Triple the flavor, triple the Folds

Ben Folds fans rejoice! The name and fingers behind rock's greatest three-piece fivesome has returned with a series of three EPs. This, after an all-too-long hiatus following his 2001 solo debut, Rockin' the Suburbs, and his subsequent and wittily titled, Ben Folds Live, which dropped in late 2002.\nThe first of the bunch is a self-titled by a supergroup known simply as the Bens. The trio consists of Folds and fellow Ben's -- Kweller and Lee. I'm a huge fan of both Folds and Kweller, though Lee has never grown on me. I figure the guy gained notoriety solely as the former man slave of "My So-Called Life" starlet Claire Danes. Hell, he even managed to pooch-up his last record, Hey You. Yes You. -- to do so in spite of Dan the Automator producing is quite the bungle. Regardless, working with the Bens has done good things for this Ben i.e. he's far less grating. \nEach artist has his moment in the sun on the EP. Lee's showcase, "Xfire," is my least favorite of the bunch, but it's still catchy as all get out and his voice seems to be maturing nicely. "Stop!" sounds as if it were the kissing cousin of any track off Kweller's masterful debut, Sha Sha, "Bruised" echoes the golden days of Ben Folds Five and "Just Pretend" is the cute bastard child of these two styles. All in all, it's really solid stuff.\nThe other EPs, Speed Graphic and Sunny 16, are solo efforts. Of the two, I prefer 16. This is Folds in his element -- railing back against childhood bullies, wearing his heart unabashedly upon his sleeve amid romantic turmoil and mocking both the proliferation of commercial America and the inanity of the music biz. That he does so with such humor, grace and gravitas is the man's greatest asset. That's not to say Graphic isn't without its charms. Folds covering the Cure ("In Between Days") is a kick, and hearing him perform "Wandering," a song co-written with former bandmate Darren Jesse is a treat and a half.