Ben Folds

His songs may be stuffed with so many contemporary pop culture references that they have the shelf life of a French cruller, but Ben Folds has always known how to needle, even when it devolves into lowbrow yucks. There's plenty of examples of biting wit on Way To Normal, a record that goes unhinged with (sometimes corny) jokes and (sometimes grating) production choices with a far weaker result than Folds' other solo LPs. Even so, the deep-grooving duet with Regina Spektor hits brings out the best of both of them on "You Don't Know Me," the LP's coolest track.