ABOUT THE BAND
About the Band
The Lowland Drifters started sometime near 2013 as a lunchtime diversion with the original members meeting weekly in the parking lot to play music. Originally focused on covers, they began to shift towards original music both brought in by J from his previous band as well as original music written there in the parking lot.
It was when “Cowtown” was written that the band seemed to find it’s sound, a combination of twangy guitar and garage rock with a dark and heavy tone that framed lyrics about a liquor store heist that goes bad in a surprising way. This was followed with “Carmella”, a murder mystery of sorts sung over a Spanish flavored rhythm and chord structure.
Eventually, a full set was written, and the band began gigging locally at places like The Pourhouse, Soda Bar, and The Merrow, building a reputation for tight musicianship and a dynamic, focused show. The release of “Breaking Bad…Good and Ugly” their first collection of songs released through CD Baby and digitally distributed on ITunes, Amazon, Spotify occurred around this time.
Membership changes and Covid put the band on an extended hiatus that has ended in the spring of 2023 with the return of original drummer, Mark Soracci, the new additions of Rich Harchol, solidly filling the second guitarist role and a longtime friend of J’s, James Douglas bringing his experienced hand on bass.
J Adam Williams: Vocals/Guitar
J has been involved in music since the late 80’s fronting Arista recording artists Tomorrow’s Child, the Post Grunge/Psychedelia project, Bitteroot, and a 60’s R&B mod revival act The Regent Sound. Moving from the more confessional songwriting of those previous acts, his work is now focused on more of a traditional storytelling perspective. His guitar playing is melodic and to the point… steering away from technique and towards the passion of his influences, becoming a bastard child of Neil Young and Marco Perroni.
James Douglas: Bass/Vocals
James has been playing bass and performing shows in original bands since the age of 16 throughout Southern California. Most recently, he has been playing the West Coast club circuit in a variety of original, Tribute, and classic rock cover bands.
Rick Harchol: Guitar
Rick had been signed to Vineyard records and was a founding member of “Outlaw Blood”-Atco/Atlantic and “The Voices” -MCA Records. His Songs and performances have also appeared on HBO, Discovery Channel, MTV, CMT, A&E, Oprah, RuPaul and more. His work has also appeared in The 2014 film “The Identical” wide released in over 5,000 theaters nationwide, having co-written, produced and performed on 7 songs including the opening and closing songs.
Mark Soraci: Drums
Mark has been playing drums since around age 14 with his dad in Italian restaurants around San Diego.