"Fiddles & Frisbees" A conversation with Ryan Kelly & Silas Rea of North Fork Crossing
- Jun 15
- 10 min read
I had the wonderful opportunity recently to sit down and have an extensive conversation with Ryan Kelly and Silas Rea of North Fork Crossing. For those who aren't aware yet, Northfork Crossing is a 5 piece new age Bluegrass band from Bozeman, Montana who pride themselves with their music as being the evolution of string band music. The group recently released their second studio album titled Portland Rose, which consists of 12 unique tracks that give the listener a feeling as if you're actually aboard the historic old locomotive. The project blends old time Bluegrass, Traditional, and Jamgrass seamlessly with its epic ballads that are told along the way. I am extremely grateful for Ryan and Silas taking the time out of their busy schedules to speak to me about who North Fork is and what their recent release is all about. Be sure to check out the full conversation HERE, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Photo By John Troy
I've been following these cats for a year or so now and have grown to really enjoy their unique sound so, after listening to their new album I felt extremely inclined to reach out and dig into what’s going on out there in Montana. We all know that places like Colorado and Tennessee are home to many of our favorite Bluegrass artists and have large supportive scenes. But over the last few years the Big Sky Country out west has really thrown itself on the map with multiple Bluegrass festivals as well as many new bands gaining widespread success. A few other local bands were mentioned by the guys including Abby Webster and Her Imaginary Band, Scratchin’ Gravel, The Last Revel, Kitchen Dwellers, and Jampoke. Just east of Bozeman along the Yellowstone river sits the infamous Pine Creek Lodge, host to many unforgettable shows throughout the years. Coming up August 28th through the 30th, the North Fork boys will be there hosting the Creekside Revival which contains a strong lineup of many talented rising artists. The state is also home to many great festivals this summer including Red Ants Pants, River City Roots, Under the Big Sky, and Zootown.
Early on in our conversation, Ryan brought up an interesting point on how lucky we are to be alive during this period of music history. Everything is expanding so fast and moving so rapidly it seems if you're doing it well, everyone is able to find their niche and draw a crowd. That being said, it's more competitive than ever with the ease of access and the amount of songs that are being put out today. At one point in time you only learned songs by word of mouth and then what you heard on the radio. Which then quickly evolved into physical media like records and CDs, and not that long ago you had to buy the music on your phone for 99 cents a song. Now everything is just a touch of a button away with many bands posting their live shows for free on sites like Bandcamp, Internet Archive or Nugs Net. Shoutout to all the tapers that are still out there making it happen.
Photo By Andy Austin
It seems that the band listens to all kinds of music and really can draw inspiration from all over the place. Ryan mentioned a couple new bands he's been listening to recently such as The Lemon Twigs and MJ Lenderman while still gaining large influence from legends like Neil Young & Bob Dylan. While rolling down the road in the van, Silas said that recently they've been listening to Buck Owens and Cat Stephens. As well as many jam bands including Widespread Panic and Lettuce. Both of them mentioned growing up in households who listened to Bluegrass and Traditional music while also attending fiddle camps from a young age. Ryan and the band's guitarist Cade Slayden, actually met at the Montana Fiddle Camp when they were kids. That very camp has been important in the band's growth and remains a part of their lives to this day. Later in the talk they reveal how the instrumental “Stir Fry Joe” was written during leftover day at the fiddle camp, when Silas slapped stir fry in between two hamburger buns. In fact the first track on the new record “Tonight I Think I Just Might Stay a While” may have been partially inspired by fiddle camp and the way that some touring musicians take time off from playing shows to spend multiple days at these camps. Below is a livestream of fiddle camp 2024 where you'll find Cade and Ryan pickin’ “Walk On Boy” shortly later joined by Silas on “Nellie Kane” and more about 10 minutes in.
