RiotFest is a one-of-a-kind festival. It’s the place where punks, emos, goths, hip-hop heads, and alternative folks come together to worship music and mosh their troubles away. Located in Douglas Park, RiotFest has become a staple in the Chicago music scene. While this year had some trials and tribulations due to the iconic location being moved to the suburbs, and then back to Douglas Park, the music played on as crowd surfers rode their wave to the top. Here’s what you missed at RiotFest 2024:
Friday:
Day One was the infamous pop-punk day, drawing in all of the beloved teens and millennials who love to throw a middle finger in the air to songs about high school. Some of the highlight performances were Sum-41 with their classic setlist full of teenage angst and bubbly yet jangly guitar sound. Circle Jerks pulled an impressive crowd and an even more impressive mosh pit with their founding punk sound. However, our favorite performance of the night was Public Enemy for breaking up the pop punk and bringing a community feel to RiotFest, while still being bada$$. The night closed with the ever-so theatrical Fall Out Boy, filled with fireworks and flames. Their set was special, taking a nod from the Taylor Swift Eras format with a chronological setlist. Starting with the Evanston, IL pop-punk roots and ending with their newest alternative album. All in all, Fall Out Boy was a great way to end the night.
Saturday:
Day Two had softer vibes and was dedicated to the post-punk indie movement. Spoon got the crowd moving with their cult fan following. St. Vincent, however, was a star in her own right. She dazzled the crowd with her soft composure but emotionally turbulent setlist. Next up was Pavement who is always sarcastic but always fantastic. Their indie sound excited the crowd and warmed them up for the indie-rock Grammy-winner, Beck. Beck entranced the crowd with electric singer-songwriter instrumentals and godly, num-minding lyrics. The colors overtook the crowd as we “ooo-ed” and “ahhhh-ed” over the grandfather of indie pop.
Sunday:
As sad as we were to have the weekend end, Day Three was a feat of excellence. Despite being the last day, this is not for the faint of heart. With acts like Gwar, Mastodon, Suicidal Tendencies and more- I’d say this is the most intense metal/rock day of all. However, I was drawn to soft rock back Slaughter Beach, Dog for a glimpse of Modern Baseball’s broken-up band. Tierra Whack broke the crowd up with some exciting pop-punk-infused rap. Rob Zombie of course tore the house down by playing classics and some deep cuts for the real fans out there. Back on the indie side of the festival, Dr. Dog nearly brought tears to the audience with their sentimental but rock-is sound. To end the night, fans had to choose between the metalhead classic, Slayer, or 90s punk gods, Sublime (or the final NOFX farewell!). I ended up in the middle of the two, unable to decide how to close out my RiotFest adventure. Slayer melted minds and crushed body parts by opening up a true riot in the mosh pit. Sublime had an equally riled-up crowd but to the tune of some lighter songs. Each set was incredible in its own right, and each set was a beautiful way to kiss goodbye to RiotFest (until next year)!
While I didn’t get to see any of NOFX three-night farewell, I’m sure the target crowd was pleased with the over 4 hours of NOFX spread across RiotFest. While I may not be the hardest one to attend RiotFest, I enjoyed the opportunity to mosh which seems to be dwindling. While it seems unsafe, RiotFest is the place for peace between angry communities and music for all. When you fall in the pit, someone will always pick you up. RiotFest owes us nothing!