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The latest news:
- Album due in September: Confirming what he's been telling
audiences on the current tour, Ben's new album
is due out in September, according to a Billboard Magazine article penned by Gary Graff,
Detroit's foremost music critic. No title has been selected yet, but most
of the songs he's been playing on tour will be on the album, along with a
couple others he's thinking of debuting at Bonnaroo. This will be his
final title on the Sony label, he told me after a recent appearance at
Adrian College, and while he's uncertain about future delivery methods,
there's no doubt he will be using new ways of getting songs to the
people.
2008-05-25
- Europe Tour: A tour of the UK, Ireland and part of Europe has
been scheduled. Ben will travel to the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany
in addition to several dates in England and Ireland in June and July.
Details are on our tourdates page as
usual.
2008-04-08
- Everything's Up to Date in Kansas City: Ben was a guest
on the KCUR-FM daily
newsmagazine show Up to Date, hosted by Kansas City Star political
correspondent Steve Kraske. Ben talks about his work with William
Shatner, the live MySpace concert, and the meaning behind some of his
music. The show date is April 3, and a podcast is online; depending on
when you read this, you may need to go into the show's archives to find
it.
2008-04-03
- Folds to help quench Cambodia: One of the shows on this
spring's tour, at The
Saltair near Salt Lake City, is Concert Quench, a benefit for Care for
Cambodia, a charity that helps to provide clean water for children in
Cambodia. According to the organization's website, one in five children
die before age 5 due to waterborne diseases, and the event hopes to raise
$50,000 to provide clean water for 3,500 people. Tickets for the April
23 show are now on sale via Ben Folds Ticketing.
2008-03-24
- Sentimental Guy: That's the name of a new cabaret-style show
featuring the music of Ben Folds, as conceived by actor/singer/director
Scott Weigand. A fan for many years, Weigand says he's always loved how
Ben's music tells a story of a person's life or a situation in their life,
and feels that it makes sense to perform his songs as stories in an
intimate cabaret setting. Weigand's wife Stefanie joins him on piano and
Sean Beatty on drums in the show March 8th at the Bundy Center for the
Arts in Waitsfield, Vermont.
2008-02-29
- Tell everyone I'm not pissed: Rocking Hill Auditorium as the
headliner for the Friday session of the 31st annual Ann Arbor Folk
Festival, Ben, Jared and Sam tried out a bunch of brand new material
that's in the works for a new album. Concentrating on accurately playing
the difficult chords and runs of songs that had only been run through a
few times gave Ben the look of being angry at the keyboard, unusual for a
fellow who can cuss you out with a huge grin. Mentioning that a lot of
the new stuff debuted at the Exit/In show last month, an audience member,
Zak, piped up that he was there, so Ben made up another Zak song for him
(I couldn't confirm if Zak also spells his name with no "c"). The new
material ranges from angst-ridden tomes like "Bitch Went Nutz" and "Brain
Washed" to nutty numbers like "Free Coffee" and "Errant Dog". The set
alternated between familiar songs including "Gone", "Zak and Sara", "Still
Fighting It", and "Landed", and the new material, opening with "Effington"
and including "Hiroshima". (You didn't hear it here, but there are some
clips up on YouTube.) The one-hour set closed with "Underground" and a
shout-out to your webmaster, and the encore, "Bitches Ain't S***", during
which had many patrons get up and walk out (though these few may have been
getting a head-start to their cars). Nearly all of the sold-out crowd, a
blend of young and old, town and gown alike, hung in until the very end,
indicating that while Folds was perhaps a bit edgy for a traditional folk
festival, his presence was definitely the drawing card that not only
exposed the folk audience to his works, but Folds fans to artists such as
the Bichini Bia Congo Dance Company, singer-songwriter Natalia Zuckerman,
Shemekia Copeland and '90s-era popsters Brian VanderArk (frontman for The
Verve Pipe) and Toad the Wet Sprocket. Toad's lead singer, Glen Phillips,
who has a solo gig on Saturday's folk festival card, has worked with Ben
in the past and related a story about Ben being "banned from Interlochen"
for his "potty mouth" at a summer series show at the storied northern
Michigan music camp a couple years ago. The folk festival is an annual
fundraiser for The
Ark, one of the leading folk music venues in the country.
