It’s pretty rare to see a songwriter break away from his original band and start a more successful solo project. But Ben Folds is a resourceful guy. Before forming Ben Folds Five, he was a percussion major at UMiami and played the hell out of the bass and piano in his down time. Ben Folds Five disbanded in the early 2000s and Folds was left to record most of the instruments for Rockin’ the Suburbs, his 2001 release, alone. This task may have been a problem for mere mortals, but after a week of listening to the 12 song LP, I’ve figured out that Folds is no mere mortal.
The album begins with the energetic “Annie Waits,” which properly sets the tone for the album by alternating a catchy piano riff with precisely placed claps. The track is layered with strong bass lines and several keyboards that are a strong part of Folds’ signature sound. One of the album’s strongest tracks, “Zak And Sara,” follows with thundering mixolydian piano arpeggios and lyrics about two oddball lovers navigating their young lives together. A delightful version of the song with Ben Folds and WASO is posted below:
The emerging pattern displayed here continues throughout the rest of the album. Most of Folds’ tunes tell tragic stories of the downfalls of various members of suburbia. “The Ascent of Stan” tells the story of an ex-hippie who has gone corporate, while “Fred Jones Part 2” is about a man who was fired from his job at an old age. The first nine tracks generally follow this trend and leave the listener thinking, “Alright Ben… suburban life isn’t that bad…” Well. Ben thought the same thing.
The title track, “Rockin’ the Suburbs” shows Folds’ lighter side. The hit single sarcastically plays upon the angsty cry of many modern musicians, displaying hilarious lyrics such as “I’ll take the checks and face the facts / That some producer with computers fixes all my shitty tracks.” It’s tough to not crack a smile when Folds insists “Y’all don’t know what it’s like / being male, middle class, and white” in his toughest rapper voice. For those who aren’t into piano based “punk for pussies” (as Folds describes his music), “Rockin’ the Suburbs” is a fantastic gateway song.
All in all, Folds does quite well on his own. If you are in the mood to smile at a quirky lyric or tap your foot to some undeniably catchy piano melodies, this is the album for you.
It’s that time of the year again, Massive Music Weekend is almost here! But first, on the Tuesday before MMW (tomorrow!), Shawn Watson dedicates his show “A Minute Pause” to what he calls the “fallen soldiers of Massive Music Weekend.” To explain that better: Shawn will play some of the many artists he chose for Massive Music Weekend but didn’t make the cut.
So, on Tuesday Feb. 7 from 10am until 2pm, during every hour Shawn will play a half hour block (or more) of 4 of the artists from his list. This year his “fallen soldiers of Massive Music Weekend” are: Burning Spear, Adam And The Ants, Thin Lizzy, and The Stooges.
Around this time last year, Mirko Azis and I explained in this very column why minimal music is the richest, most compelling form of music. If you read the article, I’m sure you were convinced that we were, in fact, correct, and thus immediately made Gestalt psychology the primary force in your life. For this, dear reader, I raise my glass to you in congratulations.
A year later, I’m here to tell you that while minimal music is the pinnacle of clear, succinct, and meticulously crafted music, there are other types of music that I enjoy.
As a society, we often forget the importance of a little variety in our lives. It changes our routines. It adds that extra element of surprise and wonder. And, most importantly, it’s not perfectly minimal. There are so many wonderfully fantastic things out there, so why should we discard everything but the essential? My writing partner from last year may not agree entirely, but I’m here to tell you that there is no good reason why you only need to listen to one or two types of music.
Have you ever heard the sounds of the ever-so-free jazz composer Sun Ra or the American blues shouter music of Wynonie Harris? How about the rhymes of the lyrically talented hip-hop group Jurassic 5?
My point is simple: Regardless of genre, there are so many great artists and musicians out there to discover.
Fortunately, WRCT makes it easy for you. From Feb. 10 at noon until Feb. 12 at midnight, WRCT will broadcast half-hour segments of music, each dedicated to one particular artist or band. In addition to this, I highly recommend looking into websites like last.fm that track all of the music you consume and allow you to see what your friends are listening to. I sometimes spend hours listening to my friend’s libraries and, through this, my obsession with minimal music is slowly dwindling.
