Robbie Merrill

Robbie Merrill
Born June 13, 1963
Lawrence, Massachusetts, United States
Genres Hard Rock
Instruments Bass guitar, guitar
Years active 1995–present
Labels Universal
Associated acts Godsmack, Another Animal
Website www.godsmack.com
Notable instruments
Bass Spector Euro 4 LX-35

Robbie Merrill (born June 13, 1963 in Lawrence, Massachusetts)[1] is an American bass guitar player, best known for his work with the Hard Rock band Godsmack.

Robbie was one of the founding members of Godsmack. Merrill met Sully Erna through Sully's sister, and the two became roommates and friends.[2] In February 1995, Erna decided to start a new band as the lead singer after playing the drums for more than 23 years. His new band, The Scam, formed with Erna on vocals, Robbie Merrill on bass, local guitarist and friend Lee Richards on guitar, and Tommy Stewart on drums quickly changed its name to Godsmack, after recording one demo.[3]

Robbie is also a founding member of the band Another Animal along with Shannon Larkin, Tony Rombola, Lee Richards, and Whitfield Crane. Excluding Whit Crane all have been members of Godsmack presently or in the past.[4]

Merrill was featured in the IMV "Behind The Player" DVD series, in his DVD he gives an intimate behind-the scenes look at his life as a musician, he then gives in-depth lessons for how to play Speak and Voodoo by Godsmack on bass and jams the tracks with Godsmack drummer Shannon Larkin.[5]

Biography

Born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, Merrill started to play bass at age 14 and only played bass. He traded in his train set for a bass, and used his dad's amp.[2] He has played in a country, blues, reggae, prog, and '50s/'60s cover band. Before joining Godsmack, Merrill was a self-employed carpenter which is a trade he shared with Tony Rombola.[6]

Merrill and his wife Heather have two daughters, Niannah and Nakiah. Merrill currently lives in Auburn, New Hampshire. Although he is a left-handed musician, Merrill actually writes right-handed due to a birth defect that makes him unable to move the middle finger of his left hand.

In his off-time, Merrill has a farm which he puts many hours into; he also enjoys some hockey and the typical family stuff. He has a dirtbike track as well. However, he stated that his family is still the number one priority.[7]

In order to warm up before every show, Merrill usually plays his fretless bass and gets his fingers moving. Then he likes to go out and watch Rob Zombie play and get all amped up. Then he paces back and forth for a while too.[7]

Musical style

Merrill crafts a sound that’s as soulful as it is cutting—gravelly, but with a clear high-end sheen. Some of that clarity comes from a relatively new technique at the fore of his tone equation: fingerpicking. Robbie tried playing with fingerpicks at the suggestion of his tech during the band’s last tour and has decided to use them exclusively, using Dunlop Clear "D" plastic fingerpicks on his plucking-hand index and ring fingers.[8] "At first I hated the feel, but once you get over the hump of not feeling the string beneath your finger, you eventually don’t even realize they’re on and you come to feel the strings again," he says.[8] For Merrill, fingerpicks provide the best of both worlds. "When you play with your fingers, it’s harder to get the consistent sound from a pick hitting the string. With fingerpicks, I can get that sound but still keep that fingerstyle."[8]

When Merrill sees bands, it bums him out when he can’t hear what the bass player’s doing. When Godsmack first started, he had a ratty sound just to blend with the guitars. Over the years, he has refined it.[8]

Discography

Godsmack

Another Animal

Gear

According to Merrill, when he is in the studio, he runs a Line 6 guitar POD direct for growly, midrangy distortion, and he blends that with miked cabinets."[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Robbie Merrill - Biography". The Internet Movie Database.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Godsmack - AskMen.com". AskMen.com.
  3. ↑ "Godsmack – Bio". Godsmack.com. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-10-10.
  4. ↑ "Metal News - Godsmack Celebrating 10th Birthday With Boxed Set". Metal Underground . com. 2007-05-07.
  5. ↑ "Sheet Music Plus - Behind the Player: Robbie Merrill". Sheet Music Plus.
  6. ↑ "COVER STORY: Hard rock smack down; Godsmack remains close to its working-class roots". Charleston Gazette – via HighBeam Research.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Karr's CD & Music Reviews: Godsmack Interview with Bassist Robbie Merrill". Karr's CD & Music Reviews. 2006-09-28.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 8.9 8.10 8.11 "Robbie Merrill". BassPlayer.com. 2006-09-28.

External links