2008-01-26
- Recent show reviews:
- Roger LeLievre in the Ann Arbor News, January 26
- Sara Conn in The Exponent on the Feb. 29 show at
Purdue
- Tim Brouk in the Journal & Courier of Lafayette,
Indiana, on the Feb. 29 show
- Paul Sorenson in The Daily Iowan at University of Iowa
on the March 2 show
- Eric Clark in the Cedar Rapids Gazette on the March 2
show
- Joe Miller in The Lantern at Ohio State University, on
the Newport Music Hall show March 6
- Ben Folds Rocks Swinney, by Ben Cross in University
News (University of Missouri - Kansas City)
- A preview of the Adrian, Mich. show in The Toledo Blade, by Bridget Tharp
- Review of the Adrian College show in the Adrian Daily
Telegram, by Megan Miller
- UW-Oshkosh show review by Felicia Clark of the
university's Advance-Titan newspaper
- Central Washington University show: Preview by Cynthia Mitchell in the Yakima Herald, and
review
by Chance Edman of The Daily Record (Ellensburg, Wash.)
- Folds talks Bonnaroo by Pete Rizzo of the UMass
Amherst Daily Collegian
- Review of Bonnaroo show June 14, 2008, by Dave
Paulson of the Nashville Tennessean
- Nashville Symphony: Continuing his associations with major
symphony orchestras, Ben Folds will open the Nashville Symphony's 2008-09
season on September 7th with a performance with the orchestra in his
adopted home town. The orchestra is undergoing some fundamental changes
with the arrival of a new music director and the Folds concert is seen as
representing a turning point for the symphony. "This will be the
biggest, boldest season we've ever put together. It is going to be
history-making for us", said symphony president Alan Valentine.
Ticket details are yet to be announced.
2008-01-16
- Ann Arbor Folk Festival: Ben Folds will be the headline act on
the opening night of the 2008 Ann Arbor Folk Festival, Friday, January 25.
The annual event, sponsored by The Ark, is one of the nation's premier
festivals featuring folk and alternative talent. Also on the bill for
Friday are Toad The Wet Sprocket, Shemekia Copeland, Trina Hamlin, Natalia
Zukerman, Down The Line and Brian Vander Ark. Saturday's show features
Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin, Otis Taylor, Kenny White,
Jill Jack, and Glen Phillips. Jonathan Edwards will be the master of
ceremonies both nights. Tickets go on sale to the public December 3.
For more information, visit The
Ark's website.
2007-11-01
- Langerado Festival: An ideal spring break journey would be to
the Langerado
Music Festival on the Seminole Indian Reservation in the South Florida
Everglades. Ben Folds is one of the featured performers, which include
R.E.M, Ani DiFranco, Thievery Corporation, 311, Beastie Boys and dozens
more. The festival runs March 6-9, 2008. Tickets, starting at $169, are
on sale November 16.
2007-11-14
- Denzel cooler than...?: Denzel Washington lists There's
Always Someone Cooler than You as one of his favorite iPod tracks. The
list, in an interview in BCHeights, the independent student paper
at Boston College, goes on to list tracks by artists ranging from Bob
Dylan to Rage Against the Machine found on Denzel's iPod by a reporter
from the paper.
2007-11-05
- Cruise plans scrapped: Due to fewer-than-hoped-for bookings,
the cruise adventure The Ben Folds Experience has been cancelled.
The February 2008 sailing was to have featured Folds and several other
musicians, many of whom had toured with Ben in the past. Sixthman Tours,
organizer of the excursion, plans to continue with several other musical
cruises it is arranging.
2007-07-24
- Tour press: An assortment of reviews of the Folds/Mayer tour:
- Folds fans to set sail: Music festivals aboard cruise ships
have come in vogue in recent years, with events such as Barenaked Ladies'
Ships & Dip and the Gimme 3 Days Cruise which features
Lynyrd Skynyrd, 38 Special and a dozen other heavy-metal acts. Now, Ben's
gotten into the act with a sailing called The Ben Folds Experience.
