Adam Wendler is an independent multi-instrumentalist from Ontario, Canada, currently based in Berlin, Germany.  Ever since picking up the guitar at the age of 15, Adam has been writing songs, dedicated to sharing his music with the world. 

At only 27 years old Adam has independently released three solo albums, ‘All or Nothing’ (2018), ‘Never Go Unknown’ (2017) and ‘A Forward Moving Motion’ (2016) as well as 11 official music videos and numerous live videos leading to airplay on national radio in both Canada and Germany (CBC Radio; radioeins). Adam has been featured on Balcony TV and Berlin Sessions and several of his songs have ranked in the Singer-Songwriter iTunes charts. Adam’s music has been praised by numerous blogs and in 2018 he was included as a feature artist in ‘Akustik Gitarre‘, one of Europe’s biggest acoustic guitar magazines. 

In this interview spotlight, I chat with Adam about his latest project(s), challenges, technology and more.

Full Q&A along with links and music below.

Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)

I’m from Ontario Canada. I would say most of my music could be considered “folk-pop” — some songs leaning more in the folk direction and others more towards pop. 

What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?

I was always more in to rock music when I was younger – punk and classic rock mostly. I used to play with a band that did more of that style. I ended up migrating to my current sound after high school when I started traveling around with my acoustic guitar… It was really when I became a solo artist that I was drawn to the folk direction. 

I’m motivated to keep going because of the feeling I get when I play live. There’s nothing better than playing to an audience that is really with you and enjoying the music you’re making. I really want to grow my audience to a point where I can sell out large venues and have the crowd singing along to my songs. 

How is this new release different than previous ones? Were you trying to accomplish anything specific?

The new release, “All the Way“, was definitely recorded in a different way than most of my previous releases. There are more samples in it, and more pop oriented vocal processing and mixing. I wanted to take a more modern approach to the record, and make sure it didn’t sound like a “band” song. My buddies from the production company “Pacific” produced it which was great because they are skilled in this style of music. It’s meant to be motivational and pump the listener up, so I wanted the mix to sound nice a big, while still having minimal elements. 

Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age? How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)?

It is difficult to get my music heard by a large audience, and to get it to stand out from the crowd. However, before the digital music age it was probably even more difficult. One challenge I face is the fact that there is so much good music out there available at your finger tip, so it is tough not to compare myself with other artists. Everybody’s stream counts are available to the public to see so it can be hard to focus on making music when you’re caught up in the business side of things. 

On the other hand, technology has made it possible to get my music out there, play shows and make a living as an original musician without having a record label involved. 

What was the last song you listened to?

For the Turnstiles – Neil Young

Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?

CD’s. I like having a physical copy that I can listen to in a car. 

How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?

As a musician I prefer Spotify because I can see the most statistical data on my music the easiest. In terms of listening to music I don’t really have a preference, but I use Spotify because I have a joint account with my girlfriend. 

Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?

Instagram is the best place to connect with me, but you can find my music on all major platforms.