EAGLE — One of Eagle’s favorite traditions is about to get going once again as the Sweet Lillies open the Bonfire Brewing ShowDown Town free concert series today at Town Park in Eagle.

This up-tempo group from Golden has already built a steady following in the Vail Valley with performances in many of the town’s favorite venues. They have a bluegrass base that they carry forward into a jamgrass-style world of creativity and exploration that reflects their Colorado culture.

loving Colorado

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“We definitely love living in Colorado,” said stand-up bass player and band founder Julie Gussaroff. “We love coming up to the mountains, we love to snowboard, hike, cross-country skiing … we are all definitely the kinds of people that like to get up into the mountains.”

These mountain roots are audible in topography of the Sweet Lillies’ tunes. Together with Gussaroff’s energetic bass, the band provides a varied landscape of sound with three female vocalists, acoustic guitar, viola, banjo, washboard and more.

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There is also a wealth of songwriting talent in the group.

“We’re at the point now where we are co-writing songs, which is really cool when that starts to happen,” Gussaroff said.

The band is a perfect fit for ShowDown Town’s family-friendly, neighborhood-gathering atmosphere. The event at Eagle Town Park is complete with kids’ activities, space for picnics and a beer garden from Bonfire Brewing.

ShowDown Town is part of the Vail Valley Foundation’s free summer concert series, which includes Crazy Mountain Brewing Co.’s Hot Summer Nights each Tuesday at the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater in Vail.

The Ford Amphitheater is celebrating 30 years this summer, which starts with an all-star lineup for Hot Summer Nights and culminates with the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater 30th Anniversary Concerts featuring Rodrigo y Gabriela and Third Eye Blind on Aug. 18-19. Those concerts will be paid events — tickets are on sale now at http://www.grfavail.com.