I’ve been reliving the 90s quite a bit lately, making an effort to see the bands I loved but never saw back in the day. Ben Folds Five is one of those bands.
On Monday, September 24th, Ben Folds and the reunited Five (which is really three) delighted a packed crowd at Stubb’s BBQ in Austin, TX. Let’s start with his opener, Australian pop singer Kate Miller-Heidke. She was…interesting. She’s quite talented but often broke out into operatic solos, making her music seem a little disjointed. But it was obvious why quirky Ben Folds chose her as a tour mate.
After what seemed like a lifetime, the music went down, the lights came up, and the members of Ben Folds Five graced the stage. It was an energetic show filled with a good mixture of past favorites and songs from the band’s new album The Sound of the Life of the Mind. I’m not going to pretend to be all that familiar with Ben Folds Five entire discography, but it was a joy to hear songs like “Battle of Who Could Care Less,” “Missing the War,” and “Army,” as well as songs like “Do It Anyway” and “Erase Me” from the new album. And of course I was ecstatic to hear “Brick.” The first notes of the song started and there was a collective “awww” from the audience. It was gorgeous and I love that song just as much as I did in 1997.
As Stubb’s 10:30PM curfew approached, the audience could tell that Ben Folds Five hadn’t yet conquered that night’s set list. Even though the band had been playing for nearly an hour and half, they seemed to have more in store. Down to the wire, Ben Folds didn’t even leave the stage before their encore, claiming they “didn’t have time for that charade.” All in all, we didn’t get to hear anticipated songs like “Song for the Dumped” (which I REALLY wanted to hear) or “One Angry Dwarf And 200 Solemn Faces” but we did get an improvised tune (dubbed “Thank You Doctor” by Setlist.fm) about the mole Ben Folds had had removed that day…
Missed the show? Find the set list here and take a look at Soundcheck Magazine’s amazing photos.
– Submitted by Jessica Reed, Social Media