It sucks to grow up, especially when you’re male, middle class and white. Do you get pissed off when someone cuts in the McDonald’s line? If so, then you might want to try to snag some tickets to Thursday night’s concert at the Val Air Ballroom.

Adored by many – perhaps, – for his quirky way of expressing universal topics and brutal honesty and sincerity, Ben Folds is giving Iowa a return visit for the first time in over a year. This time through, Folds will be bringing a band playing songs from his newest release, “Songs for Silverman,” as well as old favorites.

Unfortunately, Pulse’s interview with the lovable piano man fell through, but we still felt it necessary to research and write up a little history behind the funny-looking Folds.

From earnestly expanding his fan base to helping space-pioneer William Shatner write and record his latest album, Folds has always kept busy pursuing music.

According to his online biography, Folds has recently seen enough success to spend a good deal of his time residing in Nashville, Tenn., with his wife, photographer Frally Hynes, and their two children, Louis and Gracie. The family also spends a few months each year in Hynes’ hometown of Adelaide, South Australia, a city immortalized in Folds’ wry, nostalgic song “Adelaide.”

Fold’s songs range from topics as emotional as getting an abortion with a high school girlfriend (“Brick”) to having a friend climb a tree while tripping on acid, only to come back down a born-again Christian (“Not the Same”). “Still Fighting It” and “Gracie” are songs written for his son and daughter.

Folds has also has covered songs from a wide range of artists, notably Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer” and Snoop Dogg’s “Bitches Ain’t Shit.”

In an interview with Fufkin.com, Folds goes in-depth about a few of his songs:

“I wrote [“The Luckiest”] for my wife. It’s not really a story as much as it is a synonym,” he said.

He also said many of his other songs are about fictitious characters more than they are about actual experiences.

“I like songs about names and characters, because people are interesting,” he said. Such songs include “Zach and Sarah,” a song Folds said is about kids in the Midwest with nothing to do.

“A 16-year-old boy plays guitar and his girlfriend has to sit and watch him play all day,” Folds said. “She just buzzes there because she has nothing better to do. She really has some good ideas, but she’s not saying anything, cause she is supposed to listen to her boyfriend.”

Several ISU students were quick in snagging tickets to see Thursday’s show. Nathaniel Oster, junior in materials engineering, said Thursday will be his third time seeing Folds.

“The first time I saw him was at Luther College,” he said. “I didn’t really know what to expect going into it – he was playing solo with a grand piano. Needless to say, I had never seen anyone play a piano like he did that night.”

Oster said Folds’ live performance was so impressive, he quickly jumped on the opportunity to see him again at St. Olaf College, in Northfield, Minn., a few years ago.

“The second time I saw him he played with his trio – it was just as amazing,” he said. “His musical style is really unique. It’s high quality and easily accessible.”

Fellow Iowa State student Benjamin Holland, sophomore in computer engineering, said Thursday’s concert will be his first time seeing Folds.

“I just recently got into his music and I’ve liked it a lot,” he said. “My favorite song is probably ‘Bastard.’ His music is a unique style, and I’m very excited to see the show.”