In 2009, Green River Ordinance spent 312 days on the road. That left the Fort Worth, Texas, band less than two months at home, an average of approximately one day off per week.

According to guitarist Joshua Wilkerson, no one complained about the hectic touring schedule that saw the group perform with Collective Soul, David Cook, Third Eye Blind, Train and the Counting Crows.

"It was an incredible year, even though we were gone for so long," says Wilkerson in advance of the band's show Wednesday at Club Cafe, South Side. "We visited a lot of cities where we met fans who have really supported the band. It's just been a wild ride."

It's about to get a bit wilder. Green River Ordinance is embarking on a headlining tour this year. Wilkerson freely admits he's a bit nervous about having to rely on the goodwill the band established as an opening act.

"There's definitely a little bit of pressure there," Wilkerson says, "wondering if in Pittsburgh people will fill up the venue. But we're really excited about the opportunity."

They should be, given the path they charted from an early age. Wilkerson was just 16 when he joined the group formed by brothers Geoff and Jamey Ice when they were 13 and 15, respectively. He admits he was a "terrible" guitarist, but the Ice brothers, who also had recruited singer and guitarist Josh Jenkins, weren't too concerned Wilkerson wasn't the second coming of Eric Clapton.

"They were looking for people who would mesh well," he says. "And you can always learn how to play guitar better."

That might seem to be putting the cart of chemistry before the horse of music, but the formula worked for Green River Ordinance. Drummer Denton Hunker came aboard when the band members briefly flirted with college, and a sound began to take shape: Hook-laden pop music with a solid rock underbelly, music that sounds good in an intimate space but has the ability, if given the chance, to fill arenas and stadiums.

"We're not reinventing the wheel, " Wilkerson says. "We just try to write songs that we would enjoy listening to, '90s rock and some Tom Petty and U2. We pretty much just write songs that are catchy and sound good when you're cranking them up."

Green River Ordinance released two albums on its own label, For Mona, before releasing its major label debut, "Out of My Hands" on Virgin Records in 2009. Wilkerson acknowledges the band is bucking a trend as more groups move toward independent status.

"It was really hard to deal with everything you have to deal with as an independent, so signing with Virgin had us so pumped," he says. "It was one of the easiest things we've ever done; there really wasn't a transition. Now, we have people working and doing things for us after trying to do everything on our own. We're happier now."