Q and A with Green River Ordinance

Green River Ordinance play New Brookland Tavern March 12 with Elenowen and Emily Hearn

 We had the chance to do a little Q and A with Green River Ordinance in advance of their show at New Brookland Tavern March 12. The band’s star has been steadily on the rise, made clear by the Billboard charting of their in-between full length albums EP Chasing Down The Wind. With this EP written on the banks of the Caney Fork River in rural Tennessee got back to the basics of songwriting for them with honest hopeful songwriting and tight harmonies. The EP ended up debuting at number 15 on the iTunes overall chart and number one on the Billboard Singer Songwriter chart. Their sound crosses genres from country to rock and everything in between, Green River Ordinance is a sum of their variety of influences.

While you’re at New Brookland Tavern in Columbia, SC next week we’ll be in your home state for SXSW. What’s a Texans perspective on the festival/conference?

We love SXSW. Austin is one of the best cities in the world. We grew up taking trips down there for SXSW every year. You will encounter sights and smells unlike any before. 

 
GRO has seen such a rise in popularity over the last couple of years. Now that you’re to the point you’re at now, is it what you imagined when the band started? What’s the whole dream vs. now reality like? 

It’s always encouraging to see new faces enjoying the music. I remember playing shows where fifteen people showed up and we barely made enough to pay for gas. It’s easy to keep your dream ever evolving to a higher and better level than you’re currently at. That drive keeps you striving for excellence and growth, which is good, but it’s also important to stop and be thankful for the present tense.  

You followed up your successful 2012 album with an EP, that also was warming received off the bat. What was the decision like to record an EP vs another full length album? Did it mark some sort of difference in the band or direction change? Was it some sort of warm up for another full length? 

We love to record EP’s in between records to keep content flowing. Sometimes EP’s are easier to write because we don’t put as much pressure on ourselves. It’s good to have some diversity in the process and I think EP’s allow us to do that. With the release of “Chasing Down The Wind” we definitely wanted to step more into our southerness a little bit. As of now we’re writing and getting recording for a new record.  

GRO crosses over into several different genres. Which do you most relate to personally? 

I relate with all of them. I grew up singing Merle Haggard songs in opry’s in Texas and fell in love with Matchbox 20 at the age of 15. There are things to learn from all of them and we try to take that and put it into our songs. Lately I’ve been on a traditional country kick. 

What are some bands you’re currently listening to and want your fans to check out? 

One cool part of being in a band is having friends in so many other great bands. We have a buddy Steve Moakler who just released some great new music. Also love a new band called The Whistle and Bells. 
 

After these tour dates through May, what else does the band have planned that you can tell us about for this year? 

We will be playing steadily through the summer. We will shift focus to writing and recording our next record.