The Sound of the Life of the Mind - Ben Folds Five
The Sound of the Life of the Mind Image
Metascore
61 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critics What's this?

User Score
7.6 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 14 Ratings

Your Score
0 out of 10
Rate this:
  • Summary: The fourth studio album for the indie rock band is its first release of new music in 13 years.
  • Record Label: ImaVeePee Records
  • Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative Singer/Songwriter
  • More Details and Credits »

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 16
  3. Negative: 1 out of 16
  1. The A.V. Club
    Sep 18, 2012
    75
    Mind sounds exactly what a mature Ben Folds Five record should sound like: hard-won wisdom and withering observations with an unabashedly sentimental core.
  2. Uncut
    Sep 28, 2012
    70
    Folds stays true to his career-long mission to whisk up a melting pot of musical styles. [Nov 2012, p.73]
    All this publication's reviews
  3. Alternative Press
    Sep 18, 2012
    60
    There's nothing about Robert Sledge and Darren Jessee's performance on Life that will make you realize you're listening to Ben Folds Five. Still, a few songs are gems. [Oct 2012, p.84]
    All this publication's reviews
  4. Pitchfork
    Sep 20, 2012
    35
    Even as Sledge and Jessee work to add some rough edges to the music, their frontman keeps his distance on Sound of the Life of the Mind, as though he can't quite get outside his own mind. As a result, the album sounds barely able to polarize, like Folds is rockin' the suburbs gently to sleep.

See all 16 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. cables
    10
    This is a great comeback album. Please excuse Pitchfork for, once again, not being able to get out of their own way. BFF really channel their early material yet you can still hear the influence of Ben Folds' solo output as well. It's as good as expected and definitely worth your time. Check it out.… Expand
  2. Jakebethel7
    9
    Ben Folds and company are in full form on this long-awaited return. The boasting charge of "Erase Me" and other energetic tracks keep flush with the melodrama of "Thank You For Breaking My Heart", making this album solid throughout. The skill of the piano, bass, and drum sounds is virtually guaranteed given the listener's prerequisite of BFF's earlier albums. The real strength of this effort is not in the instrumentation expected of it but in the well-placed and well-delivered strings and abrupt stops: the truly unpredictable elements. Each track boasts its own unique progression, giving the album an overall feeling of participation, sort of being along for the ride as the current of jazz-enthused alt-rock pushes the listener in and out with the tide, providing just the sort of escape regular listeners have come to expect from the piano-rock veterans.… Collapse
  3. RantAboutFuture
    9
    This is more great music by Folds and friends. Professional critics play to their respective niches. You needn't factor their opinions into the product of your own.… Expand
  4. andy_indierock
    9
    This 10 tracks album strangely started with slow sad song and afterwards, things come to change to best indie rock songs from this old band that can compared to new bands like spector or gaslight anthem. Recommended for indie fans. Dont let the old guys let down your expectations.… Expand

Current Music Releases

Full List »
  1. The Complete Columbia Album Collection - Johnny Cash
    Metascore: 99
  2. Rumours [35th Anniversary Deluxe Edition] - Fleetwood Mac
    Metascore: 99
  3. Live in Europe 1969: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 2 - Miles Davis Quintet
    Metascore: 92
  4. Jama Ko - Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba
    Metascore: 91
  5. Like a Rose - Ashley Monroe
    Metascore: 89
  6. Same Trailer Different Park - Kacey Musgraves
    Metascore: 89
  7. Your Turn - Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog
    Metascore: 88
  8. The Graceless Age - John Murry
    Metascore: 88
  9. Minute by Minute - The James Hunter Six
    Metascore: 88
  10. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness [Deluxe Edition] - Smashing Pumpkins
    Metascore: 88
  11. Music For the Quiet Hour/The Drawbar Organ EPs - Shackleton
    Metascore: 87
  12. M B V - My Bloody Valentine
    Metascore: 87
  13. Beautiful Africa - Rokia Traoré
    Metascore: 87
  14. LSXX [Last Splash: 20th Anniversary Edition] - The Breeders
    Metascore: 87
  15. Random Access Memories - Daft Punk
    Metascore: 87
  16. Annie Up - Pistol Annies
    Metascore: 87
  17. Rage Against the Machine XX [20th Anniversary Edition] - Rage Against the Machine
    Metascore: 87
  18. Without a Net - Wayne Shorter
    Metascore: 86
  19. In Time - The Mavericks
    Metascore: 86
All Current Music »