Aris James has all the smooth-listening melodies you would hear in any countryside coffeeshop, complete with sigh-inducing harmonies and steel guitar solos. You could easily listen for the joy of easy listening, but you would be missing out on a great deal. Aris prides himself foundationally as a lyricist. Listening in at one of his shows, those pleasant tunes are talking through love, depression, existential crises, and mental illness. He cooly weaves in western, ghostly romance ballads, all the while keeping the melodic congruency of any timeless album. 

 

Aris James, known for his guitar and vocal work with Lumbercat, began recording his solo

to-be-released album with two singles. “Haunted Lovers,” a chilling autumnal romance, was followed by the struggles and triumphs of love we find in “Like Wine.” His recent 2021 performances at The Get Together festival in June and at Reno’s Artown in July have set the post-pandemic expectation for shows to come.