Ben Folds, “What Matters Most.”

Ben Folds might be the busiest man in music. Since the amicable breakup of Ben Folds Five, he’s been waltzing through the music industry like a latter day Forrest Gump, with solo albums, eclectic collabs, soundtracks and TV work, commissions for the Washington Post, podcasts, a book, improvising orchestra pieces in front of live audiences and a cycle of neverending touring.

But on What Matters Most, Ben Folds slows down to take an introspective look at his own experience during the pandemic.

Sonically, the album straddles the line between stripped-down confessional, pieces about relationships and straightforward pop songs laced with Folds’ signature snark and self-deprecating sense of humor. Yet we can also hear how he’s matured as a composer since his last solo album, 2008’s Way to Normal.

Gone are the wailing guitars of the Ben Folds Five or the controversial compression that made fans unhappy.

Opening track “But Wait, There’s More,” begins with small, clicky piano synths that eventually give way to walls of horns and multi-tracked back-up vocals. It’s supposedly about the seemingly unending onslaught of threats brought on by the pandemic—pathological (diseases and the like), then social (isolation, political radicalization). Despite the clear build-up, the song never reaches the fever pitch energy fans might expect from Ben Folds Five and proves to be a mellow, reflective intro to the album.

“Clouds with Ellipses” continues this mellow orchestral trend. This one’s about replacing day-to-day human communication with impersonal communication via texting. Folds taps rising star Dodie Clark to sing back-up vocals on this track.

On single “Exhausting Lover,” Folds trades in his musical toolset for a more pop-oriented arsenal. The radio-friendly track (about a toxic relationship) has a horn section over a 1/16th-note hi-hat beat that may remind you of something that would get used in a movie trailer. Even so, it’s still pure Ben Folds, complete with self-deprecating lines that genuinely make you laugh while listening.

“Oh no, head meet floor/ I don’t wanna do this no more/ Every kiss is a jam band solo/ Never gonna say YOLO no mo’,” he sings. “Don’t know what came over me/ Out the door in my boxer briefs/ Some dude live-tweeted/ As I ran half-naked past a Cracker Barrel.”

“Kristine from the 7th Grade” humorously laments the experience of finding an old friend online who has gone off the deep end politically. The song takes on a ballad structure with bare-bones instrumentation to push the irony up to 10.

“Back to Anonymous” is about praising the actions of everyday strangers behind masks like first responders and other essential workers. It has a progressive feel reminiscent of alt-country ballads by Wilco, and even though Folds has said it’s a song of praise, it’s lined with a twinge of sadness.

“Winslow Gardens” sees Folds back up to his old tricks, creating a straightforward pop hit in 7/8ths time signature that would make Sufjan Stevens proud. With his signature staccato piano punctuating the intro, he weaves a story about losing track of time while isolating with his partner.

“What Matters Most” feels like the culmination of the album, even if it isn’t the last track. Folds sings about isolation bringing the importance of his relationships into focus and the quality of the people in his life. What starts as a simple pop piano piece crescendos with string sections, crashing cymbals and a chorus that name drops the album title.

Pandemic albums have been tackled ubiquitously by everyone from Jeff Tweedy and Dolly Parton to Bo Burnham and Phoebe Bridgers. These albums often end up covering the same musical ground: isolation, boredom, strained relationships, parasocial relationships, lots of texting and name-dropping Zoom.

But just as two people can tell the same story in completely different ways, it matters a lot who’s telling that story. And fans of Ben Folds won’t be disappointed with a new album that’s both fun and faithful to its creator’s signature sound.