Ryan told us the story of how the band originally came together after Cade and Ryan became closer friends as they got older. Ultimately starting with the two of them and Cade’s sister Grace on fiddle. Soon after they met Rabi the bassist at an Infamous Stringdusters show, which led to an impromptu jam session where he purchased Ryan’s upright bass and instantly joined the band. After a few years of playing shows, Grace moved away leaving the void for Silas to fill. Ryan mentions to us that Silas is a bit of a local legend on the fiddle, always busy playing gigs, making the joke that they stole him from his 12 other bands.The other two members Matt (banjo) and Max (manager) came into play as they were Ultimate Frisbee teammates with Rabi in college. So there you have it, if it wasn't for fiddles and frisbees we wouldn't have North Fork Crossing.
Before conducting the interview with these two, I sat down multiple times and really tried to digest this album. In doing so I discovered a few recurring themes along the journey which are traveling, trains, death, and heartbreak. Most of these songs were written by Cade, all of which are a product of the change the guys are experiencing as the band grows and spends more time on the road away from home. The one track “Ramble and Run” written by Ryan is the perfect heartbreak tune that fits right into the theme that Cade was writing of. He tells us that he thinks a couple of the key ingredients to a good bluegrass song is a little bit of heartbreak and loss mixed with trains and traveling. Thrown right in the middle of the project almost as if it's a Dining Car separating coaches is the aforementioned “Stir Fry Joe”. During last year's fiddle camp, the guys were assigned to play rhythm bluegrass for a corn shucking contest and wrote the hook while running down the hill to the event. The melody of this song was written with a crooked A chord which Ryan describes as type 2 fun, only fun once you figure it out but a bit of a pain to get out there. The only cover you'll find on this record is “Suzanne” which was originally written by Harley Allen and released as the title track of his 1985 record with Mike Lilly. This song fits the album so well, almost as if Cade wrote it himself while writing the other tracks.
Although he didn't have the chance to join us, the writer on most of these songs Cade was well represented by his two bandmates. We talked about living in Montana and the harshness that its winters often provide, which definitely have an impact on songwriting. Sometimes being snowed in for days at a time can get you down and in that mindset where you may need to be to write a good sad Bluegrass song. Ryan tells us how Cade has the ability to just sit down and spit out a song before you even know it. More often than not, the other members don’t even see his writing process because it happens so fast almost as if the ideas are swirling around inside and need a place to escape to so they come out in lyrics and chords. The band also has a leg up, with three of the five singing vocals which allows more for these songs Cade writes to grow while being played on stage.
In the band's “About” section of their site, they refer to themselves as having “timeless fiddle tunes and ballads” with “intricate improvisation and energetic peaks”. That being said, I couldn’t agree more especially when it comes to the timeless fiddle tunes. The fiddler of the group, Silas tells us that when he joined his first band at the age of 16 that the rest of the group was already in their sixties. I believe that was a blessing and you can see it when he picks up that bow, as the music seems way wiser than his years. Early on as a kid Silas grew up going north to Canada with his grandmother to attend Calvin Vollrath’s Fiddle Camp for many years. Camp Calvin was very instrumental for his growth as a young musician and became an integral part of summertimes for the young fiddler. After missing a camp due to some unforeseen health issues Calvin took it upon himself to write a fiddle tune for Silas and perform it for him with all of his fellow campers the next time they were all back together. This was a deep cut that not even Ryan was familiar with, so hopefully one of these days “The Smiling Silas Rea” makes it onto a North Fork setlist.
Portland Rose is the title of this sophomore album but it's also the name of a famous passenger train that used to run out west. Renamed from the Portland Limited in 1930 and operated by Union Pacific Railway, at the time this train was one of only two on the tracks to include its own exclusive china pattern featuring a rose motif of course. The record truly makes me feel like I am riding a train in some kind of way. Taking you up to mountain tops with speedy jams and high crescendos, then back down to the river valleys with slow fiddle cries and emotional lyrics. Banjo player Matt Hickey grew up in Portland, Oregon, so the name is also a special homage to him. Ryan tells us how they were just recently playing some shows in Portland and while they were out cruising for coffee they stumbled upon a decorative manhole cover with an image of the Portland Rose and then all around it were Portland Roses growing. If that isn't some form of serendipity I'm not sure what is.
