Folds slows down, grows
in sophomore solo album
 By
Nate Cross
Staff Writer
Stupidity is something Ben Folds has mastered.
The piano playing namesake behind Ben Folds Five
— the strangely named band with only three members — has dropped
his band and is prepared to be "Rockin' the Suburbs" on his second solo
release.
But the only rocking that is done on "Rockin' the
Suburbs" is in the title track. Quick-paced with a DJ and a guitar riff,
the song has the same stupidity that fans of Ben Folds Five have come
to know and love.
The opening lyrics of the song are a prime example
— "Let me tell you what it's like/ being male, middle class and
white."
The title track takes funny shots at modern rock,
"I'm gonna cuss on the mic tonight/ I don't know how much I can take/
Girl give me something I can break," but also manages to come across
as almost serious.
Unfortunately, the rest of the album doesn't follow
suit. This album is similar to the tone and pace of Five's last album,
"The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner."
Both albums have one track that doesn't fit in,
and that track is the single. "Army" from "Messner" was a funny, quick
ditty, but the rest of the album was slow and filled with dramatic songs
about love and loss with experimental orchestral textures scattered
throughout.
This album could be thought of as the bare bones
continuation of where Ben Folds Five left off.
Former band mate Robert Sledge's strange bass is
noticeably absent, as are Darrin Jesse's pounding drums — two things
that made the Five's music appealing.
Throughout the album, Folds plays the piano with
a rhythmic "Billy Joel on a lot of drugs" presence. His quick fingers
make all the tracks enjoyable and his stupid lyrics in serious songs
make the tracks unpredictable.
With each album, Folds seems to grow up a little.
Although it's hard for him to refrain from silly lyrics, "Still Fighting
It" marks a family attitude for Folds, who recently married, moved to
Australia and became a father.
Folds' serious side emerges when he sings, "Twenty
years from now/ maybe we'll both sit down/ and have a few beers/ And
I can tell you about today/ And how I picked you up/ And everything
changed."
While fans of Ben Folds Five may have been scared
of the future of the band, not much is different here except for progression,
something that wasn't shown on the first three albums.
The piano playing and silly one liners will always
be present, but the quick paced tunes are all but gone.
|
