Whatever and Ever Amen - Ben Folds Five > Reviews > Whatever

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Groundbreaking
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money

Advantages:	A wide range of styles, different to the the "normal" alternative music  :  - )
Disadvantages:	May not be to everyones taste

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Ben Folds Five, the recently split trio from North Carolina consist[s/ed] of:

Ben Folds - Piano & Vocals
Robert Sledge - Bass
Darren Jesse - Drums

The combination of piano, bass and drums is a strange combination for a successful band, however, as many people say, "rock started on the piano". Fold's vocals on this album are excellent, the piano beautiful, the bass powerful and innovative, the drums sharp.

This is possibly Ben Folds Five's most successful album, due to the high popularity of the single "Brick" which topped the US charts. There are several other classic Ben Folds Five tracks on this album including "Song For the Dumped", and the great "Missing the War".

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1. One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces
A song, perhaps about the band itself, perhaps about Ben - A dwarf, beat up after school, now "telling you what to do" - Perhaps depicting BFF as the dwarf, being laughed at, now on top of the world with a great album....
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2. Fair
A song about love and irony, great bass playing on this track, with an interesting rhythm. "All is fair in love" Mr Folds sings, along-side some well-written, thought provoking lyrics.
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3. Brick
Brick was their #1 single in the USA. The song is a beautiful tale of a boy taking his girlfriend to the abortion clinic, the emotions and feelings associated with this. The song is powerful and well written - A classic.
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4. Song For the Dumped
This song may as well have been played by a heavy metal band - It doesn't sound heavy, but it could be! The anthem for dumped blokes - Women take your money, dump you, and nick your black T-shirt!
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5. Selfless, Cold & Composed
A slow song, easy piano, relaxed bass and drumming - Calm vocals - Basically what the title says - "Selfless, Cold & Composed" - Possibly about a break-up.
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6. Kate
A love song. Kate is a happy, upbeat song about a lass named (surprise!) Kate. "When all words fail, she speaks...her mix tapes' a masterpiece" - Says it all :-)
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7. Smoke
Starting with weird piano noises - Strange scraping noises over the bass guitar and drums. Another calm song.
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8. Cigarette
This was apparently an excerpt from a magazine, to which Ben Folds set some piano music - Quiet and easy to listen to.
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9. Stevens Last Night In Town
An upbeat song, horns included. A great lil' drum beat to get your feet tappin' (trust me, I'm jumpin' in my seat just writing it). This song was written to get rid of a guest that outstayed his welcome (so I am told)...
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10. Battle of Who Could Care Less
A great upbeat song, fantastic live. This one really gets[got] the crowds going. Great bass playing, well written.
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11. Missing the War
Wow. This song is beautiful. The vocals are amazing, the piano playing excellent.
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12. Evaporated
A calm end to the album, like Missing the War in many ways, peaceful, relaxing and thought provoking.
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Lyrically and musically sound, interesting, innovative, different from the norm, Whatever and Ever Amen is a classic album. The mix of songs, from incredibly upbeat, to quiet, relaxed and thought provoking provides a good range of listening. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to get away from it all and have a quality listen.

Side note: When you get the album, read the inside cover, the notes are funny.

Jamie :-P