CHRISTOPHER KELLEY
NEDERLAND — Over the last several days, Nederland has been blessed with the healing power of music, as local businesses went all out with their own ambitious festivals, each of them benefitting those who who were affected by, the Lakeview Fire, as well as those who fought it.
Organizers and community leaders at Busey Brews, The Caribou Room, and The Train Cars all launched signals out to the local music scene to build surprisingly strong rosters of young troubadours and mountain music royalty.
First, starting at 10 a.m. on November 15, 2025, and partying on into the day and night until 1 a.m. on November 16, the One Love One Heart benefit kept The Train Cars Coffee and Kava the place to be for a record 15 hours.
Emmet Griffin and Friends took turns on The Train Cars stage as locals gathered and curious tourists poked their heads in while hunting for their morning coffee. Musician Charlie Tea dedicated his set to folk and alt-country artist Todd Snider, who passed away the day before the benefit.
Tea recalled having met Snider in Nederland, and played a rendition of Snider’s “Play a Train Song.”
A variety of musicians graced the stage throughout the day, including Emma Sky Quarterman, Shakina Ma, Sarah Baker, and 100lb Housecat. Then, after the sun went down, The Train Cars lit up with color, and booming bass dominated, as DJs B-Random, Nibz, and Datura took turns supplying the beats.
The One Love One Heart day of music raised funds for the Caribou Village Fire Response Donation in collaboration with those behind the Ripple Effect Benefit Series, a month-long lineup of concerts hosted by Busey Brews.
The Caribou Village Fire Response Donation was created by the Nederland Fire Auxiliary to raise funds for the Nederland Fire Protection District.
The fun started on Saturday, November 8, and is still going strong, with that big Busey Brews porch rocking through to Sunday, November 30.
The impressive list of acts includes Matt Flaherty and Friends, Cry Huntress, High Family Dog (featuring members of High Lonesome and New Family Dog), TLoop, Brent Brown, Atlas Radio, Acoustic Union, Far Out Underground Rainbow, The Hunter Stone Band, Flow Wolf, Enion Pelta-Tiller, Poorfree, John Shepherd and the Front Porch Posse, Grant Livingston and Friends, Julian Young, and Circles We Draw.
The series even continues after Thanksgiving, with Slopeside Trio and Wendy Woo playing on Friday, November 28; Durka and Slay and Stinson playing on November 29; and Bearistotle and Gratefully Acoustic playing on November 30.
Be sure to check it out, as you’ll never know when Kyle Busey himself might pick up his sax and join in on the jammin’.
Last, but certainly not least, The Caribou Room threw one hell of a party on Friday, November 21, with their Benefit For The Village. The Caribou Room, along with the Peak to Peak Music Education Association, put together a group of artists known and beloved across the Peak to Peak region, to come and spread messages of love for Nederland and of hope for the community.
“All these rows of cars, I couldn’t believe it when we got up here,” Bill Nershi, founding member of Boulder’s own The String Cheese Incident, commented, after his wife Jillian joked that they were glad Nederland didn’t get hit with snow as they hadn’t yet put snow tires on their vehicle, due to being city folk now.
“Way to do it, y’all; this is what happens when you put all those Nedheads together,” Nershi began his set with Jillian and their daughter Lauren with the very Ned-centric song “Lonesome Wind Blues.”
Nershi also joined with fellow members of Colorado music royalty Keith Moseley and Dave Watts, to jam out together in front of the hyped crowd. Watts also joined with Ryan Benthall, Danny Musengo, and Dango Rose to represent Nederland. Tierro Band Trio with Bridget Law and Flash Mountain Flood kept the packed house moving late into the night.
Rock stars from Tres Gringos were also invited to take over the ‘Bou Room’s kitchen and bar, to serve up those classic Tres Gringos tacos and margaritas that the community has so dearly missed.
A very special thanks to all those who worked behind the scenes to make these remarkable events happen, and to all those who brought their immense talents to the stage to celebrate Nederland and honor the indomitable spirit of its community.