It's a four-day, three-night cruise on the Carnival Imagination, sailing from the Port of Miami on February 21, 2008, and is put
together by Sixthman, an Atlanta-based music cruise charter
coordinator. Sixthman books the entire ship, so it will be all music fans
of all ages. Not your typical cruise itinerary, the Imagination only makes
one port of call, Ocho Rios, Jamaica, where visitors can disembark for a
day of sightseeing including the famous Dunn's River Falls, and rub elbows
with the Jamaican locals over a Red Stripe. As with any cruise ship, the
fare includes all your meals, round-the-clock room service and admission
to all the shows, featuring Folds and a dozen or so other musical acts
(those announced so far are Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls, Corn Mo,
and Eef Barzelay of Clem Snide), which typically start at noon and rock on
into the wee hours. The ship features a full-service spa, internet cafe,
coffee bar, state-of-the-art gym facilities, a casino and many other
amenities. Bookings for The Ben Folds Experience open on June 11 and
incentives for early booking include preferred seating for the stage
show, attendance at a Q&A session and an intimate acoustic show. Fares
are said to start at $699 plus $99 in port and other miscellaneous charges
per person. For more information, keep an eye on www.benfoldsexperience.com, and if you'd like to read
more about the rock cruise phenomenon, read this
article in CruiseMates.
2007-05-14
- Fight breaks out at Folds/Pops concert: Two audience members
got into a fight in the cheap seats at the Boston Pops season opening
night concert at Symphony Hall May 9th. Apparently a concertgoer was
making too much noise during the performance and was confronted by
"vigilante shushes" according to a Boston Globe story. The patron, sitting
behind the talker, had tapped the offending noisemaker on the shoulder on
a couple occasions. When the man turned around and threatened to assault
the man who was trying to listen to the concert above his chatter, the
first gentleman got up to alert an usher. Upon his return, the chatterbox
turned around and slugged the man. The incident stopped the concert
briefly, as the men were escorted out by police. Ben Folds was the guest
musician at the concert, and he and the Pops were performing a medley from
the musical Gigi at the time. According to press reports, witnesses
heard a scream from the balcony, the sound of chairs falling, and a second
scream as the fight escalated. The men were shown in television video
struggling, one with his shirt pulled off, as several concertgoers stood
around them. According to police, no property damage took place and
though nobody was cited, the men will be called into court to
determine whether any charges would be laid. More in this story from CNN, this
story, and this story which identifies the men involved. More on
the evening in the Boston Globe story, coverage of the evening in Spin.com, and a review of the show in the Boston Herald, as well
as this one in the MIT Tech.
2007-05-10 with ongoing updates thru 2007-05-12
- Palmer collaboration: Amanda Palmer, vocalist and pianist for
the Boston-based theatrical rock/punk cabaret band Dresden Dolls, is
recording her debut solo album with help from Ben Folds. "The songs range
from intimate ballads to faster and harder Amanda-assults-the-piano
thrillers." she says, and adds that they are adding everything from
organs, Leslie cabinets, strings, horns and tympani. Sounds like it ought
to be a good matchup. No release date has been set for Palmer's album.
The Dresden Dolls pick up touring this summer on the success of their
third album, 2006's Yes, Virginia.
2007-04-24
- Soundtrack action: Music of Ben Folds Five is featured in the
new Hollywood movie Sing Now or Forever Hold Your Peace, which
opens April 27 in New York, Boston and Los Angeles. The film is about a
group of guys who sang in an a cappella group in college, and who reunite
15 years after graduation to sing at a friend's wedding. Starring Molly
Shannon, Mark Feuerstein, and others, the soundtrack features a cappella
renditions of songs by BFF, Sting, Phil Collins, John Mayer and
more.
2007-04-18
- Ann Arbor photos: Rock photographer Joel Faurote took an excellent
series of photos from the show at Ann Arbor's Michigan Theatre on
Saturday, April 7th. The show was outstanding, and the photos really do
justice to the beautiful venue and energetic performance by Ben, Jared and
Sam. Sam, by the way, has blended in nicely with the trio. Looks like
he'll be on board for a while, as Lindsay continues to recuperate from a
slipped disc at home with his family. The guys say he's doing better and
is in good spirits.
2007-04-11
- Unauthorized Redux: The concert performance of More
Unauthorized Musicology of Ben Folds, a sequel to last fall's event
(details further down this page), is being performed on March 26 at New
York's Zipper Theatre. The show features several film and Broadway actors
in various roles. More information on the lineup in this article in Playbill
Magazine.
2007-03-26
- Summer Tour with John Mayer: Ben will be supporting John Mayer
on his US summer tour of large venues across the country. The tour starts
in Washington state on June first and ends up over two months later in
Florida, stopping in 23 states and Washington, DC. Visit our tourdates page for all the dates and
locations.
