Album Review: Joseph Biss’ “live from the living room.”

GLENS FALLS – On Feb. 17, Joseph Biss released a collection of live tunes with his debut LP, live from the living room. Fourteen songs in length, the record is chock-full of intimately performed acoustic tracks in the presence of an audience. Showcasing a definite folk, singer-songwriter vibe, and rife with pretty damned adept fingerpicking, Biss has crafted an endearing and memorable record; one that sounds like it was quite fun to make.

Beginning with “suite of a flora,” banter starts off the album, and there are a few light strums before Biss dives headfirst into some pretty fast fingerstyle guitar. The randomly placed harmonics throughout spice up the progression, helping to prevent the tune from sounding monotonous. Another tune that incorporates these types of harmonics is “to be two with nature,” track six.

It’s Biss’ guitar techniques that really help this record come to life. Take for instance, “timid thaw,” track two. Perhaps some of the finest picking I’ve heard in a very long time, there are parts of the tune where he isn’t even using his picking hand – it’s all power from the fretting hand. This type of playing is highly reminiscent of several great guitarists, such as Andy McKee. On top of that, this record often has songs blending in to one another, creating seamless transitions.

For example, this is precisely the case with “two green thumbs” and “corvidae ballet,” tracks four and five, respectively. The latter tune utilizes melodies that are a bit higher in Joseph’s vocal register. I really enjoy how the intro guitar pattern, and occasional interludes throughout the song are vastly different than the verse and chorus guitar work. The accidental note during the song’s outro adds to the live feeling of the record.

To perform fingerstyle solidly – almost relentlessly in some aspects – for an hour straight is no easy task, but Joseph pulls it off well. And, there’s another layer to his music that can’t be overlooked; the lyrics. In “sorority,” track seven, the fingerpicking pattern over a relaxed vocal really has such a nice feeling to it; it allows the listener to latch on to some pretty provocative lyrics, such as “with her we wither, without her more so.” This is some great wordplay that Biss landed on. The middle of the song features a nice instrumental interlude that allows the fingerpicking to once again take the forefront. There’re some fantastic runs performed during the song’s outro.

With the banter between Biss, his wife, and the people in their living room, this album has a lot of cool standout moments. One, in particular, occurs on “self-seeding,” track thirteen. This song features a nice singalong moment, as well as a request for an encore, which leads directly into the album’s closer, “in hopes of scenery.”

There’s a certain alluring aspect to this record, hinted at by the title. It’s home-y feeling, and it doesn’t take itself too seriously. Surrounded by what sound like close friends, the sentiment of the record far outweighs any potential knocks, such as the guitar not being perfectly in tune. It sounds like an endearing home demo tape, performed in the midst of good company, and is rife with great singer-songwriter stylings. Be sure to check it out for yourself here!