MohaviSoul: Not Your Ordinary Bluegrass Band

MohaviSoul. Photo by Kristin Albright.

“It’s always refreshing to hear a new take on a traditional form, especially when it’s done with such aplomb, so if you’re a fan of the down-home Appalachian vibe then I say that you’re in for a face full of good eatin’ with the debut recording of San Diego’s own MohaviSoul.” Those were the words of music critic Frank Kocher upon hearing MohaviSoul for the first time, a San Diego-based contemporary bluegrass-Americana band known for their upbeat original music, rich vocal harmonies, storytelling and dynamic instrumental interludes and solos.

Using traditional instrumentation, the group features Randy Hanson, mandolin and vocals; Mark Miller, guitar and vocals; Jason Weiss, banjo and vocals; Dan Sankey, fiddle and vocals; and Ben Bostwick, bass.

BACKGROUND
Formed in 2012, by co-founders Hanson and Miller, they took their name from the Mojave Desert, playing original music that combines West Virginia folk and country with West Coast bluegrass and blues, as Hanson detailed. “We landed on the name MohaviSoul from two elements in our music, one is the idea that bluegrass music contains that ‘high lonesome sound’ associated with the sharp emotional edge of the tenor vocal, and second, that we don’t sing in a traditional bluegrass tenor style, but with more of a soulful holler…so that became the ‘Soul.’”

MohaviSoul at Summergrass last year.

Banjoist Jason Weiss has been with MohaviSoul since the beginning, as he reflected back 15 years ago. “Mark and Randy attended a song circle and would perform songs they had written,” he recalled. “I was a member of the house band for that event when they told me they were forming a group and asked me if I’d like to join them. I did, and since then they’ve become not only band mates, but lifelong friends that I’m eternally grateful to have.”

Weiss saw his musical role in the group as a chance to broaden his musical horizons. “As a banjo player, it gave me the opportunity to play music outside of traditional bluegrass,” he said, “with a chance to explore melodies, rhythms, and chord progressions I wouldn’t have otherwise encountered.”

Multi-instrumentalist Dan Sankey joined MohaviSoul as their fiddle player back in 2014. He’s been a fixture of the SoCal bluegrass music scene as a freelancer and teacher whom they met at a musical jam locally. Since 2021 Bostwick has been playing bass permanently for the group.

“We’re excited to have these incredible musicians in the band,” Hanson beamed, “especially the amazing solos and vocals from Jason and Dan, plus great bass breaks from Ben that really make the MohaviSoul sound and make our songs and performances so special.”

SONGWRITING PROCESS
Guitarist Miller and mandolinist Hanson do the lead vocals, and both write original songs, although their origins and influences vary widely as Miller weighed in first: “I was born in Wheeling, West Virginia with heavy Appalachian roots. Like most songwriters, I’m consistently writing notes and humming melodies into my phone. Sometimes, those elements will transfer directly into the songs. Other times I’ll construct lyrics from conversations I’ve had with people.”

“Both my parents were professional musicians,” Hanson reflected back on, “so I got exposed to a lot of big band, jazz, and classical music. Most of my songs start with an idea or conversation that inspires some lyrics, with melody developed as the story of the song solidifies. Sometimes it comes all at once, flowing out of my head as fast as I can write it down. I’ll get the story line going and then try to put a chord progression to it. You just never know what idea could hit you in the middle of the night or driving down our road less traveled!” Some of Hanson’s songwriting themes include unrequited blue love songs, reimagined World War II sayings, political pokes, and simple familiar greetings.
In addition to originals,bluegrass bands have had a long tradition of covering country, rock, and blues hits as well as cover songs, including material that may be familiar and unexpected. “It’s a fun way to get an audience’s attention,” Hanson mused, “and it keeps them engaged. We really enjoy finding songs that we can honor but also reinterpret in our MohaviSoul arrangement style of vocals and instruments.”

