William M. Adler (born January 26, 1976) is the rhythm guitarist in the heavy metal band Lamb of God. He is the younger brother of bandmate Chris Adler.
Willie joined Lamb of God after the first guitarist, Abe Spear, left the band. Self-taught, Willie is well-known for his unconventional style of playing, which includes odd/dissonant chord shapes, unique timing patterns, odd rhythms, high usage of his fretting hand's pinky finger, wide stretches between frets due to an increased reach, and being an obsessive perfectionist with his right hand rhythm playing. He plays mostly the jagged staccato riffs in Lamb of God's songs, while Mark Morton plays more of the groove-oriented rhythms and solos. Willie does solo occasionally, and says whereas Morton is more knowledgeable of scales and modes, that he "attacks solos like a division problem". Willie is described by bassist John Campbell as a "good time guitar player." Willie and brother Chris Adler have been described as the metal purists in the band.
Willie is a primary songwriter in Lamb of God. His songs include "Black Label," "11th Hour," "Blood Junkie," "Hourglass," "Blood of the Scribe," "Beating on Death's Door," "Ashes of the Wake," "Ruin" and "Again We Rise." Adler also co writes songs with Mark Morton, as he wrote the pre-solo breakdown to "Walk With me in Hell", and all of "In Your Words" up until the atmospheric ending which Mark Morton penned. One of his influences that got him into music was Metallica when he was 11 yrs old.
When not touring, writing or recording with Lamb of God, Willie enjoys his downtime at home with his wife Brandy and their son Tres, and dogs; working on the house and cooking. He also has a tattoo of a southern fried chicken dinner on his stomach, which can be seen on the Lamb Of God DVD "Killadelphia". While on this tour, after a show in Leeds (U.K.) during filming he and director Doug Spangenberg paid a prostitute £30 to clean the band's tour bus topless. He is known as the "joker" of the band.
Willie has recently worked with Houston metal band Vehement to produce their six-track promo cd.