Ace Music’s fifth anniversary show at The Thought Lot began with an atmosphere akin to an East Village coffee shop circa 1990 and slowly surged into an electric, fun-filled show.
The first performer of the evening, Evan Crider, opened with his distinct ’90’s sound.
His droning vocal performance matched well with sharp acoustic guitar tones, Crider created a time warp in The Thought Lot.
Songs such as “Polly” by Nirvana and “Plush” by the Stone Temple Pilots were shining examples of Crider’s ability in a set that saw Crider leap between passionate originals and grunge rock classics.
Even after forgetting the lyrics to “Polly,” Crider jumped head first into his original song “Hit Me,” which captured the audience and silenced the venue.
After Crider finished his mellow yet passionate set, Acoustic Juice set up for its performance.
Acoustic Juice is the husband-and-wife duo of Randy and Tammy Karstetter that specializes in classic rock music.
The vocal prowess of the Karstetters was on full display from the beginning of the set to the end, most notably on the song “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” by Bob Dylan, where the duo’s vocals matched each other almost perfectly.
Acoustic Juice’s original songs had the same feeling as the covers played, full of harmony and meaningful lyrics.
“Here’s an original I wrote — a while ago,” Randy said, laughing at his age and the age of the song.
Following Acoustic Juice was a rock and blues outfit by the name of Unconventional Origin.
Its set, which started with Wolfmother’s “Joker and the Thief,” was comprised mostly of covers, and took the audience through several decades and genres, hitting classics and more obscure tunes.
Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode” was a crowd pleaser and received some of the most impressive reactions of the night.
Headlining the birthday concert was Echo Threefold, a local rock and blues band from Chambersburg, Newville and Carlisle.
Echo Threefold put on an outstanding show of high energy covers spanning decades of rock and blues music.
Nick Valentine and Sara Cooper, owners of Ace Music, decided not to say anything about the fifth year anniversary of the shop before the show and instead took their places behind the mixing board and let the music speak for them.
The Thought Lot and Ace Music threw the best birthday party a guitar shop could have.
The show was a good start to what will likely be a memorable season for The Thought Lot.
The next Thought Lot event is on Saturday, Sept. 5; Bearding Man Music Festival and Facial Hair Competition.
Ticket prices and more information can be found at thethoughtlot.com.
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