Stephin Merritt claims that the first four full albums by his band, the Magnetic Fields, each have a specific and unique musical style. As such, The Charm Of The Highway Strip may be the first synth-country album. Marrying the Fields' usual electronic arsenal to original songs written in the traditional Hank, Faron, Lefty, and Patsy C&W fashion works better than one might initially imagine. Merritt's wounded-romantic lyrical persona is not really that dissimilar from that of, say, George Jones or Porter Waggoner. In particular, fans of such country radicals as Lee Hazelwood, Kinky Friedman, and Terry Allen should be immediately attracted to narratives like "Born On A Train" or "Two Characters In Search Of A Country Song." Merritt fans averse to twang have nothing to fear. Despite the overt country tone of the album, Charm... is still prime Magnetic Fields.