"Portland Rose" as it crosses the Snake River east of Huntington, Oregon
With such a unique name that rolls right off the tongue, I was very intrigued where the inspiration of it came from. Cade grew up outside of Missoula spending a ton of time on the Blackfoot river, where his father was a fly fishing guide at. The North Fork of the river was always a special spot to Cade and when you’re driving up there to the lodge there's a big sign you pass that says “The North Fork Crossing”. He brought this idea to the band early on and they stuck with it. It's a nice salute to their roots and where the founding members come from as well as catchy and intriguing. Often hearing it shortened to just North Fork online and in local conversations. The name also sets the stage for wonderful imagery as the band has released some unique merch over the years including collaborating with The Dome Swap. Who I must thank for connecting the dots between the band and I, as this would not have come to life without their help.
We got the chance to chat a little about a conversation I've been having and hearing often lately which is the contrast today between Traditional and New Bluegrass music. There's no denying that Bluegrass is hot right now, maybe even the most popular it has ever been with acts like Billy Strings selling out Arenas and drawing in new listeners to the genre by the masses. That being said, the age-old argument is also hotter than ever about what's Bluegrass and what is not. These newer more progressive styles of string music used to be held on the outskirts, while now it seems the roles have reversed and everyone is forgetting about Tradgrass. This whole band really grew up playing traditional old time music and are now doing an amazing job at blending the two together. Last year they got the chance to play Red Ants Pants Festival where they were voted as the crowd's favorite side stage act for the weekend, which earned them the opening spot on this year's main stage. A truly well deserved reward for how hard these guys have been working over the last few years.
Ryan and Silas both were featured on Jampoke's debut album Walk Into The Trees with a song titled “Winterbird” as well as Silas joining on another track titled “Under Mountain Shadows”. Jampoke is another Bozeman local band, even younger than the North Fork guys still in college figuring out what their sound is. The Crossing has had Jampoke open up for them a few times and may be having them do it again this year so stay tuned for that. I was unaware of these cats until I went searching for any tracks Silas was a part of outside of the band's two studio releases and I'll go ahead and say I'm a big fan of them already. Ryan expressed gratitude for this opportunity to record with them as well as allowing them to repay the favor to Jampoke the same way Kitchen Dwellers did for them, showing what it's like to play a real show to a large crowd and how to do a proper soundcheck. The way the two bands were able to blend their percussion and strings together is a real Montana treat.
Many of these new songs were played live in the months leading up to the album's release as Ryan mentions how they like to test things and work them out before the record gets finished, just in case something new comes to life that they'd like to add. At the time of our conversation there has already been even more new music written that the guys are quickly enjoying playing on stage and hoping will make their third project whenever that time comes. As for the rest of the year, the guys will be on the road steadily playing this new record through and getting it out to the masses. So be sure to check their tour schedule and find out when they’ll be playing a show near you. Coming up on August 2nd at Globe Hall in Denver, North Fork will be playing a show opened and joined by Sam Walker of Clay Street Unit. I believe that Sam has one of the most powerful voices in all of music today, no matter the genre, that man can really sing. If you’re in Colorado come August, you will not want to miss this show or you’ll regret it for the rest of your days.
If you’ve made it this far, I thank you greatly for taking the time out of your day to support and read what we’re up to. If you haven’t already be sure to check out the full conversation HERE or wherever you enjoy listening to podcasts at. I want to again thank Ryan and Silas for taking the time out of their day to sit down with me for over an hour and discuss themselves, their new project, and what bluegrass means to all of us. This marks the first official recorded interview over here at Bluegrass Roadshow, from the bottom of my heart, thank you!
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