- Folds to headline hometown show: As part of the spring tour of
college venues, Ben returns to one of the clubs that helped to launch his
career when he plays the Cat's Cradle in Chapel Hill on March 28. The
Carolina Union Activites Board, the student organization that arranged the
show, has been trying to get Ben to do a Chapel Hill show for several
years, only to be thwarted by shows scheduled at larger nearby venues in
Durham and Raleigh. The CUAB is helping to subsidize student tickets for
UNC students. More information in this article in the Daily Tarheel.
2007-02-13
- Common People Ballet: The Folds/Shatner collaboration
on the cover of Pulp's Common People, from Shatner's album Has
Been, has been set to ballet by choreographer Margo Sappington and is
being performed by the Milwaukee Ballet. Sappington says of the 30-minute
piece, which includes snippets from four other tracks on the CD, "(The
ballet is) not an illustration of the words" but that the audience needs
to concentrate both on the words and watching the dancers to get the full
sense of the collaboration. Even Shatner said "Everyone should come to
the ballet," and Sappington reassures audiences with "You don't have to
know anything about ballet to see it." Performances by The Milwaukee
Ballet are scheduled February 15-18. More information in this article in
OnMilwaukee.com.
2007-01-31
- Lindsay slipped: Drummer Lindsay Jamieson is missing the
Europe tour as he's sidelined with a ruptured disc in his neck. He's
recovering nicely. Nashvillian Sam
Smith is filling in for Lindsay for the two-week swing through the UK
and the continent.
- Coverboy: Ben's face graces the cover of the January 2007
issue of Relevant
Magazine. Relevant is a national non-denominational magazine written by
twentysomething Christians with a circulation of around 75,000. The
article talks about the characters in his songs, the heresy in modern
religion, stray dogs, and his take on the religious overtones in
such songs as Brick and Not the Same Very
interesting reading regardless of your religious
beliefs.
2007-01-11
- Boston Pops Concert: Ben will join others for the opening
night of the 2007 season of the Boston Pops orchestra in a concert at
Symphony Hall on Wednesday, May 9, 2007. It's not an all-Ben show (like
the Australian symphony shows were) but he'll be doing a 30-minute set of
his songs with the symphony. It's a huge honor to be invited to perform
with the Boston Pops, so it should be an excellent evening and Folds fans
will have a great time. Other
dates in the spring are being booked, mainly eastern US colleges,
including some students-only shows.
2006-12-13; updated
2007-04-05
- Performing Songwriter: Ben's featured in the December issue of
Performing Songwriter
magazine (with Keith Urban on the cover). He talks about why he put
supersunnyspeedgraphic CD out, playing iconic venues like the
Sydney Opera House, other favorite artists at the moment, and his latest
artistic talent. You can preorder
the issue if you aren't a subscriber or can't find it
locally.
2006-11-30
- Reverse Osmosis: The acappella group from the University of
Southern California has covered two of Ben's songs, including One Angry
Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces on their 2006 self-titled CD, as well as
Missing the War from their 2004 CD, Purity Guaranteed. The
group consisting of 17 singers, said to be among the largest acappella
ensembles anywhere, formed in 2001 at USC and performs on campus and
throughout southern California. More details on the group and information
on how to order the CDs can be found on their
website.
- Europe dates announced: A tour of the British Isles and
Germany, with stops in Holland and Belgium, has been announced. Info on
the tourdates page.
- Lookalike fan fake causes stir: From the website
improveverywhere.com comes this story about a fan, said to look and act like Ben, and
his friends pulling off an elaborate substitution gag at a Folds show at
Ben's suggestion and request. Also an account of the "brown note" and its
faked consequences. Hilarious stunts, just what you'd expect from Ben.
Thanks Rey!
2006-11-24
- Learn To Live With What You Are Video: The new video is
up on Yahoo Music.
However, it doesn't seem to be playable on standards-compliant browsers; a
prompt appears to "upgrade" to Microsoft Explorer in order to view the
video, so beware. It also requires the spyware vehicle Active-X be
installed in order to be viewable (making it unusable on anything but
MS-Windows platforms), so it might be safest to avoid this one until a
better form of distribution appears.
2006-11-13
- Nashville DVD planned: There are plans to produce a DVD of the
October 24 live MySpace studio event and performance from Nashville. Those
interested can submit their name and e-mail to be notified when the
recording becomes available.
