An award-winning harpist, an electric mandolin and record-breaking attendance made for a memorable weekend at The Thought Lot. The venue hosted two shows, on back-to-back nights starting Friday evening with chamber-folk harpist, Timbre.
Friday’s show kicked off around 7:30 p.m. with a familiar face in the local music scene, John Tabor. Tabor, who has opened up for acts at The Thought Lot several times, greeted audience members with an acoustic set of his originals, including “Honest,” “Moon” and “Dusk.”
Tabor said after the show that he feels “incredibly privileged” to share the stage with Timbre and the other incredible artists who played that night.
Following Tabor was Catamount. Hailing from the Harrisburg area, Catamount is a one-woman acoustic act. Her emotional lyrics set to light-hearted strumming made for a unique musical experience. Her vocals can be compared to the likes of Regina Spektor or Feist. Her performing style, complete with hand motions and a sing-a-long, was somewhat reminiscent of a kindergarten teacher leading students in a class song, or even a spiritual leader facilitating a retreat. In a musical environment over-saturated with “hip and edgy,” Catamount’s gentle, fun performance was delightfully refreshing and enjoyable.
Timbre took the stage to a packed room. While the harpist and her ensemble of musicians would be a treat in itself, audience members had the rare opportunity to see a familiar face on drums.
Zachariah Beaver, of Greencastle, Pennsylvania, is serving as Timbre’s interim drummer during her spring tour. Beaver got the gig after meeting Timbre at Cornerstone Festival last summer. Several of his co-workers, friends and family members were in attendance to see him perform with the accomplished harpist. After a few opening numbers Timbre stopped to thank the audience for letting her “borrow Zachariah,” praising his drumming skills.
At one point during her performance, her band members put down their respective instruments to strum on her harp for a group harp-playing moment, making an already memorable performance even better.
Timbre’s performance consisted of several songs from her newest album, “Sun & Moon.” She ended the set with a signature song off the album, titled “Day Boy: Photogen Sees the Moon.” The song was inspired by Scottish author George MacDonald’s fairytale, “The Day Boy and The Night Girl,” about a witch who controlled two children, a girl named Nycteris who could never see daylight and a boy named Photogen who could never see night time.
The fairytale-inspired song was a fitting end to her performance. Hannah Nawa, brand manager at The Thought Lot described Timbre as “absolutely magical.”
“Seeing how many people came out to support the music was absolutely incredible,” Nawa added. Nate Serino, also a member of The Thought Lot’s management team, confirmed that Friday’s performance was record-breaking for The Thought Lot, with more than a hundred paid guests in attendance.
The following night was also successful. On Saturday, the venue hosted New York-based americana/country band, Yarn. Seldom Said No, a local bluegrass band, opened for Yarn.
Seldom Said No has played several times at The Thought Lot. Despite missing its banjo player, the other two members Daniel Braught and TJ Enderlein gave a foot-stomping, energetic performance. The band was the perfect fit to warm the audience up for Yarn’s hour-long set.
Yarn started its performance saying, “It’s great to be back in Shippensburg.” Its songs ranged from mellow, slow, country songs to fast-paced, hoedown-esque tunes.  The upbeat songs got several audience members on their feet and many more clapping and stomping their feet along with the beat.
The range of instruments the band used consisted of electric and acoustic mandolins, an upright bass, acoustic and electric guitars and drums.
The varied instrumentals accompanied by soulful vocals left the audience demanding more after the set was over.

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