When the younger generation gets hooked and manages to bring the ’80s back to life, adding a little 2026 flavor on top, you know that even today’s youth can develop an interest in this kind of music. Hailing from Minnesota, She’s Green delivers indie rock with a touch of dreamwave. And yes, at the request of a twelve-year-old girl, an interview was even conducted, with a little help from her 53 year's old dad who actually experienced the ’80s firsthand.
Filip: Classic start: from where comes the band’s name?
She’s Green: We were thinking about names and we wanted something vegan-minded. We wanted something attached to mother nature, so a green lady would come close to what we wanted. We were thinking about cultural and historical figures also and in the end we went for She’s Green.
Filip: That brings me to “Dear Ivy” one of your songs, is it related to Poison Ivy, as she’s also a Green lady?
She’s Green: Yes, indeed. We are talking about bitter weeds in this song, as in corruption, the government … But it’s also like a letter to my younger niece who had to stay grounded but still wanted to enjoy life. It’s a deep song with different layers.
Filip: We noticed you referred in your bio to Tolkien as inspiration, but why did you then not choose to go into folk instead of indie rock / dreamwave?
She’s Green: Well we afford ourselves a kind of freedom to explore and like to go into different genre’s. Some parts are actually a bit into folk and it would be cool to go a bit more into this direction. We actually might do it in the future.
Melania: Talking about freedom, how much can you decide for yourself: what songs to release, how it will sound and other decisions?
She’s Green: So far we haven’t been in this situation. We are really lucky with our label as we are on the same page. We don’t need to worry about that. Sometimes we doubted they would agree about a song getting released, but we are blessed with them. They might have sometimes different idea’s but at the end we always end up on the same page. They really trust us. We can choose the direction we wanted.
Melania: How did the band start up. Did you knew each other?
She’s Green: It happened all very slow. Two of us where living together in a house (Zofia Smith and Liam Armstrong). We were working on music and Teddy Nordvold would come over to drum in the basement with us. We jammed a lot and I think eventually worked on some demo’s and tried to play them live. We knew each other from the music scene and that made it easy. All the concert places where also just a walk away from where we lived, so it was easy to find each other and go to shows. I always wanted to be part of the music scene and in that has the sparkle started it.
Melania: And what about between yourselves as a band? Has anybody ever objected to something?
She’s Green: We are very pro-active about it. We are very open to each other, so everybody gets a shot. We try it out and see if it works or not. If somebody loves something we all respect that.
Melania: What’s the best part of touring for you?
She’s Green: Seeing different places/countries, meeting people and communicating with them. Getting new impressions …
Filip: Did you have time yet to visit Brussels?
She’s Green: Not at all sadly, in fact we arrived a bit late today and tonight we are already out on the way to the next stop.
Filip: We are just back from Scotland and saw Slowdive on stage, It’s clear they inspired you, never had the idea to work on something together with them?
She’s Green: We know them and have met Rachel in the past. We talked about how much they meant for us, how much we enjoy their concert. It was a really cool moment.
Filip: You didn’t dare to ask if it was possible to work together on something?
She’s Green: Oh, that would be wonderful if it could happen. They are on a much higher level then us, but it would be amazing.
Filip: Or maybe be their warming up band?
She’s Green: You read our mind, that would be great. Please somebody: do ask!
Filip: Did you choose the warming up band (Blue Robin) for tonight as they are really a good match? Did you know them?
She’s Green: Our booking agent took care of it. We are not familiar with the bands here, but we will for sure check them out. It’s fun to get to know bands, discover them on tour.
Melania: are you already working on new songs during this tour? Or will you work on new ones after the tour?
She’s Green: We are looking forward to it, it’s the bit the downside of being on the road. There is right now no time for it, but we already have a few demo’s. Right now they are only instrumental. The lyrics are slowly getting written, so it’s a work in progress. Once we get home we will finish it all. We are excited about it.
Melania: How would you describe your music towards people who still have to discover you?
She’s Green: Like walking through a rainy forest, but with not too much rain. Not sprinkling rain, just a good amount of rain.
