May 8, 2005
Arty, Twangy and Carey
By BEN FOLDS
The New York Times
Since dissolving his ironically named trio Ben Folds Five in 2000, Ben Folds has continued to ply his brand of piano-driven pop on his own. In April, Mr. Folds released his second solo album, "Songs for Silverman" (Epic), and he performs tonight at the 9:30 Club in Washington and on Tuesday at Town Hall in New York. Speaking recently with Joel Topcik, Mr. Folds discussed what he's been listening to and why.
Mariah Carey
She's got the most amazing voice. Although the production on her new album, "The Emancipation of Mimi" (Island), may turn some off, I find the sheer talent involved reason enough to listen. I love classic soul ballads like "Mine Again" and "Fly Like a Bird." I also like that she's using her voice on this album more like a male singer might, like Prince. She could show off and belt, but she's evolving and doesn't seem to need to prove herself every bar, so you get the interpretation of an amazing singer.
Ben Lee
Ben Lee's "Awake Is the New Sleep" (New West) is a great record - even if I didn't know him or hadn't played with him, I'd still pick this one. It's a very enlightened record with an almost spiritual message. It's not "All You Need Is Love," but if there was a message, that would be it. It's about letting your guard down and being yourself. The song "Gamble Everything for Love" says it all. It's got a country, 70's, Neil Diamond sound - think "Solitary Man" - but with a reggae thing going on beneath it. His voice and his style are one of a kind; you know immediately when you hear Ben Lee that it's Ben Lee. I guess that's why he annoys people, especially back in Australia, where he's a household name. But he's an individual; that's enough to annoy some people.
M. Ward
Matt Ward, the Portland, Ore., singer and guitarist who records as M. Ward, isn't as transparent as most songwriters I'm drawn to; I'm not sure who he is when I listen to his music. But I like the world he's creating. His new album, "Transistor Radio" (Merge), pulls you into this romantic, impressionistic world of someone who likes old AM radio. "One Life Away" sounds like it was recorded on a broadcast recording console that was state of the art in 1945. The album opens up into a very wide sound with his voice coming from all around you rather than straight up the middle. It tells you he wants you to be inside his head.
Greenskeepers
I don't know anything about this band. I just heard this song "Lotion" on Triple J, the free-form radio station in Australia. It ties into the movie "Silence of the Lambs" with the line: "It puts the lotion in the basket or else it gets the hose again." I've never seen the movie; I described the song to a friend of mine who'd seen it, and he immediately knew the line. But the song is great abstract storytelling - they're painting a really interesting, creepy story in the song. It sounds like art students all picked up instruments one day and decided to start a band. ("Lotion" appears on the band's new album, "Pleetch," on OM Records.)
Lemon Jelly
Ambient or electronica - or whatever the current terminology is for electronic music - isn't the kind of music I normally listen to. But the guys in the U.K. duo Lemon Jelly are really good. On "64-95" (Impotent Fury), their latest album, out in January, it's not clear where the musicianship comes in and where computers come in. It's not purely sample and loop stuff, either. I'm a fan of developed melodies and motifs and good composition, and I don't hear a lot of electronic music that's developed in a compositionally sound way; a lot of it just gets tedious. But these songs are very well crafted.
LCD Soundsystem
I love that song "Daft Punk Is Playing at My House" by LCD Soundsystem, the producer James Murphy's dance music project. It's loads of fun. It's the first song on the current self-titled album, on Capitol. It has a little Talking Heads thing to it, also a little funk. I'm hearing a guy with his thumb on the bass in a really irresponsible way; it's not like Parliament-Funkadelic - he's just playing too hard. The lead vocal is just cocky and fun. It's the best kind of party.
Clem Snide
Eef Barzelay, the singer and guitarist for Clem Snide, is a friend of mine: I've been listing to his music for a while. His last record, "Soft Spot," was fairly mellow; "End of Love" (Spin Art), which came out in February, has a bit more of a twang to it, which I think is natural for him. He's always had that little bit of a country thing. Really, his old music and his new music sound the same to me - it's all about the words for me. There's a sadness inside his humor. A lot of people will just play a minor chord and tell you they're sad; the sadness in Eef's songs is emotionally complicated and not obvious, which makes it more real to me.
