Riot Fest 2014 GWAR by Geoff Henao

Will Riot Fest Return to Humboldt Park?

This post originally appeared on our affiliate site, Chicago Music. Photo by Geoff Henao.

For somebody that absolutely dislikes music festivals, Riot Fest has been the one consistently appealing and entertaining Chicago festival. A part of what's made Riot Fest so great is its location in Humboldt Park and the organizers' ability to utilize the park's space properly. However, major, lingering damage was sustained during last year's festival, resulting in Riot Fest organizers paying upwards of $150,000 in repairs.

According to RedEye Chicago, Alderman Roberto Maldonado of the 26th Ward isn't too keen on having the festival return to Humboldt Park this year, explaining:

I am exceptionally disappointed at the Riot Fest organizers for the mess they left at the park last year and their shallow and hollow promises to restore the park [...] I don't support them coming back.

At a recent Humboldt Park Advisory Council meeting, Riot Fest organizer Max Wagner assured residents that park repairs are still ongoing seven months after the festival ended. He also let worried residents know that the festival won't grow beyond last year's size, saying the organization is comfortable with capping the festival's size to the level it was at last year. Wagner further explains:

We want to use about half the park. We want to scale it way back. We've agreed to not grow the event any more. We simply don't want to sell any more tickets. We don't want any more people. [We're] fine with capping it where it is.

Unlike Lollapalooza and Grant Park, Riot Fest doesn't have a contract with Humboldt Park. Rather, the organizers are given a permit to hold the event the same week it's scheduled, which is surprising to learn. With opposition coming from both residents and Ald. Maldonado, could Riot Fest realistically relocate this year? It's possible... but unlikely.

[via RedEye Chicago]


[RH Photos] Riot Fest Day 2014: Day 3 (9/14/2014)

Photos by Geoff Henao.

After a long year, Riot Fest finally returned to Humboldt Park last Friday, and with it was an unseasonal chill and rain that attempted to damper the good mood that spread across the crowd. The move to the Northern end of the park was necessary for the festival to grow, adding a couple more stages to the festival grounds. Unfortunately, this also meant trampling through muddier grounds that weren't covered by baseball field dirt. Nevertheless, the fatigue and callouses that formed on Riot Fest attendees' feet were more than justified by the amount of talent that performed at the three day event. Here are Geoff and Brynn's recaps of Riot Fest 2014: Day 3. Check out my Flickr for more photos.

Riot Fest 2014 Laura Stevenson and the Cans by Geoff Henao (5 of 5)

I began my final day at Riot Fest with Laura Stevenson and the Cans. I admit, my knowledge of Laura only comes from her collaborations with Bomb the Music Industry! and Brynn's preview piece on her band. Their soft indie rock was the perfect way to start the final day of a long weekend and set the tone for a very relaxed, yet hectic Sunday. - Geoff Henao

Known for his multi-instrumental talents, producing, stellar song-writing, and collaboration with musician and songwriter Adam Granducie in the indie rock duo The War on Drugs, Kurt Vile and the Violators were a top pick for this year's Riot Fest. The sun was shining and the weather was fairly fantastic as Kurt Vile & The VIolators took the Riot Stage Sunday afternoon and opened the set with "Wakin' On A Pretty Day," from his latest albumWakin' On A Pretty Daze, which received big ups from critics and fans. Vile's music is spacious evolutionary rock that is technically impressive and genuine, and man-oh-man can he play the guitar.  The set was littered with blistering guitar solos and flashbacks to Vile's earlier albums; Childish Prodigy and Vile's fourth studio album Smoke Ring My Halo. Electrifying, noisy, yet melodic, Kurt Vile and The Violators brought rock n' roll to Riot Fest, and I would love to see them again.  - Brynn Bixby
Riot Fest 2014 Netherfriends by Geoff Henao (6 of 6)
Netherfriends was the second act I saw on Sunday. As RH readers will know, I've been following his career somewhat closely since last summer, so it was great to see him get some recognition in the form of a Riot Fest slot. He made the most of his time, playing a lot of songs from this year's P3ACE, and also brought local Chicago rapper Monster Mike on stage to collaborate on a song. From what I could tell, the crowd was really feeling his style of indie rock-infused hip hop beats, especially when the closer "Uptown Boys" began to play. - Geoff Henao
Immediately after Netherfriends' set, I made my way out to see one of Chicago's most pivotal post-hardcore bands, Naked Raygun. My first Riot Fest back in 2006 was to see Naked Raygun, so it was kind of like an anniversary of sorts. Their set featured the full rundown of their debut, Throb Throb, but also included a special Riot Fest 10th birthday cake/celebration for festival founder Michael Petryshyn. - Geoff Henao
Riot Fest 2014 ShowYouSuck by Geoff Henao (4 of 6)

