Picture yourself gliding down a technicolor highway in a swirling daydream of guitars, drums, and sweet, sweet harmony. The bus pulls up, jives to a screeching halt—next stop, Maynard, Massachusetts—where Dead Ahead is cooking up gumbo-flavored Deadness with a sizzling side of Allmans and Feat. Here in this slice of sonic heaven, they’re not just covering the Dead—they’re painting them on the walls with neon crayons and rocket fuel, dancing barefoot in the stardust of their own glorious jam.

We’re talkin’ about high-flying, free-spirited, kaleidoscopic picking, courtesy of the powerhouse husband-and-wife duo Ryan and Sonya Rae Taylor. Ryan’s guitar licks come at you like a whirling carnival ride: sometimes he’s slow-hand steady, sometimes he’s blazing fast, always dripping with soul, especially when that slide moans like a cosmic coyote. Meanwhile, Sonya Rae belts out vocals that shake the rafters and keeps the guitar swirling, weaving intricate lines like phosphorescent ribbons. Legend has it, if you stand close enough to the stage, you’ll see lightning shoot between their strings.

But hold on, good people, because there’s another voice in the drum kit. Alex MacDougall doesn’t just keep the beat—he belts it from behind the skins, sending out raw, heartfelt howls and roars to the grooving night. And with Justin Lopes on keys, Matt Caporale on bass, Joe Peck on guitar and vocals, and Brendan Tommaney on percussion, the ensemble churns up a joyous ocean of swirling, dancing sound. They slip in surprise medleys, twist up tangents that bloom like psychoactive daisies, and before you know it, you’re goosebumps-deep in an epic jam. One minute they’re tipping their hat to Pigpen, the next they’re roaring with the Brothers or kicking up Little Feat funk. It’s a many-headed groove monster, folks, and every single head has something to say.

You won’t ever catch the same set twice, and that’s the point. Dead Ahead is a living, breathing, metamorphosing jam creature. It’s a tip of the hat to the Grateful Dead’s boundless spirit and a leap toward brand-new frontiers—like Kesey’s bus never parked, only kept rolling deeper into the cosmic country. They take you through that cosmic swirl every single Tuesday at The Sanctuary in Maynard. If your dancing feet need something to do, if your ears are hungry for adventure, if your soul yearns for a dash of that Merry Prankster sparkle, you best climb aboard.

So come on out, tie-dyed and twinkling, to see these wizards of groove and mischief do their thing. Dead Ahead isn’t just playing tunes—they’re stoking the embers of a living tradition, conjuring a music that echoes backward into Dead lore and spirals forward into something vibrantly, deliciously new. Find them, feel them, lose yourself in that swirling jam, and let your mind run free down that winding, rainbow-hued road. Get the schedule and the rest of the skinny at DeadAheadBoston.com. Then saddle up, open your head, and hang on tight—they’ll show you the way.