It’s easy to tell from a live show whether or not the artist is doing something merely for the spectacle or whether they’re genuinely trying something different for the sake of art – and Ben Folds’ latest collaboration is as genuine as they come. This was clearly a passion project, and he seemed to revel in the young talent joining him on stage.
yMusic opened with a moving instrumental, subtly incorporating the melodies of Folds’ solo work where possible. Folds himself had no intention of taking the spotlight either, he joined them casually and sat at the back behind a small piano, trying to ensure it remained an ensemble performance.
The first half of the set was mostly songs from their collaborative album including Long Way to Go, So There, Capable of Anything and the aptly named Phone In A Pool, which Folds explained was about exactly that. Fans also got a taste of yMusic’s own work with Beautiful Mechanic and Music In Circles. While it was awesome to hear Folds’ bigger hits with the backing of yMusic, it was his lesser known work that benefited most. Songs like Erase Me, The Last Polka and Still Fighting It were completely transformed, breathing new life into his work.
Folds and the band broke up the show with a midway freestyle piece they titled Rock This Bitch, which was as fun as it was clever. Folds dry humour is still a big part of the charm, on display as he shared some of the stories behind his work as well as the odd joke. He continually kept making himself laugh too, whether accidentally playing the wrong song or casually whispering “Balls” into the microphone during a moment of silence. For such a huge talent it’s nice to know he doesn’t take himself too seriously.
They finished the set with something Folds referred to as a “Rock Block” – five songs hard and fast before they walked off stage, and that’s exactly what we got in You Don’t Know Me, Songs for the Dumped, Army, Steven’s Last Night In Town and finally I’m Not the Man from their collaborative album.
The chanting started immediately for encore, only resulted in one more song, which considering all the hits they still hadn’t performed, was a bit of a letdown in Effington.
WORDS BY CHRIS BRIGHT
IMAGE BY SHAINA GLENNY
Loved: Hearing Folds’ hits in a new format.
Hated: Not hearing One Angry Dwarf or Underground.
Drank: Water, all my money was spent on St Kilda parking.
