Exposed Vocals just sat down with Adam Hudson from ‘Merges’ for an exclusive interview!
Combining styles from a wide range of musical traditions, Merges blends a mix of rock and latin rhythms, funk bass lines, extended guitar harmonies, and powerful, soulful vocals.
Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?
I’m from the small town of Rockingham, North Carolina. I’ve always had a passion for music and I can thank my parents for that. For my 13th birthday, my mom took me to a pawn shown to buy my first guitar. I would sit in my room for hours playing Green Day songs and I really enjoyed the feeling of making music. Shortly after, I started my first band and we began writing our own material. It was a great outlet for teenage angst. But it was one particular moment in my senior year of high school that really solidified my desire to be an artist. Our assignment was to make a song based on our designated character from The Canterbury Tales. Most people rewrote popular songs sort of Weird Al style. When it was my turn, I grabbed my acoustic and played the song I had written. The feeling of being in front of people was absolutely euphoric and the self gratification I had for myself for putting the time and thought into my song gave me the motivation to pursue music.
Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?
Creating something unique that will make them stand out. Find what works for you and create your own sound.
Exposed Vocals: Do you ever make mistakes during performances? How do you handle that?
Absolutely! I used to be really hard on myself before I realised that mistakes are human. The best thing I can do at that moment is own that mistake, smile and move on. If I put on a great performance then that one mistake is not going to break me.
Exposed Vocals: Do you tour? Anything interesting happen on tour that you think our readers would enjoy hearing about?
A Merges east coast tour is in the works for Summer ’18 and I’m sure following that, we will have many stories to share!
Exposed Vocals: Any planned studio upgrades? What are you working with now?
We’re playing around with some open tunings on the new songs so I’m wanting to add a third PRS to my lineup. They are such versatile guitars and I need that with Merges. Some songs have heavy distortion in the chorus but rolled off cleans in the verses like in See You Around. Other than that, I’m rocking an Orange CR120- it gives me the robust tone that a Rockerverb has and it’s much lighter; although, I lose out on the warmth that a tube amp would have. With that said, my PRS’, Orange head and Marshall cab give me the tone that sounds best with Merges at this point in time, so no immediate upgrades.
Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?
We promote any and every way possible. Through the internet there’s always a new way to put our music out there and reach audiences we wouldn’t have been able to reach 30 years ago. But even with all our rapid technology, I’ve found the best way to get quality fans, is still good old fashioned canvassing. Nothing beats face-to-face.
Exposed Vocals: If you could perform anywhere and with any artists (Dead or Alive) where and who would it be with? Why?
I really want to play Red Rocks in CO. It’s such a cool place and the natural acoustics of the rocks make it a must play for me. But if I could play Red Rocks with Jimi Hendrix, I think my life would be complete.
Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?
We have a new summer vibe song that should be coming out in June!
Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?
I would probably be pursuing film-making. It’s my other passion and I actually went to school for it.
Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in the next year or so?
A new record and a lot of touring!
Exposed Vocals: Any Shout-outs?
Robbie Dooley, Katie Choate, Logan Christopher and our fans!
