Artist: Ben Folds
Album: Songs For Silverman
Released by Epic in 2005
I have to be honest with you; when I first got this CD, I didn't love it. It's not that I didn't like the music, because I love pretty much everything that Ben Folds does. It's just that nothing really jumped out at me. So, after a few listens, it pretty much sat on the shelf. Until now...
After giving it another go, I'm starting to hear the things that I missed earlier on. Of all Folds' albums, I think I like the piano playing the most on this one. There are a number of songs where it sounds like he touches every key on the manual. The two songs that illustrate this the most are "You To Thank" and "Trusted". Give it a listen.
Although the songs on this album are growing on me, something seems to be missing here that his other albums have. Perhaps it's his always interesting social commentary. No, that's here too. Well, I'm still not sure exactly what it is, but I like the other albums better.
All that being said, this is still a brilliant album that I highly recommend. Start with the single, "Landed". It might be a familiar place to spawn some interest in the rest of the disc. The video is pretty funny too, but don't let that distract you from the music!
So, it's about time that I break my tradition of handing out "8s" to Mr. Folds. After several minutes of review with my "Idiot's Guide to THE MIKE JONES SCALE OF DISC AWESOMENESS" close at hand, I have decided to give this album a score of:
7
I know, it's only one less, but it's still some great music, and I just couldn't bring myself to lower it any closer to the dreaded "5" mark.
Join me next time as the experiment continues, we say good-bye to Ben Folds, and say hello to Disc #22: Bif (I Bificus). Yuck.
I think he just gets a little soft and glossy on this one. You could see it starting to happen with "the Luckiest" on the prior album, but here he's singing songs about his daughter. It just gets a little soft around the edges. Gone are the songs with him pounding his fists on the piano keys, in its place is a studio perfect album that loses some of the gritty Ben Folds we grew up with.
ReplyDeleteI think that sometimes there's a place for "a little soft and glossy". Perhaps it's okay to let some of our favourite artists move where their lives are taking them, rather than demand they fit the prior mold that we have become accustomed to... Or maybe he just wanted to try and sell some more albums to a more mainstream audience. Selling out? Maybe. But it's his career I guess.
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