6ths Hyacinths And Thistles CD

Principally recorded at First Reformed Church, Brooklyn, New York.

1995's WASPS' NESTS was a who's who of mid-'90s indie rock which served as a handy introduction to Stephin Merritt's unique and wonderful songwriting. 2000's HYACINTHS AND THISTLES follows the same format of 14 singers singing 14 Merritt songs, but instead of focusing on hip indie folks, the lineup this time seems to reflect Merritt's own musical tastes, from old-school folkies Odetta and Melanie (!) to '80s pop avatars like Gary Numan, Marc Almond, and Altered Images' Clare Grogan, whose delightfully weird babytalk voice turns the title of her song into "Night Fawws Wike A Gwand Piano." We've missed her.

The songs are a sumptuously melodic but low-key batch, largely built around Merritt's synthesizers and piano, with few guitars and restrained percussion, projecting the same non-rock vibe as the Magnetic Fields' 69 LOVE SONGS. Highlights include Bob Mould's surprisingly tender "He Didn't," and the Eno-like 28-minute closer "Oahu."

Stephin Merritt(Magnetic Field W/Momus,Sally Timms,B.Mould+

The 6ths include: Stephin Merritt.

Engineers: Jon Berman, David Merrill, Jim Papoulis.

Personnel: Gary Numan, Clare Grogan, Miss Lily Banquette, Marc Almond, Miho Hatori, Neil Hannon, Sally Timms, Sarah Cracknell, Bob Mould (vocals); Stephin Merritt (guitar, keyboards); John Woo (guitar); Brian Dewan (zither); Ida Pearle (violin); Sam Davol (cello); Daniel Handler (accordion); Claudia Gonson (piano, drums); Margaret Leng Tan (piano).

Recording information: Amphion, Music, NY; First Reformed Church, Brooklyn, NY; JSM Music, NY; Pacific Music Productions, Honolulu, HI.

Additional personnel: Momus, Sally Timms, Bob Mould, Melanie, Dominique A, Sarah Cracknell, Miho Hatori, Clare Grogan, Neil Hannon, Gary Numan, Marc Almond, Odetta, Katherine Whalen, Lily Banquette (vocals); John Woo (guitar); Ida Pearle (violin); Sam Davol (cello); Daniel Handler (accordion); Claudia Ganson (piano, drums); Kenny Mellman, Margaret Leng Tan (piano).Rolling Stone (9/14/00, p.174) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Memorable tunes abound....preaching to the converted. Call this one 14 SELF-LOVE SONGS..."
Spin (10/00, p.184) - 6 out of 10 - "...Dreary Dead Pan Alley drollery...indulging in kitsch-cabaret excess..."
Entertainment Weekly (9/8/00, p.86) - "...Not since Morrissey has anyone written [such] droll post-breakup commentaries..." - Rating: A-
Q (12/00, p.133) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Curiously affecting..."
Uncut (10/00, p.96) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Somewhere between the moon and New York City, Merritt spins more starry magic..."
CMJ (9/4/00, p.3) - "...A delicious balance of angsty-heavy, unrequited live and dry wit. This is simply another must-have from the master of elegantly biting pop."
Mojo (Publisher) (11/00, p.96) - "...Expressive and more restrained....the 14 love songs...are as sweet and prickly as the title..."