Claudia Gonson

“I was straight when Stephin met me, and I’m gay now, which may have been influenced by the openness of hanging around with so many gay people,” she reflects. “When we started Magnetic Fields we purposely had one lesbian, o

“I was straight when Stephin met me, and I’m gay now, which may have been influenced by the openness of hanging around with so many gay people,” she reflects. “When we started Magnetic Fields we purposely had one lesbian, one gay guy, one straight woman, and one straight man. The audience could identify with whomever they wanted. I hang out with more gay women now, but I guess I’m more of a fag hag than a lezzie hag.”

In that interview, Gonson noted that she feels that Merritt's songs are predominantly about "Loneliness, isolation, and the need to be recognized by another person." She believes, if homophobia was not as prevalent as it currently is, that these experiences "would be less rampant instead of being so associated with the gay personality." Gonson believes that many LGBT youth and straight young females turn to The Magnetic Fields for "words of wisdom."