ALBUMS
Every Second, their debut album, an EP, dropped in 2013, followed by their next EP the same year, titled Blue Diesel. Miller has a soft spot for their third album, Hometown Blues, released in 2017. “I shot the cover photo in the small town I grew up in,” Miller noted, “it reminds me of home. Also, it contains two of our strong crowd favorites with the title track “Hometown Blues” and the country ballad “Lay Your Needle Down.”

Live at the 42nd Annual Huck Finn Jubilee, recorded in 2019, was their fourth album release, which includes three new original songs written by Hanson, Miller, and Orion Boucher, as well as a cover of the Waylon Jennings classic “Lonesome, On’ry and Mean,” followed by their fifth album, Stories and Memories in 2021, a full-length album featuring the tune “Sinners and Saints” and the single “Breakin’ Down.”

House party with MohaviSoul. Left to right: Randy Hanson, Dan Sanky, Ben Bostwick, Mark Miller, Jason Weiss.

Their sixth album was the self titled MohaviSoul, which included their song “Hurry Up and Wait,” a winner at the 2024 San Diego Music Awards for Best Country/Americana song, that gained radio play nationally and internationally, prompting Bluegrass Today magazine to label them as the “Seldom Scene of the West” in their review of the album. Additionally, I reviewed this album for this publication with my final remark: The band is on fire on the closing track, with their cover tune “Live and Let Live.” In true Bill Monroe fashion, Sankey, Weiss, and Hanson all take turns on torrid solos behind Bostwick’s driving bass line, which brings the curtain down on a top-quality production of musical arrangements, silky smooth soloing, and vocal harmonies that capture the flavor of true bluegrass music.

Encore is their seventh and most recent album, released in January 2025, and, as Hanson describes, “it’s another great mix of originals and unique covers that fans have loved at our concert and festival shows recently.” Miller also points to this album as a personal favorite: “I feel that Encore best represents us as a band and includes “Shine Like Stars,” one of my favorite songs that I’ve written.”

“We ended up blending covers and originals on these last two albums, MohaviSoul and Encore,” Hanson stated, “the cover songs being familiar to people who know them but have never heard them played our MohaviSoul way.” Some of these songs represented were previous radio hits such as “The Way,” “Great Expectations,” and “White House Road.”

PERFORMANCES
A huge honor for MohaviSoul was their 2021 invitation to showcase their music at the International Bluegrass Music Association in Raleigh, North Carolina, which gained national attention as the first band since Nickel Creek invited to represent SoCal. at IBMA’s World of Bluegrass. “Going to IBMA in 2021 and being the first band to represent SoCal bluegrass since Nickel Creek as a showcase artist was a real treat,” Hanson said… “we got to show everyone some SoCal Grass in our shows and jam with some amazing artists from all over.” Locally, MohaviSoul has played in many of the popular California festivals, SummerGrass in particular.

“Our performance at the 2025 San Diego Music Awards was also so special,” Hanson stated, “as it was important to share our music with the amazing San Diego music community. While the San Diego Music Awards show hosts a wide variety of performers,” he continued, “acts like us, an all-acoustic string band with no percussion, is a rarity.”

“We have a couple epic concerts coming up this fall, first for the San Diego Folk Heritage Concert Series on October 25th, and then November 29th we are hosting our show, Outlaw Country Goes Bluegrass,” Hanson said, “at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido, where we are going to do some fun outlaw classics reinterpreted in our style while staying true to the feel and legacy of the original tunes.” The Prairie Sky Band will be that show’s opener. Also you can catch MohaviSoul at the Grand Ole BBQ, in Flinn Springs, Friday, September 3rd, and at the Adams Avenue Street Fair, Sunday. September 20th.

In conclusion, Hanson leaves us with this enticing invitation: “Please join MohaviSoul on our journey and we’ll see you down our musical road less traveled performing our story telling wrapped in music and sharing the fun and joy of our journey with everyone…MohaviSoul style!”