Ben Folds is an incredibly talented guy.  How many other artists have the talent, and whose songs have the versatility, to perfrom solo sets one day, in a three-piece rock band the next, and with a 90-piece orchestera and operatic tenor the next?  Let alone do all three on the same night, and still have room for improvisation.  With a whole orchestra (much to the clear and amusing distress of the conductor).  And do all of them excellently.  Now that is pretty incredible.

This is the DVD of Ben performing locally composed arrangements of some of his most popular tracks with the West Australian Symphony Orchestera, live in Perth.  At first, the sound takes a little bit of getting used to – to go from Ben’s typical small-band or piano solo sets to ones with a full orchestral backing requires some mental adjustment.  But once you get into the swing of it, this is one of the best sets I’ve heard from him.  Yes, it’s very different to, say, Ben Folds Live, but to hear his tracks played in this way is an experience.  And requires a fairly good sound system!

For Ben Folds fans, it’s fantastic.  But, really, it’s not the ideal kind of material for the uninitiated, simply because it’s so different to his normal act.  But it’s still absolutely amazing.