The acts I most look forward to at Riot Fest are the emerging local artists who are over the moon to be a part of Chicago's best (in my opinion) music festival of the year. Chicago's very own original dude bro Clinton Sandifer aka ShowYouSuck has been waiting years for the opportunity to perform at Riot Fest and had no qualms about sharing this information with the gigantic crowd that accumulated around the Radical Stage Sunday afternoon. "Wow... I never thought there would be this many people here! It has been a dream of mine to play Riot Fest... I made it!" I've seen ShowYouSuck perform over a dozen times and it has been both rewarding and impressive to watch this artist top his performance every time. Fans got a taste of a variety of deep cuts, old and new, but ShowYouSuck had the crowd in the palm of his hand for pretty much the entire set. The set kicked off with "Big Gulp," a track off the last installment of the three-fold One Man Pizza Party Series. Sandifer bounced around on stage in front of a giant cut out slice of pizza, hyping up the crowd with his signature call and response, "show is so awesome, show you suck!" At one point, Clinton parted the sea of people telling everybody to just "love each other" and on his command, the crowd charged at each other, creating complete chaos and catching the attention of onlookers in line at street vendors who were missing out on all the fun. ShowYouSuck introduced "80s Boobs, a quirky and oddball tune off his latest EP Dude Bro. "Get your hands up if you've ever loved someone no matter what they look like, that's what this song is about..." and by the end of the song Sandifer had people cracking up as the rapper joked, "I just made you think about your mom's boobs... you're welcome." At the end of the set fans were rewarded with literal slices of pizza that were launched into the crowd by ShowYouSuck and hype man/fellow Chicago rapper, Auggie The 9th. ShowYouSuck will be touring Europe at the end of the month and keep an ear out for his upcoming Bummer EP which Sandifer promises will be out "soon Bro." - Brynn Bixby

Riot Fest 2014 Blue Meanies by Geoff Henao (5 of 11)
Following ShowYouSuck's set, I ventured out to the Rock Stage to listen to the Blue Meanies, another band whom I hadn't seen in years. Despite being more or less inactive for years, they sounded amazingly tight. Their style of carnival-esque ska/punk fit the entire Riot Fest ethos to a T. As the last remaining ska band of the festival, they left rude boys and girls with a lasting memory by playing through the bulk of their album, Full Throttle. It's performances like the one they had this past weekend that makes me wish they'd reunite for good and return to playing shows consistently, even if it's only in the Chicagoland area. - Geoff Henao
After some baller Chicago deep dish pizza I made my way over to the Roots Stage to see punk rock masters Social Distortion. The crowd was ravenous and ready for the band who launched into their set with "Through These Eyes," off of White Light White Heat White Trash. Frontman Mike Ness reminisced about punk rock in the 80s and fans ate it up, listening intently and respectfully. "We were in the 1 percent and the 99 percent was telling us we were shit," confessed Ness continuing the underdog story that was going around Riot Fest this weekend. "I don't know about you, but when someone tells me not to do it, I do it 1,000 times."  The audience embraced the set, rocking out to tunes off of Mommy's Little Monster and Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes, including a Mike Ness original, "Misery Loves Company." This band has been around the punk scene forever and by the powerful cut-throat show they put on, I can see why. The set ended with an upbeat power-chord charged cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring Of Fire," which was a interesting choice to end the show, but a good one at that. - Brynn Bixby
Riot Fest 2014 Primus by Geoff Henao (7 of 8)
Primus served as my second-to-last band, but they might as well have headlined. I've never seen Primus (or Les Claypool for that matter) perform live, but getting the chance to watch one of the most talented bass players to ever pick up the instrument was a long time coming. They had one of the most interesting stage setups I saw all weekend with two large, inflatable astronauts at the back with an image of a man peering through the visor. Claypool announced that this was a satellite image of Primus drummer Tim Alexander, who was unable to attend due to health issues. Playing in his stead was Danny Carey, the drummer for Tool. The Tool connection didn't end there, as Primus covered "Aenima," which sounds just as amazing as you would hope it would with Claypool's singing. - Geoff Henao
Riot Fest 2014 Weezer by Geoff Henao (20 of 20)
I still can't believe that I witnessed Weezer play the Blue Album Sunday night at Riot Fest. What an amazing way to end a killer weekend of great music. I snuck backstage to try and get a good view of the guys for their set but no one was allowed anywhere close so I braved the massive and somewhat terrifying crowd, and inched toward to the stage. I had a moment if panic when the band started the first song and it was "Back To The Shack," but then my senses kicked in and I realized of course they will play some of their other hits before diving into the Blue Album. After a seven song mini-set that included "Beverly Hills," and some tunes off the Green Album, it was finally time to journey back to 1994 and get weird. As soon as the familiar guitar riff in "My Name Is Jonas," blared over the speakers, the crowd went insane. I was still pretty far out from the stage but literally everyone was singing along and as Weezer burned through each track, the crowd cheered and screamed for more. Rivers Cuomo's performance was fantastic and I still can't get over how spot-on he was vocally, it was just like listening to the record... with thousands of other fans. This performance reinforced the sheer fact that the Blue Album is pure genius and this band is legendary, although there was a bit of disconnect between the band and crowd at times, seemingly because of some technical difficulties. But between the angsty chorus of "Undone - The Sweater Song," and the tight knit harmonies on my favorite song "Holiday," I was in garage punk rock heaven. In my eyes, this set perfectly captures the whole point of Riot Fest -- to rock out with a thousand of your closest strangers and re-live the music that made you who you are. - Brynn Bixby

