Riot Fest 2021 (September 17-19, Chicago IL) Tour • Page 4

Totally agree. This is easily the best layout of any festival I've been to. For those who haven't ever gone, Lollapalooza's two main stages are 1/2 mile away from each other. Literally. 1/2 Mile walk.

 

I didn't mind Lollapalooza being that spread out. Gives everyone a lot more room to spread out and you don't get the bleed from the other stages. I knew where to go for what I wanted at that time without having to hike across a park and through a stage set to get to the food.

Each has their merits but I wouldn't shit on Lolla's layout that much. It's pretty great.

 

Lollas layout is great for what it is, but like it does suck that splitting time between bands means you lose a solid 10 min from one or the other and there’s really no where to comfortably chill

 

Not local, but a cop told me when used to work in the Douglas Park neighborhood and he never wants to go back. Pulled lots of dead body’s out of the park

 

I personally think with so many people in attendance that the likelihood of anything bad happening, especially with the increased police presence, is minimal. Also, everywhere can be deemed unsafe. In 2017, the Vegas shooter booked a room directly overlooking Lollapalooza. Not only that, but bad things happens around the Grant Park area sometimes too. Sure, Douglas Park is not the best area and it’s best to be cautious, but I don’t think there’s any cause to be worried.

 

Definitely worth the read.

Riot Fest Founder Mike Petryshyn Reveals the Legendary Band Reunions He's Still Trying For: Q&A

 

Agree with the layout. It's super easy to alternate between stages without missing much, assuming you're comfortable being somewhere in the middle or toward the back of the crowd. It's feasible to jump between those four main stages real easy.

Real interesting read. I'm not surprised that 2014 was the biggest year given what the top few lines of the line-up looked like. That shit was stacked!

Interesting hearing about the way some acts get booked (e.g., Bikini Kill talks starting in 2018), whoever that "left field" artist they have for next year, etc.

Interesting to see them call out the Front Bottoms and the Interrupters as potential future headliners. Not sure I buy that in either case, but I guess that depends on how one defines a "headliner."

 

Since Interrupters are already out for next year, imagine if they keep getting bigger, and by '21 or '22 they finally booked for their first riot fest they are already in the top 2 or 3 lines.

 

A lot of this is so damn true. I saw artists every day giving big hugs to one another like it was a reunion (and artists present who weren't even on the lineup.....but man I'd like them to be next year!)
EDIT: and no, not some big ass reunion. Just acts you wouldn't blink an eye at being on the lineup and are 100% active and touring.

 

And my guess for the bonkers booking would 100% be Weird Al.

 

Weird Al at Riot Fest is something I never thought I needed but absolutely need

 

I honestly don't know that they'll get any bigger than they are, though. Haha. Not without a crossover hit or something going viral, anyway.

They're a pretty popular band at this point, but I see them being stuck at the same level as LTJ (from a festival perspective, anyway) for a while. In that 2-5pm slot depending on the day and the rest of the line-up but still being able to play 800-1k cap venues pretty comfortably.

I'd love for that to happen but... Don't think it will, unfortunately.

Y'know what? There's a high likelihood of this being the case, actually. His tours definitely get announced early. People would definitely flip... And he doesn't usually do music festivals I don't think.

Will have to keep an eye on his tour routing (if anything) next year. He crushed it on that "Strings Attached" tour this summer.

 

Weird Al is still the one of the best shows I've ever seen. He'd be incredible for it.

 

It’s funny, my girlfriend and I were actually just talking about this the other day. For a bit, I was convinced that The Interrupters were gonna be the next No Doubt, but my girlfriend said something along the lines of “they’ll have the popularity of Reel Big Fish and just stay at the current popularity they have and play big-ish theaters.” And honestly, I think she (and you) are absolutely right. At this point, I think they’ve reached their peak, and I actually couldn’t see them getting bigger, especially with their sound/style


Also, I 100% endorse Weird Al playing Riot Fest. I think he’d be perfect. I’ve seen him 4 times the past 12 years and he still puts on one of the best, most fun lives shows ever. That dude is one of my heroes

 

The reality is that any band playing any sort of "rock" sub-genre type music, at this point in time anyway, is going to peak at large theaters. With the right amount of time and effort, I do think there's room for bands to headline festivals like Riot Fest but that time for the Interrupters would be like... 10+ years from now when a second generation of fans discovers them.

And that's with a lot of luck. I don't mean to sound cynical, but that's the reality of the situation.

I also think the big thing with a lot of "punk" (and ska or whatever) bands is that the bands who came before them (e.g., Rancid, NOFX, Bad Religion, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Less Than Jake, Reel Big Fish, Pennywise) are still touring actively. Once some of those bands start to retire? I can see some others getting a bump. But that's a while from now, I think.

 

Honestly though I agree the Front Bottoms have the best chance out of a lot of these bands. I’ve just witnessed first hand people who really wouldn’t listen to bands like them fall for them after a little bit of exposure. There’s something infectious about them. I’m not really saying top 3 headliner, but closing out the Rise or Radicals stage doesn’t seem crazy to me.

 

I can see Pvris blowing up and becoming a headliner

 

But actually. Henry Rollins moderated the Pussy Riot panel in 2014

 

I figure they would have already blown up but we've seen a few acts be late bloomers recently.

 

Going Riot Fest (and Chicago) for the first time in 2020 with some friends. Any advice about the festival and city would be much appreciated.

My ideal lineup (if we're only including realistic bands) probably would include The Menzingers, Motion City Soundtrack, The Wonder Years. Obvs MCR would be insane but I cannot see it happening.

 

I think all 3 of those will play. I would recommend Wicker Park or Lakeview areas to stay. It's not near the festival but both are great areas and leave you with a lot of post festival options.

 

Cheers, we are staying a full week and want to see Chicago a bit too so somewhere easy to commute into the city from would be decent too. We'll be flying in too (from London) so that's obviously a factor.

 

I usually park somewhere near-ish Wrigleyville (far enough away that you don't have to mess with a Cubs crowd) and Uber it in. Tends to cost $10-12 each way. With that, finding a hotel around there would be sweet because you can then hit the amazing bars in the area after the fest gets out.

Oh, and I've sold myself on The Strokes absolutely headlining this thing next year. Not #1 overall, but headliner nonetheless.

 

Considering they were billed #4 at Lollapalooza this year, they would absolutely headline if they played, barring some huge reunion that would put them #2.

 

i could see them being the day 2 headliner like Queens Of The Stone Age was in 2017