Ben Folds: Way To Normal
After parting ways with Ben Folds Five in 1999, lead singer/songwriter Ben Folds has a number of EP’s as well three full length studio albums under his belt. His 2001 record Rocking The Suburbs climbed to #42 on the US Billboard charts, while his 2005 follow-up Songs for Silverman made its way to #13 (#9 AUS). Lacking stand out hits as Brick, Rockin’ The Suburbs, and Landed, Ben Fold’s new album titled Way to Normal is able to hold its own weight when it comes to catchy tunes and melodies that will repeat in your head all day long.
Hiroshima, the album’s open track, uses a catchy wordless hook that cuts through the howling and screaming of the typically excited Ben Folds crowd. Originally an improvisational song much like Rock This Bitch (Ben Folds Live 2003), Folds literally walks his way though the concert experience in Japan by saying “I waved down low to the crowd as I busted ass on the front of the stage … watching me fall”.
Carrying the album with upbeat tempos are song like Dr. Yang, Bitch Went Nuts, and Brainwascht; however, the most notable song of the electric energy tunes is hilariously titled Effington; which is a song about a town that the band passes through on their way to Normal, Illinois. The song begs questions such as “are they f’ing in their yards, f’ing in their cars, f’ing in the trailers and the back roads and the parking lots of Effington?”
The melody that will most likely surge your ipod for repating it over and over again is You Don’t Know Me, which features popular indie recording artist Regina Spektor. The tune carries a distinctive bass pedal on every on-beat which has become an expected trademark for any Spektor collaborated tune. Spektor also loans her distinctive vocal melody lines to add that distinguishing touch that has made her popular in the musical world.
Overall, Way to Normal offers all the symphonic arrangements of strings and quirky experimental uses of the piano that Folds fans have come to expect. If you listen closely you will be able to hear the toy piano on Before Cologne or the kitchen pan placed on Folds grand piano during Brainwascht. Cologne calls upon the ambiance of Late from the previous album, conversely, it seems to be misplaced on this album. If you are not already a Folds fan, either of the previous solo albums or the Ben Folds classic album Whatever and Amen would be a better choice to start with. For the true Ben Folds fan, this album is still a must have for your record collection.
Patrick Kennedy
Hey, cool tips. Perhaps I’ll buy a bottle of beer to the man from that forum who told me to go to your site
Although this is quite different then the rest of his albums I feel this is one of his better albums. I have loved every single song he has done since the beginning but this new side of Folds seems to be very refreshing and shows that he is at a different place and still growing musically even after all these years.
Love the review! The new CD is great!
I’ll be honest I didn’t really grow up with Ben Folds but, I picked up a few albums of his this months ago and just can’t get over how talented he truly is. I can’t help thinking of Effingham every time I drive back to my hometown of St. Louis. I always have to pass through that city.
Great review PJ!