Ben Folds : What Matters Most

Ben Folds Five were one of those bands that you either loved or loathed. There really wasn’t an “ehh, they’re not bad” category. They hit at just the right time for me. Their cabaret-meets-punk rock-meets-power pop mash up made the 90s bearable, eliciting something close to earnestness in a sea of indifference.That is, in-between songs about black t-shirts and unwanted pregnancies.

As a solo artist Ben Folds was the same. If you dug BFF then you enjoyed what he had to offer as a solo singer/songwriter. If anything Ben Folds has been consistent as a solo artist, churning out decent albums with piano-driven pop songs with sometimes acerbic lyrics and sometimes genuinely heartfelt. Though to have your debut solo album come out on September 11th, 2001 might be seen to some as an omen, Ben Folds seems to have taken it in stride.

On Ben Folds’ newest album, What Matters Most, Folds continues to do his thing which is write piano-heavy pop songs in a storyteller, character-driven fashion with relative ease. If you like that kind of thing, What Matters Most might be your jam.

Ben Folds has the compositional and melodic chops of Joe Jackson, while lyrically he’s more in line with Warren Zevon. A good example of that would be the song “Kristine From 7th Grade”, a waltz-style ballad about a girl the narrator knew in middle school and is now as an adult getting messages from the unhinged titular character. Lush piano and string arrangements carry a kind of nasty song about messages in all caps and far out political beliefs. That’s been Ben Folds M.O. since day one; beautiful songs and melodies for songs about odd characters and bizarre tales of life. Album opener “But Wait, There’s More” has buzzing electronics that sounds like a Lite Brite flashing in the dark on its own. Jazz-heavy harmonies bring the song to a new level, which then goes into Billy Joel territory once the drums kick in.

What Matters Most is 10 songs locked into middle of the road tempos and pretty, tinkling melodies; from the beautiful “Clouds With Ellipses” to the uplift 70s radio pop of “Winslow Gardens” to the contemplative album closer “Moments” that goes into Lumineers territory.

I lost track of Ben Folds after 2001, but it feels good to know he’s still putting out good albums and hasn’t lost his knack for melody and storied lyricism. What Matters Most is a solid album.