Green Light Go was an emo/powerpop band from Saginaw, MI formed in 2006 and disbanded in 2010. Their brief career was plagued with numerous member changes, inner tensions, and substance-abuse problems, including a rock-bottom incident where the entire band arrived late and extremely intoxicated to a gig. Though not very prolific in terms of recording and touring, the band established themselves and built a moderate fan-base in the Mid-Michigan area due to their high-energy live performances and catchy songwriting. Zach Podojak and Jason Patterson established the group in Bridgeport, MI in the spring of 2006 as Feed The Kids, a band formed for the sole purpose of playing at Podojak's High School talent show.
The duo quickly changed their name to Green Light Go and recruited guitarist Robbie Bull and bassist Chris Schultz, but would not land a vocalist until autumn when they moved to Saginaw met Midland-native and fellow SVSU freshman Michael Hart. The band began playing shows locally with acts such as The Confidence (previously known as 88 MPH), The Natalie Fight, La Dispute, and a very young We Came As Romans.
Throughout that fall and winter the band mainly played around the tri-city area, with a few shows in Southern Michigan, establishing themselves a small, but loyal fan-base. They recorded several rough demos of early songs that never saw an official release.
In early 2007, original bassist Chris Schultz departed the group. Unable to find a replacement, vocalist Mike Hart switched to bass and the band added lead vocalist Kyle Mayle, who only played a few shows with the group and was let go/resigned due to traveling distance issues as well as internal conflict.
After Mayle's departure, the band soldiered on as a four-piece, with Hart continuing to play bass as well as taking over lead vocal duties. After a relatively uneventful summer, the band recruited Nick Taylor, a concert promoter from Marlette to become the band's new lead vocalist. In addition, Taylor also played guitar, though it was purposefully aesthetic as his amplifier was rarely loud enough to be heard in the mix.
With Taylor on board, the band recorded a higher quality demo of the new song "Going Down Without The Pound," and began playing more shows, both regionally and locally with acts such as Your Best Friend, Ports of Aidia, Doogie, and Death or Glory.
In the late spring of 2008, guitarist Robbie Bull announced he was leaving the group to focus more attention on school and his personal life. Green Light Go's remaining members understood and he exited the group on very good terms. Bull and the three core members of the group remain close friends to this day.
Though not as short-lived as Mayle, Taylor's tenure in Green Light Go ended by the late summer of 2008, when he and the band began to split in different directions. The decision was mutual and Taylor left the band and the Mid-Michigan area that fall.
In September 2008, with two members gone, Green Light Go sought replacement in friend and former Death or Glory bassist Eric Dorcey, who began playing guitar and performing backup vocals. Hart reverted to the position of lead vocals while still covering bass duties.
Dorcey would re-join Death or Glory on guitar in early 2009, but remained with Green Light Go, pulling double duty. For shows that he was not able to make due to prior commitments, band friend and CB Radio guitarist Mike Catlin filled in.
That winter, the band almost snatched a new lead vocalist from Flint-area band Frandy, but time and distance constraints prevented the deal from going through.
Green Light Go booked their first tour late that winter. Alongside close friends CB Radio, they dubbed it the "Feels Like The First Time" tour. Spanning from March 5th through the 15th, the band made their way from Saginaw to northwest Michigan, south through Grand Rapids, all the way to Chicago and back through southeast Michigan before returning home.
Guitarist Zac Podojak and CB Radio lead vocalist Kaitlin Kunik becoming romantically involved during the tour and are still together today.
Due to a previously booked tour with Death or Glory, Dorcey was unable to attend the Feels Like The First time tour. Once again, Catlin filled in.
Shortly after the tour, Dorcey's absence led to a falling out between he and the band. Both parties agreed to go their separate ways. Catlin played a few more shows before leaving Mid-Michigan and joining the military.
By mid-2009, CB Radio's drummer Jacob Smith had taken over on second guitar and backing vocals, as well as CB Radio guitarist Chris Clements filling the role of bassist, allowing Hart to revert to a strictly lead vocalist position. That summer the band would win a battle of the bands competition in Birch Run, which landed them a free recording session in Chicago.
The band came out of the studio with four new songs recorded: "Inside My Heart," "For Her," "St. Agnes," and "Congratulations, You Saw Me Naked," a Hart-penned song that had been in the works for several years. With new members, a new setlist, and a high-quality demo, the band began booking and playing shows throughout the state.
In early 2010, guitarist and founding member Zach Podojak moved to Houghton Lake and could not continue playing in Green Light Go. The band quickly found a replacement in their manager Aaron Winchester.
That summer, Hart announced that he was leaving the country to study in Austria. With Podojak already out of the band, this would leave Patterson as the only core-member of the group. The rest of the band decided not to seek a replacement and called it a day, playing their final show on September 4, 2010 in Freeland.
Green Light Go played a one-off reunion show on January 26th, 2011 at the Hamilton Street pub in Saginaw's Old Town district.
-http://www.purevolume.com/GreenLightGo45068