2006-11-13
- Fans killed in plane crash: Ryan Sageser of Wichita, Kansas,
and his father, Mark, were killed in the crash of their small plane
Saturday night (November 4) as they were returning home after attending
Ben's show in Tulsa. Two others, John Rice and Ryan Biedron, sustained
injuries and were hospitalized. The youths were seniors at Bishop Carroll
High School in Wichita. More information in this story in The Kansas City Star, and others, with more
details about the victims, in The
Wichita Eagle and The Tulsa World. Please keep them and their friends in
your thoughts and prayers.
2006-11-07
- Who can it be now?: VH1 puts Ben to the test - they spin songs without
revealing the artists. He guesses who they are and riffs on the music at
hand.
- Webcast: Public radio station WFUV at Fordham University in
New York will carry an interview and performance with Ben on November
9 (change from previously-reported date),
on the air in New York at 90.7 FM and online at www.wfuv.org. The interview
will be on the "Take Five" feature during the City Folk shows at 7:45 am
and 4:45 pm and the performance is on "Words and Music from Studio A" at
9:00 pm. (All times are Eastern, GMT-5h.)
2006-10-20
- Launch Events for Supersunnyspeedgraphic: Epic Records
has planned a long list of events to promote the launch of Ben's new
album, which goes on sale October 24 in most of the world. Included are:
- An appearance in the online virtual reality world Second Life on
Thursday, October 19 (info at www.benfolds.com/secondlife). This includes a launch
party at the Aloft Virtual Hotel at 8:40 PM EDT (0040 GMT Friday, 20 Oct)
and a live chat in the Media Island are of Second Life at 9:00 PM EDT
(0100 GMT Friday, 20 Oct). Update: Story and pictures from Australia's TheAge.com, and some video via
Youtube. Update:Neil Conan discussed the Second Life
phenomenon with many references to the live chat and concert on NPR's Talk Of The Nation on Tuesday, 24 Oct (you can
listen to the show via a link on their page) Update:An
article in The New York Times (frryyy) about Second Life, Aloft,
and Ben's appearance
- Later Thursday night, there's an appearance on Late Night with Conan O'Brien on NBC Television
- a "live by request" webcast on MySpace, Tuesday, October 24 at 8
PM EDT (0000 GMT Wednesday 25 Oct)
- Make-your-own-video: Fans can submit their own videos for
B****** ain't S***. Best ones to be featured on the
MySpace page
- Touring (details at our tour dates
page)
- Press, including:
- Such Great Heights: Ben's cover
[RealMedia, 15MB] of Pacific Northwest synthpoppers The Postal Service's
song, was recently performed on the Australian television program JTV
segment "Like a Version". The show, produced by rock station Triple J,
appears on Australia's ABC network.
- New CD to feature collected EPs and cover tracks: An October
24 release is scheduled for a CD containing mostly previously-released
tracks from Ben's three EPs and a few other selections. Titled
Supersunnyspeedgraphic, the LP, the collection contains:
- In Between Days
- All U Can Eat
- Songs of Love
- There's Always Someone Cooler Than You
- Learn To Live With What You Are
- B****** Ain't S***
- Adelaide
- Rent A Cop
- Get Your Hands Off My Woman
- Bruised
- Dog
- Still
The title of the CD is taken, of course, from the names of the three
EPs Ben released in 2003 and 2004. Still comes from the Over the
Hedge soundtrack and Bruised is from The Bens compilation, a
result of his successful tour with Ben Kweller and Ben Lee. Some of the
tracks are remixed or re-recorded. While many fans already have most of
these tracks, the new CD combines the assortment in one place for those
who weren't able to find them before.
2006-08-16
- Unauthorized Musicology: The New York Music and Theatre Festival 2006 season
included a show called The Unauthorized Musicology of Ben Folds.
The show featured an extraordinary, eclectic assortment of Broadway
performers doing an evening of songs from the three Ben Folds Five albums
as well as Songs for Silverman. The show was Sunday, Sept.
24th.
- Most Depressing: Brick has been chosen as one of the 52
most depressing pop songs. In a new book, I
Hate Myself and Want to Die: The 52 Most Depressing Songs You've Ever
Heard, author Tom Reynolds investigates and pokes fun at some of the
more notable "sad songs" in the pop lexicon. Ben Folds Five's arguably
biggest hit takes it on the chin for the depressing story line and the
prevalent "She's alone, I'm alone" lyric. Sacramento Bee writer Melissa
Dahl has a
review
of the book with some quotes about Brick and others.
