Acclaimed ivory tickler Ben Folds brings his solo act to the Orpheum Theater in support of his latest release, Rocking the Suburbs, tonight. Clem Snide will open for Folds at the 8:00 p.m. concert. Tickets are still available and may be purchased at the Orpheum box office or by calling 255-8755.

Hailing from Australia by way of Chapel Hill, N.C., the newly married song man offers audiences a unique coupling of sardonic wit and sugar-sweet aesthetics. Many students may know Folds only through his Ben Folds Five catalog.

“I am not so familiar with Ben Folds’ latest solo work,” says WSUM operations director Dawn Andres. “That song that mocks Limp Bizkit has funny lyrics, though.”

According to Folds, who spoke with the Herald at length during an exclusive interview, everything was meant to be sheer fun and games when taking on the Nu-metal stalwarts. “[Limp Bizkit] is taking it as a joke, which it is. I tried to clear that up in the video too.”

According to Folds, he last performed in Madison six years ago. He remembers the night vividly. “We were standing out in the cold after a show at Club deWash. It had to be 30 degrees below zero.”