The Magnetic Fields (named after the André Breton 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, along with various side-projects, such as The 6ths, Future Bible Heroes, and The Gothic Archies.

While the particular musical style of the band is usually as malleable as Merritt’s songwriting, its songs are commonly attributed to pop genres and subgenres: synthpop, indie pop, and noise pop.

The band is often also cited as being recognizable by Merritt’s lyrics, often about love and/or with irregular or neutral gender roles, that are by turns ironic, tongue-in-cheek, bitter, and humorous.