I'm talking to him currently, he said he's just been really busy since getting back It's so cool that you can stop posting online for a few days & people you've never met in real life get worried about you. Love this community so much
No Doubt, Op Ivy and Green Day would be ideal for big slots. Would like Pup, Suicide Machines, Strike Anywhere, Big D, Flatliners and the Souls back. Goldfinger needs to play eventually. Sum 41 would be cool as well I think NOFX will probably do their farewell chicago show there as well if they're actually done AFI doing Sorrow would be so cool
I know I mentioned Bones 10 year anniversary next year but I get the feeling that album plays are not that exciting anymore. Look at how few we had this year. Bands are more likely to do a full tour of an album rather than just a festival IMO or not at all/a one off random show like JEW and DCFC have.
i had my big wishlist of upper tier wants, so i threw together a hastily made poster just to see if what i would want would 1) look like a riotfest and 2) looks too big or too small. and i am really bad with knowing younger bands/bands of a certain genre so i just copied them from suggestions here, and its lacking in the modern pop punk (wonder years, real friends, neck deep type stuff) but that'sbecause I'm completely ignorant to it. So here is my totally selfish, not too well thought out first draft. would be totally fine swapping FOB for green day if we think its affordable.
Someone in the Riot Fest Facebook group suggested that “Chicago legends” play such as The Smashing Pumpkins, Disturbed*, and Fall Out Boy. Not going to get into the latter two, but there were a bunch of comments saying how Alkaline Trio needs to play more consistently too. I guess it’s hard to branch out when attendees want the same bands over and over, but it really is uninteresting to see bands come back within 5 years (NOT named Taking Back Sunday, GWAR, or Andrew W.K.) You know despite all the solid suggestions posted here they are just going to get Trio or Rise Against or more repetitive bands again for the early evening slots hahaha. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Sleater-Kinney were great acts and more of those would be sick! *Yes, everyone quickly shot down the suggestion that Disturbed play Riot Fest.
Maybe unpopular opinion but I’m tired of TBS, Gwar, and Andrew WK. Trio plays way too often now, too. Those comments just tell me that people don’t realize that booking the same bands over and over again only hurts the festival.
I agree fully. I was planning on skipping TBS entirely but ended up hearing a couple songs... and Adam sounded horrendous
i defended them in the tbs thread cus i didn't think they were bad last year but holy hell were they terrible this year. they have no business still playing 20 year old songs but i guess they are mainly a nostalgia act at this point.
I don't mind having Andrew WK and Gwar year after year. Both feel like experiences to me between Gwar having the visual aspect and Andrew WK normally being such a high energy performance. Agreed on Trio and TBS though.
I was curious while eating lunch and gathered information of what bands have played Riot Fest Chicago the most (besides Gwar, TBS and and Andrew) this is what I got: AK3 6 times since 2009 Descendents 6 times since 2011 NOFX 6 times since 2009 Bad Religion 5 times since 2010 Gogol Bordello 5 timed since 2012 Pennywise 5 times since 2010 Mighty Bostoness (RIP) 5 times since 2008 Lawrence Arms 5 times since 2010 7 Seconds, 5 times since 2006 Both Rise Against and Flaming Lips have played 4 times, along with ALL, Rancid, Bayside, AntiFlag, Dropkick Murphys, The Story So Far, The Wonder Years and Skating Polly.
im surprised more of the modern pop punk didnt make the list, feels like i see names like wonder years, real friends, state champs, all time low, and the like every year lately, but maybe its juts like a 3 times in 5 or 6 years kinda thing, but that genre practically gets its own stage for a day each year, haha id be down for an entire lineup of bands who havent been there since at least 2015/2016, including the annual 3.
I added TSSF and Wonder Years with 4 each too. But I was also expecting more pop punk bands in there. For example Real Friends, New Found Glory, Knuckle Puck and Mayday Parade have played 3times each
Riot Fest isn't a punk festival? That's news to me. Sure, they always book from other genres (primarily metal and hip hop) but they've always been heavier on punk than any other genre. If they're not a punk fest, I don't know what is. Give me some St. Vincent, Danny Elfman (or better yet an Oingo Boingo reunion), or Bright Eyes, please!
I always view Riot Fest as a mixed genre festival that leans punk. Just like I view Pitchfork as a mixed genre festival that leans indie rock, but that's just me.
Riot Fest is a punk festival in the way that this is a punk website. Certainly has roots there, but it's grown a lot of different directions along the way.
It’s a punk festival for punks who also listen to other stuff too. could you go there and have a good time if you’re not a punk? Yes. But their base will always be the same people who go to other festivals like Fest, PRB, Punk in Drublic, Slam Dunk, Sad Summer, etc.
I think that's fair if you want to zoom way out, but if you look at what genre takes up a majority of the line-ups year-to-year and look at the history of the fest then I think it's easy to say it's a punk festival that has grown to incorporate some other elements. Still a punk festival, but not so obsessed with purity that they only book gatekeeper-approved punk bands. I think they also have a tendency to promote punk bands to time slots higher than what most festivals (even "alternative music" festivals) would probably give them. That's just how I see it, though, to each their own. Whatever you want to call it, I call it a good time.
Lolla used to be an alternative festival. I think calling Riot Fest a forever punk festival is wrong.
I don't think RF has veered nearly as far from its roots (genre-wise) as Lolla has. If it had, I honestly think I would have stopped paying attention to it by now.