Concert Review: Dark Star Orchestra in Deerfield, MA

Joanna Gleason
Aug 8
3 min read

On August 4, 2025, Dark Star Orchestra performed at Tree House Brewing Company located in Deerfield, MA. Thousands of fans attended the outside concert. It was a great night of music with pizza and beer around. Tree House Deerfield carries a wide variety of fresh beer, cold brew, and seltzer. They also have in-house-made pizzas available at the pizza counter. As a live music photographer; I drove 2 hours from Brookline to Deerfield to cover Dark Star Orchestra.

DSO is not just a band of very talented musicians superbly playing Grateful Dead music; it is an experience, meeting friendly deadheads and making new friends. During DSO’s live concert, everyone is dancing, wearing tie-dye DSO shirts or Grateful Dead shirts and the fans just are grooving to the music. Their take on the music is gritty and very realistic. They preserve Grateful Dead music for concert audiences and are loved for this role. The ambiance, the superb rendition of incredible music by a very talented band creates a very special evening for concert goers.

To me DSO is the closest band to the original Grateful Dead. When you look at Jeff Mattson using amp rigs and equipment to imitate the guitar tone of Jerry Garcia, you can close your eyes and imagine that it is Jerry performing. Rob Eaton’s superb guitar licks remind me of Bob Weir. Vocalist Lisa Mackey provides Donna Godchaux’s female harmonies and now, since 2012, plays Harmonica on the Ron “Pigpen” McKernan tunes.

Lisa might even be better than Donna as the band plays a lot of shows from the 70’s and eighties. Ron keys are just fantastic!!! Dino English delivers the rhythmic drumming sounds of Bill Kreutzmann. On the other drum set, Rob Koritz, fills the Mickey Hart role. Skip Vangelas provides a style of bass playing similar to that of Phil Lesh.

DSO has been playing Grateful Dead music for over 30 years and the band does a fantastic job. It is just so authentic, and the Jams are incredible. The Washington Post declared them “the hottest Grateful Dead tribute act going.” USA Today claimed DSO was “channeling the Dead”. “What they do is not just a tribute to the Grateful Dead but a testament to the enormous number of unique set lists the band performed in their long career.”

In 1997 Dark Star Orchestra was born to preserve and recreate the Grateful Dead concert experience. The present line up is Rob Eaton (rhythm guitar, vocals), Jeff Mattson (lead guitar and vocals), Lisa Mackey (vocals), Dino English and Rob Koritz (drums), Skip Vangas (bass), and Rob Barraco (keys).

Setlist

Set 1:

1- Shakedown Street (Grateful Dead cover)

2- Hell in a Bucket (Grateful Dead cover)

3- Dire Wolf (Grateful Dead cover)

4- Broken Arrow (Robbie Robertson cover)

5- The Little Red Rooster (Willie Dixon cover)

6- Hey Pocky A–Way ( The Meters cover)

7- Mission in the Rain (Jerry Garcia cover)

8- Lazy Lighting (Kingfish cover)

9- Rubin and Cherise (Jerry Garcia Band cover)

Set 2: