(Epic)
When artists decide to leave their bands behind and go solo, it can mean a number of things. Most often it's that the individual wants to create a unique sound of his or her own and divert from old ways, or the individual's ego is just branching out into a self contained career. For Ben Folds, leaving the \Five"" has left him in basically the same predicament as he sings, writes and supplies piano for the 12 tracks on his solo album, . The album's sound consists of the tried and true Folds formula of overwhelming piano (both sexy and powerful) mixed with an array of back-up instrumentation and lyrics that play to the universal life experiences. The only things Rockin' adds to the mix is hand claps and drum machine with the occasional back-up harmony.
Like past Folds recordings, Rockin' the Suburbs is an eclectic mix of songs that range from soft and subtle to pounding and straightforward rock, with some tracks featuring a combination of both. On tracks like ""Still Fighting It,"" Folds displays his ever-present knack for juxtaposing pain and humor, sweet harmony and choppy choruses. Folds knows his instrument'how to pound the keys, and in turn pounding the listener's pathos. He also knows how to parallel that pathos with occasional wailing rock and unrelated lyrics.
Once in a while Folds forgets the pathos all together and goes straight for parody'the most obvious example being the title track from . A clich??, yet fitting, guitar riff opens the song and is accompanied soon after by sampled drum beats and record scratches. This song not so discretely attacks the rap-metal suburb sweet-hearts Limp Bizkit and Kid Rock with lyrics like, ""Let me tell y'all what it's like being male, middle class and white."" Poking fun at the testosterone rockers, staying true to his roots and giving his fans more of what they want'Ben Folds has made a successful split.
Ben Folds appears at the Orpheum Theater tonight at 8 p.m. Call 255-6005 for information.
