Drawing heavily on mid-sixties R & B, Blackstrap Molasses create fun, original music that the hipster set, hardcore cholos, middle-aged soccer moms, and the rest of us can enjoy. Hailing from the desert city of Indio, California, the band features Lisa Baeza on piano, organ and percussion, Ian Townley on bass, Sal Meza on drums, and his brother Dani Meza on guitar and vocals. Dani admittedly geeks out on tons of old soul tracks – especially those from Motown and Stax – and writes songs he’d rather Aretha or Etta or Otis sang than himself. If Lisa isn’t playing melody, she’s playing horn-stabs on the keys or shaking tambourine on breaks. Ian’s bass lines are catchy grooves and Sal authoritatively pummels his drum set. Dani opts for rhythm and simple solos while his voice is young, raw and powerful. Their music isn’t entirely soul, not exactly rock and not a retro throwback. Their songs strike a balance between pop head bobbers to intense torch bawlers back to party music in need of new dance steps.

Montoya’s career began in the mid 1970s when Albert Collins asked him to join his band as drummer. Collins took Montoya under his wing and taught him his “icy hot” guitar style. In the early 1980s John Mayall heard Montoya playing guitar in a Los Angeles bar. Soon after Mayall asked Montoya to join the newly reformed Bluesbreakers. He remained a member of the band for 10 years. In 1995 he appeared with the Cate Brothers for the resumption of their recording career on their release, Radioland. Since that same year, Montoya has remained predominantly a solo artiest releasing eight albums to date.