2006-09-02
- Chuck Folds Five: Ben's younger brother, Chuck Folds,
announces the release of his new band's first single, She Wants
Me [mp3]. Bassist Chuck teams up with fellow Greensboro musicians
guitarist Steve Williard and drummer Tim Poole and will be playing clubs
around North Carolina over the summer while they work up the rest of their
repertoire. Check out Chuck's web site and MySpace
page.
2006-07-20
- Bonnaroo pix: Photos from Ben's Bonnaroo set are appearing
online. Spin Magazine has posted some photos from Ben's Friday set. Also, The Fairview
Observer in Fairview, Tenn., has
posted
a
few
pix
of
Ben's
set as well.
2006-06-18
- Australia Orchestra Tour: The dates have been announced for
the September springtime tour of symphony orchestras in Ben's adopted
homeland. As you've come to expect, dates and links are on the tourdates page. Ticket sales have been brisk for
those shows on sale and one city is already sold out, so don't
delay.
2006-06-18
- Thievery Corporation cover: A remix of Ben's Fear of
Pop tune In Love is one of many tracks comprising Thievery
Corporation's second retrospective remix album, Versions.
Reviewers are calling the track the album's best, thanks to the way its
rhythm adapts itself well to TC's dub-techno-ambient undercurrent. Other
remixes include tracks by Herb Alpert, The Doors, Sarah McLachlan and
Nouvelle Vague. (Click on the link at left for more information and song
samples.)
- Conservative Rock Song? Huh??: An article
in The National Review, a prominent conservative political magazine,
has named Brick as one of the top 50 conservative rock songs of all
time. Compiled over the past year from suggestions sent in by readers, the
list is comprised of songs whose lyrics "convey a conservative idea or
sentiment", such as support for traditional values. What's strange about
the selection of Brick is that the song takes no stand either for
or against abortion but merely documents the experience, and Ben has
stated that. What's even stranger is that artists like The Who, U2, Bob
Dylan, Pete Seeger, the Clash and The Sex Pistols made the list as
well.
- Over The Hedge soundtrack now on sale:
The recording includes the music Ben wrote for the movie, including the
ballad Still and a rewrite of Rockin' the Suburbs, which
features a vocal by William Shatner. There's also a cover of The Clash's
Lost in the Supermarket. Ben teamed up with composer Rupert
Gregson-Williams, who wrote the score, and award-winning composer Hans
Zimmer, who produced the music. Gregson-Williams said of working with Ben:
"I could have written this sweet orchestral score for the movie, but with
Ben's sound, we could do something different, something a bit more rock
'n' roll."
The movie opened May 19th and took second place (behind the
overwhelming favorite "DaVinci Code") in weekend box office
revenues. Articles appearing in the press include:
- Future plans: Here's some of the buzz as to what's happening
down the road:
- A tour with the West Australia Symphony Orchestra this summer;
- A re-release of the live EPs, layered with orchestrated strings;
- A new studio album coming in 2007.
- "Drivl" or not - you decide: Ben's sidemen, Lindsay Jameison
and Jared Reynolds, have created a new site, Drivl, to serve as an online
community for what they describe as "outrageous, irreverent, searing,
witty opinions on subjects you feel strongly about". The site also
features contests, a cartoon generator and personal journal for users to
display their creations. Check it out and add your thoughts and ideas.
2006-05-01
- Bet on "Hedge": Ben's been working on music for the new
Dreamworks film Over the Hedge, slated for a May 19th theatrical
release. The film features an array of voice talents including Garry
Shandling, Steve Carell, Bruce Willis, Wanda Sykes, and a talent who's
become more familiar to Folds fans, William Shatner, who plays Ozzie the
opossum. Dreamworks has been touring with sneak previews of some of the
finished parts of the movie, which have been getting great reaction from
viewers.
2006-03-30 with updates 2006-05-05
- Ben on Rollins: Ben performed on Henry Rollins' new weekly
talk show, aptly titled The Henry Rollins Show on the Independent
Film Channel. The show airs every Saturday night at 10:00 PM Eastern with
a repeat at 1:00 AM and the following Thursday at 11:00 PM. The show featuring Ben first appeared on April 22.
