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| Ben Folds a madman on the piano |
by Shaun Knittel -
SGN Staff Writer
Ben Folds
May 14
Paramount Theater
Ben Folds plays the piano like he is mad at it. The minute Ben stepped on stage at the Paramount last Thursday, he brought energy with him I'd never seen from the melodic singer at any previous Folds gig. He kicked off a two-hour set with "The Bitch Went Nuts" from his latest solo LP, Way to Normal. It quickly became clear to the full-to-capacity crowd we were about to see one hell of a show - the man can sing and play the piano like no other.
Seattle is the first city Ben, and the amazing four member band who back him, played to promote the Way to Normal album. The Paramount seemed the perfect venue to take in a Ben Folds show. When Ben was sitting alone at the piano singing "Landed" with a single lonely spotlight on him there would be no other place I'd rather see him play I thought. Ben was dressed as he always is; glasses, plain t-shirt, and Driver cap. If you think nerds are hot -- Ben is your man.
The show was Ben without the Folds Five - the band he used to record and tour with. He played almost all the songs from his single repertoire. New songs such as "Mr. Yang" and "Cologne" were received well. Crowd-pleasers like "Annie Waits" were performed flawlessly. The standout number came when Ben sang the ballad "Still Fighting It," a bittersweet ode to the pain of adolescence.
Ben Folds has a unique voice that's earned him a very loyal fan base. In all actuality, his fans are the quietest you'll ever hear - pre-show. Once the house lights are turned down they explode, like Ben's piano prowess. Ben played with such genuineness and passion Thursday night it brought his already colorful lyrics to life. At one point he broke a piano chord as he was pounding away at the keys. There is something terribly sexual about his playing. You can tell he feels the music, and the piano is a lover he's been with for years.
The sincerity in Ben when he is performing is easy to see. Mid-show he hopped off the stage and walked through the audience, shaking hands while he sang about "turning your frown upside down." A veteran of touring the world, Ben is a top-notch showman who really connected with the audience when someone yelled out Chapel Hill and Ben proceeded to adlib a song based on being from that part of North Carolina, being famous and not being able to leave the hotel room so he could enjoy Seattle, and how it never rains here. The song, which went on for nearly six minutes, was done so well it could've been a single from Way to Normal.
Before exiting the stage, after giving the audience everything he had, Ben said, "Thank you very much, Seattle. This is the first night of our tour and I couldn't have asked for a better audience."
The applause went on for 10 minutes eventually turning into a clapping chant - Ben, Ben, Ben! As he returned to the stage, he walked up to the microphone and said, "Wow - thank you. This is unbelievable." For the encore he sang the only Ben Folds Five song of the night, "Fair," giving the piano one more ass-kicking before he was satisfied.
Ben Folds is often compared to fellow piano geniuses such as Elton John and Billy Joel, but I disagree. There is no comparison. Ben Folds is in a class all his own.
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