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So There
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So There Image
Metascore
66

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
6.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 13 Ratings

  • Summary: The chamber pop music from the singer-songwriter features the Nashville Symphony and yMusic.
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  • Record Label: New West
  • Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock
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Top Track

So There
A mattress and a stereo Just like I started And a note composed with thumbs and phone On unpacked boxes It's so well written But I won't be sending... See the rest of the song lyrics
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. AllMusic
    Sep 10, 2015
    80
    So There is both ambitious and down-to-earth, impeccably constructed, and utterly accessible.
  2. Drowned In Sound
    Sep 8, 2015
    80
    This album has its dancing shoes straddling very different musical camps and somehow manages to bind them together with skill and personality.
  3. Uncut
    Sep 8, 2015
    70
    Folds' heady tunes sparkle in these unconventional settings. [Oct 2015, p.75]
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  4. American Songwriter
    Sep 14, 2015
    60
    How many times you’ll return to it is questionable, especially for power pop fans, but it’s a logical extension from the chamber accompaniment of the album’s opening songs and shows Folds to be even more gifted than many of his followers thought.
  5. Absolute Punk (Staff reviews)
    Sep 16, 2015
    60
    Folds just doesn’t seem to have the same grip on likable, semi-charming songwriting he once did.
  6. Exclaim
    Sep 16, 2015
    60
    So There, Ben Fold's collaborative LP with yMusic (a classical sextet from New York) is poppy, ambitious and bold. Yet despite clocking in at nearly an hour--including a 20-minute-long concerto for piano and orchestra with the Nashville Symphony--the new record feels scarce on songs.
  7. Consequence
    Sep 10, 2015
    58
    Folds’ gifts for narrative and composing are clear, but fusing the two more fluidly could be something magical.

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User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 5
  3. Negative: 1 out of 5
  1. accioconnor
    May 4, 2016
    10
    Ben Folds' new album "So There" is a perfect mix of perfect songs. The instrumentals are fantastic, as well as his singing and hidden meaningsBen Folds' new album "So There" is a perfect mix of perfect songs. The instrumentals are fantastic, as well as his singing and hidden meanings behind songs.… Expand
  2. mscholtens
    Oct 11, 2020
    10
    I have been a life long fan of Ben Folds and I saw him perform tracks from So There in concert in Edinburgh, Scotland a few years ago. ThisI have been a life long fan of Ben Folds and I saw him perform tracks from So There in concert in Edinburgh, Scotland a few years ago. This album is a go to for me as it combines his raw emotions with his impeccable song writing. I was surprised to see the basis of many reviewers displeasure being the genre exploration, as this is potentially the strongest continuity in Folds career. To expect this album to sound like "Rocking the Suburbs" is to ignore a strong interluding discography and to rob the artist of a chance to develop and the audience along with him.… Expand
  4. vicyamusicgreat
    Sep 12, 2015
    8
    Long Way To Go is so very clever, conjuring the consequences of the duration limits of a popular song within a popular song, that it makes upLong Way To Go is so very clever, conjuring the consequences of the duration limits of a popular song within a popular song, that it makes up for what appears to be suspiciously close to an Owen Pallett song on Capable of Anything. Either Ben indeed Is A Fan of Owen, or they are both onto something. The songs So There and F10-D-A are characterized by the amazing piano work we've come to expect from Ben, a welcome thing. The cathartic song are mostly quite good, especially the title track and I'm Not The Man. The troublesome item for me is his Not A Fan song, in which Ben makes light of a competing pop star while admitting he's not much of a reader (himself), growing up as he did "on sugar cereal and TV." I'm thinking, if he had read (more) books, he might see the hypocrisy created by this song, and betimes elsewhere, and may write more incisive lyrics, being a reader, than he's thought possible . . . consistently, that is. By the bye, pick up that book, Ben. It's getting awfully dusty sitting there on the shelf.… Expand
  5. CredibleOpinion
    Feb 25, 2016
    6
    50% of these are strong tracks. The string arrangements are a heavy handed and sometimes suffocating. There's a sort of middle age50% of these are strong tracks. The string arrangements are a heavy handed and sometimes suffocating. There's a sort of middle age desperation I'm picking up that began with "Way to Normal". The concerto is a little self-indulgent and not so memorable on first couple listens...perhaps it'll grow. I'm likely to give it some more plays. Not a classic, but worth a listen.

    Highlights: Capable of Anything, So There, Not a Fan    … Expand
  6. whitwife
    Nov 4, 2015
    0
    I saw Ben Folds in concert last night as he sang most of the songs from this new album. Apparently the man is very angry at God as he repeatedI saw Ben Folds in concert last night as he sang most of the songs from this new album. Apparently the man is very angry at God as he repeated GD three times in a row, used the F word with ease throughout the evening, called God a myth and ranted about how inept his teachers at RJ Reynolds High School were with his self-righteous creativity, that he displayed while disrespecting his teachers. I was not entertained and just wanted to leave. If I hadn't come with friends, I would have done so. There was a 12 year old sitting behind me with his mother and I hated that he was being subjected to this behavior. Really Ben, you should realize there are people that look up to you. As for me, if you want respect then you need to earn it.… Expand

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