On his first two solo albums Rockin 'The Suburbs and especially Songs For Silverman, Ben Folds seemed to have unlearned his worst student tricks. The latter album offered a collection of honest and adult pop songs; a development that was not inappropriate for a well-off father in his forties. The subsequent EP collector Supersunnyspeedgraphic and this record, however, show a return to his earlier,
… ironic / energetic work with the Ben Folds Five, as if on closer inspection he feels uncomfortable with the seriousness shown. Although this aversion to overly personal outpourings is understandable, Folds is not doing himself a good service with this retreating movement. Too many of the songs on Way To Normal sound predictable and routine. They are introverted miniatures like Cologne, Effington and the crackling idm pop song Free Coffee that convince. In that direction there is still a world to gain for Ben Folds. (MS)more
