizable by Merritt's lyrics, often about love and often with irregular or neutral gender roles, that are by turns ironic, tongue-in-cheek, bitter,