Surf is that music which is entirely about evoking something. There's never any vocals, so it's not about the lyrics, it's about… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
I can imagine lyrics becoming better written by smart machines rather than stupid musicians. Songwriters generally have nothing to say. They may… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
Well, there are certainly original things to say. But I'm not sure that a pop song is the appropriate format to say… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
I gave up music criticism because of the increasingly obvious conflict of interest. I couldn't say anything bad about the records when… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
When you're making a singular pop song, you don't really need any subject matter. You just sort of say, "Uh, I love… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
I don't think there are any clichés I try to avoid. As soon as I spot a cliché, I go for it.… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
There's already a great deal to do writing the songs. And if I were completely in control of it, nobody would be… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
There's a whole kind of melancholy that you can only attain with reverb. That's an example of a technology introducing a whole… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
If the songs were in lumps, then you would expect to understand what was going on in the plot. Which is not… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
I don't remember things initially when listening to music. Like, I don't remember where I first heard a song, I don't have… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
I write songs by sitting around in bars, so drinking songs are a little obvious. It's surprising that I don't write entirely… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
You know, most love songs are not cheesy and corny. Most love songs are complaints, I think. Or about unrequited love, coming… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
Yeah, except that when I write pop songs I have pretty strict constraints that I impose on myself. 69 Love Songs is… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
Well, things hold up even if they sound dated. It can be very difficult to listen to 80s pop songs with really,… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
If you want to write a love song, you need to not try to write it for a particular person in a… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
Okay, a truly great song is a song that makes its own aesthetic intentions clear and then lives up to them and… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
If you start out with a song sounding like Britney Spears, and you end up with a song sounding like Pauline Oliveros,… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share Image
The adventure is when people don't know what they're doing at all. Like, I think that the first pop band to use synthesizers as… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
I gave up music criticism because of the increasingly obvious conflict of interest. I couldn't say anything bad about the records when I might… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
Well, things hold up even if they sound dated. It can be very difficult to listen to 80s pop songs with really, really gigantic… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
There are only so many instruments you can layer on top of each other that aren't perfectly electronically programmed. "Long Vermont Roads" just cannot… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
Popular music of the last 50 years has failed to keep in step with advances in musical theater, namely Stephen Sondheim. But the two… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
Well, hardcore is so much about the body, in that you have to play as fast as possible. I'm not sure it can be… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
I write songs by sitting around in bars, so drinking songs are a little obvious. It's surprising that I don't write entirely drinking songs,… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
There's a whole kind of melancholy that you can only attain with reverb. That's an example of a technology introducing a whole new meaning. — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
You know, most love songs are not cheesy and corny. Most love songs are complaints, I think. Or about unrequited love, coming at it… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
I don't think there are any clichés I try to avoid. As soon as I spot a cliché, I go for it. I feel… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
Okay, a truly great song is a song that makes its own aesthetic intentions clear and then lives up to them and exceeds them… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
If you want to write a love song, you need to not try to write it for a particular person in a particular situation.… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
I can imagine lyrics becoming better written by smart machines rather than stupid musicians. Songwriters generally have nothing to say. They may as well… — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
Serious music isn't listened to in a casual setting. You don't want to listen to that in headphones on the subway. — Stephin Merritt Copy Share
