Jalan Crossland and Mathew Skinner

About Jalan Crossland

Jalan Crossland is nationally acclaimed by audiences, critics, and his musical peers as being a premier acoustic guitarist, banjo player, singer-songwriter, and engaging showman. Along with dozens of regional contest awards, his extraordinary guitar work earned him National Fingerstyle Guitar Championship Runner Up honors and the State Flatpick Championship title of his home state. His album, “Singalongs For The Apocalypse”, won Wyoming Public Radio’s People’s Choice – Album Of The Year award. In recognition for his contribution to the arts in Wyoming, he was bestowed the Governor’s Arts Award.

Jalan has opened for, or shared concert stages with, Robert Earl Keen, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Taj Majal, Charlie Daniels, Shovels & Rope, Shakey Graves, The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Steve Earl, Ray Wiley Hubbard, The Grand Teton Symphony, Earl Scruggs, John Hartford, Charlie Daniels, Corb Lund & The Hurtin’ Albertans, Ballet Wyoming (playing, not dancing), The Young Dubliners, Reckless Kelly, Mike Gordon (Phish), Sam Bush, Leon Redbone, Big Head Todd & The Monsters, John McEwen (Dirt Band), Marty Stewart, Peter Rowan, Michael Martin Murphy, Norman Blake, and more.

About Matthew Skinner

Raised by wolves, taught by squirrels, friend of the owl- Matthew Wilburn Skinner sings songs of happiness and sorrow. As one-third of the band Tallgrass, he did his part to expand the possibilities of the banjo beyond a bluegrass instrument. “I used to just try and play really fast,” he admits. “Which was a challenge, but then I realized you can’t move the soul with that many notes, heh. Just the feet.” He still plays fast sometimes, “I can’t help it, haha, it’s fun,” but it seems to have moved beyond a sport for him. His Delta blues/jazz fingerstyle on the acoustic guitar is also crazy unique, with flourishes of virtuosity in between vocals that will break your heart before lovingly putting it back together again. Starting out in Iowa City more than 15 years ago, he honed his craft as a player and a sound engineer before moving to Fort Collins, Colorado in 2013.