The channel's website, ifc.com, features another exclusive performance and more
information.
2006-03-17
- Yellowcard cover: Breakthrough rockers Yellowcard cover Ben
Folds Five's Missing the War in a performance as part of Clear
Channel Online's stripped™ series. Their performance goes online
February 7th. It's a very good cover; in fact, it sounds very much
like the original. If you're a fan of either Yellowcard or BFF,
you'll enjoy this one.
2006-02-06
- Touring: A tour of US venues is underway. Chicago
singer/songwriter Chris
Mills opens on most of the dates, which are on the tourdates page.
Ben was one of the two top picks to headline Yale University's Spring
Fling on April 25. Ben, along with rapper Ludacris, dominated the poll,
which was conducted schoolwide last fall. Folds continues to be among the
most popular acts on college campuses, also having been selected by Wake
Forest students to perform at that school's SpringFest in March. And
Harvard students, rejoice: Ben takes a check from University president
Lawrence H. Summers and you all get to see Ben for free as part of
Yardfest, an event open only to Crimson undergrads.
Current press:
- Bonnaroo: Ben Folds is scheduled to perform at this year's
Bonnaroo Festival. Known for its concentration of today's top alternative
musicians, the festival will be held near Manchster, Tennessee June 16-18.
Headlining the festival are Radiohead and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.
Other acts performing include Bonnie Raitt, Death Cab for Cutie and
Beck.
2006-02-02
- Darren Jessee news: Darren and his band, Hotel Lights, have
finished their CD and secured a record deal with Bar None records. The
self-titled CD is due out this spring, and the band will perform as part
of Bar None's showcase at South by Southwest on March 18th.
2006-01-27
- With Shatner on TV Land: William Shatner is featured in the
first segment of a new TV Land series Living in TV Land. The
segment intersperses aspects of Shatner's everyday life with his 2004
concert appearance with Ben. The show airs Wednesday, March 22 at 11:00 PM
Eastern time.
2006-01-27
- Triple J Hot: Ben appears twice on the 2005 Triple J Hottest 100 music poll. Landed is at
number 55, while Bastard slips in at
#89.
2006-01-25
- Folds cameos in new CBS-TV show: The Tiffany Network's new
drama/comedy show Love Monkey, about a record-company executive and his
jumbled personal life, will feature several actual musicians in cameo
roles. Ben Folds is slated to appear in the second episode along with
country star Leann Rimes. The first episode airs January 17, and later
episodes feature Aimee Mann and Paul Shaffer. Tom Cavanaugh stars in the
show as Tom Farrell, along with co-stars including Jason Priestley, Judy
Greer and Katherine LaNasa.
2006-01-08
- Taking you places: The song Landed is among those to be
featured in a new advertising campaign by Hilton Hotels
called "Travel Should Take You Places"(tm). Songs from Folds and other
"hot, young artists" such as Jason Mraz, James Blunt and Persephone's Bees
are featured in the television portion of the campaign, which marks the
first time in 10 years that Hilton has used that medium. The company says
the purpose of the ad campaign is to "reinforce the ability of travel to
serve as a trigger to the special moments in one's life." The television
ads start January 15 and print ads begin running the following
day.
2006-01-10
- First curse: Famous for off-color antics, the new Howard Stern
show made its first appearance on satellite radio service Sirius on
Monday, January 9. Moments into the show, co-host Gary Dell'Abate uttered
the first curse words on the new program when he suggested playing Ben's
song B****es ain't S***.
2006-01-10
- Hoodwinked: A song by Ben titled Red is Blue is
one of the songs in the new animated feature Hoodwinked. The movie
is based on the children's tale Red Riding Hood, and features the voices
of Glenn Close, Anne Hathaway, James Belushi and Andy Dick.
2006-01-15
- What's after the next big thing? Multi-talented British
actor/musician Guy James, coming off a six-week run of his latest
production The Next Big Thing in London's West End theatre
district, has talked about future projects. One of them would be based on
Ben Folds, currently in the "early idea" phase. Ironically, one of Ben's
ambitions has been to score musical theatre, so wouldn't it be fun if he
wrote the music for a production about himself?
2006-01-16
- Older articles
- Current tour dates
- *(The Knoxville Pulse is actually talking about musician Jeff Maynard, but I found the reference amusing.)
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