Long before they found a home in Wisconsin’s Driftless Plains, the story of The Gilmore Family Band began high in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. In the summer of the new millennium, when timing and chance collided, a soulful singer from California crossed paths with a blues-rock guitarist from Illinois. The connection between Shannon and Jason Gilmore was immediate and undeniable—an electric spark that ignited a friendship and creative bond strong enough to survive the long road ahead.
That first meeting launched a five-year run with The Old Dog Band, where their onstage chemistry hinted at something far greater yet to come. But the road had other plans. In 2005, Shannon was called back home to California, while Jason remained in Colorado, carving his path with Creating a Newsense, The J.Miller Band, and Woodshed Red. Time passed, seasons changed, and more than a decade slipped by before their music found its way back to each other.
In 2016, destiny reopened the door, drawing Shannon back to Colorado and reigniting a collaboration that felt as natural as the first note they ever shared. Their sound deepened and widened, crossing genres and boundaries, until friendship evolved into something much more and culminated in marriage in 2019. When their son Graham was born in March of 2020, the world shifted. As the pandemic silenced stages and venues, songwriting became their refuge, shaping the songs born from uncertainty, hope, and new life. In 2021, they expanded the vision, forming the first inversion of The Gilmore Family Band with bassist John Wise and drummer Teddy Nazario.
The work on their debut album MESS THAT WE MADE began in 2022 amid profound change. Soon after, the call for something new grew impossible to ignore. In 2023, the family left Colorado behind and journeyed to west-central Wisconsin, embracing a fresh chapter. With the addition of “Cousin” Tyler Kluth, from Dead Horse Revival, on upright bass, their progressive acoustic sound crystallized—bold, rooted, and unafraid. Keep your eyes peeled for The Gilmore Family Band, they just might be coming to a Wisconsin town near you.