Filip: Cranes are also mentioned on the net as an influence and I must say that Bleed come’s pretty close to their sound or am I wrong?
She’s Green: I don’t think there’s a Cranes influence, but I can hear in this song why people think about it. We are a bit too young to have seen them on stage. Maybe we should check them out a bit better.
Filip: What are your experiences in the world of music so far? Already finding a good label is hard. How did that happen?
She’s Green: The label reached out to us. A guy came over from New York to watch us play a basement show. It was fun and we instantly became friends. We are comfortable with the label and the nicest thing is that they are not pushing us, we have our freedom and that’s something we really love about it. We are surrounded by a great team.
Filip: It was a lucky shot.
She’s Green: Indeed as we tried some other labels, got some replies. At some point even almost signed a contract but then it faded, whilst other labels let us in the dark. Some didn’t feel like a great match and that is very important for us.
Melania: Which song on the new album or previous tracks is special to you and why?
She’s Green: The last song on our new album Close Your Eyes is really special to us. We have been working on it for a pretty long time. The song came up as a dream and it took us 3 years to craft it until we where happy with it. The song was like a dreamworld that we worked out and turned it into a song.
Read the album review here:
Filip: When I listened to Smile again it reminded me a bit of Siouxsie and the Banshee’s, could that have been an influence? Have you ever seen them on stage?
She’s Green: No we are to young to have seen them on stage, but that would have been amazing. But we get the point of asking.
Filip: For what stands the title Swallowtail? Is it taken from the tail of the snake who got played by Thor and swallowed its own tail?
She’s Green: No actually it’s the name of a butterfly, but we like the double flip on the title and the referral to this ancient story of the world’s snake eating it’s own tail. This last part is something we only realized later and find it very cool, really fitting us.
Filip: Is it true you played in China? How did that happen and how was it?
She’s Green: Yes, indeed. At first when we got contacted we thought it was a joke. In the end we got 3 shows over there. Nicely crowded (sold out or close to selling out), again another positive surprise for us. It was also a cultural shock, we managed to hang out there during 2 weeks and really got into the country. It blew all our expectations. That was our first headlining tour, like anywhere. So imagine the impact for us.
Melania: talking about cultural shock did you have any during your tour, over the years (besides China)?
She’s Green: That’s a good question. China was definitely a cultural shock, but also here. It’s a bit hard getting used to how people where in China, the cities. But coming from the UK to France was also a cultural shock to us. We are not used to French speaking people.
Filip: I suppose you didn’t had to learn French at school, as it’s according to only in states close to Canada, like other have to learn Spanish (close to Mexico)?
She’s Green: Sadly we only had English, but Zofia speaks Spanish. You have to get certain credits talking about a foreign language.
Filip: It’s a huge market for your music and I suppose you hope to go back one day?
She’s Green: off course, they can always ask us back.
Melania: Has there been a place on this tour that has surprised you a lot?
She’s Green: Paris. Last night was really special. We never played in Paris before and didn’t know what to expect. We had the idea they would be more reserved, a bit shy. But on the contrary: they where the loudest crowd so far.
Melania: do you have a dream collab?
She’s Green: Alex Scally’s Beach House (American dream pop band), Slowdive and The Cure.
What will the future bring to you? What are your future plans?
She’s Green: Well we are fulfilling our future plans and that is spreading our music over the world. Getting better at what we are doing and doing it good. Maybe we will work on something to visualize our actual tour. After this tour we will take a little break on work on more. But most of all: enjoy it all.
Filip: well thanks a lot, hope this tour will inspire you and feel free to come back and visit Brussels for real one day. Thank you for your time and enjoy!
Read the album review here:
SNOOZECONTROL - She’s Green – Swallowtail (Photo Finish Records)
Original interview was first published here in Flemish: She’s Green - We zijn eigenlijk al onze toekomstplannen aan het realiseren, en dat is onze muziek over de hele wereld verspreiden, beter worden in wat we doen en het goed doen
