Jocelyn & Chris Arndt at the Penthouse

Jocelyn and Chris Arndt are siblings from Fort Plain, a small rural town near Albany, New York. Jocelyn started playing piano in fourth grade after receiving her first electric keyboard, and Chris began guitar lessons a few months later. Their first public performance was at a local benefit talent show when Jocelyn was 12 and Chris was 11, where they performed Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven." In middle school, they formed a band, the Dependents, and performed original songs at local talent shows, festivals, and fairs. While in high school, Jocelyn worked as a ski instructor and Chris as a snowboard instructor, and music remained a side project. Post college, they remained committed to making their own music; as a result, Jocelyn declined casting offers from NBC's The Voice  and FOX's The Four. Jocelyn & Chris Arndt's third full-length studio album, The Fun in the Fight, will be released on February 22, 2019.

Jocelyn & Chris Arndt pre-tour concert tonight at the Penthouse at the Standard Hotel was intentionally low-key. Working without their full band set-up, Jocelyn sang and played a small keyboard and Chris played acoustic and electric guitar, accompanied by a bassist and percussionist. Jocelyn crooned soulful pop melodies to retro grooves and a soft rock soundscape. Her powerful voice was bold, with an aching lilt ideal for inhabiting broken-heart songs. A bit on the husky side, this voice demonstrated exceptional depth, tone, and range, and Jocelyn controlled and balanced all these dynamics well. The band closed with the Captain and Tennille's 1975 hit, "Love Will Keep Us Together," perhaps not the coolest song to bring into the repertoire, but a song that showed that the duo also performs bouncy pop songs capably well.

Jocelyn & Chris Arndt will perform at Rockwood Music Hall, Stage 2, on February 20, 2019.