[RH Photos] Riot Fest 2014: Day 2 (9/13/2014)

Photos by Geoff Henao.

After a long year, Riot Fest finally returned to Humboldt Park last Friday, and with it was an unseasonal chill and rain that attempted to damper the good mood that spread across the crowd. The move to the Northern end of the park was necessary for the festival to grow, adding a couple more stages to the festival grounds. Unfortunately, this also meant trampling through muddier grounds that weren't covered by baseball field dirt. Nevertheless, the fatigue and callouses that formed on Riot Fest attendees' feet were more than justified by the amount of talent that performed at the three day event. Here is Geoff and Brynn's recap of Riot Fest 2014: Day 2. Check out the rest of Geoff's photos from Riot Fest 2014: Day 2 here.

Riot Fest 2014 The Pizza Underground by Geoff Henao (16 of 16)

My day started off with The Pizza Underground, Macaulay Culkin's The Velvet Underground cover band that replaces choice lyrics with ones about pizza. I admit, I was curious to see what they sounded like, as were many in the crowd that showed up just after 11am to catch their set. Unfortunately, our dedication and time commitment wasn't justified with anything good. The band is, obviously, a one-joke gimmick band, which can be find so long as said band has talent (re: Aquabats). The five-piece is aware of this, however, and if you could take yourself out of the pretentious moment for a second and accept that the band really is nothing more than a joke band singing The Velvet Underground songs about pizza, then maybe a small piece of you could appreciate what they're doing. I was not one of those people, and probably may never be one, but at least it was good to see Culkin have a legitimately good time on stage with his friends. - Geoff Henao

Saosin was at the top of my "must sees" for Saturday so I jetted over to the Rock Stage to catch their set, hoping to get a decent spot. Anthony Green hasn't performed with the band much since he quit back in 2004, and although there are rumors he's back for good, I didn't want to risk it. Luckily I got there right when "Translating The Name" started, the title track off of Saosin's first and only studio album with all original members. Green continuously thanked the crowd for sticking around, confessing that "It's nice that people still give a shit about this music... it's overwhelming, really." After a few classics, the band strutted out their new material and seemed to be really enjoying themselves. Meanwhile, I had trouble really focusing on anything but my burning desire to hear "Seven Years," along with pretty much everyone else there. Unfortunately, when Saosin eventually did get around to playing it, it was pretty disappointing. I understand that crowd participation is a big deal at festivals but do not decide to give up the best part of the song and bow out on the screech-tastic high notes we all know and love. It really just seemed like Green was phoning it in while he watched the crowd mosh and rage in front of him.. All though the lack luster presentation of my jam kind of ruined it for me, I suppose their overall show was a success, but I probably should have taken Green's advice to go see Die Antwood a few songs in. - Brynn Bixby

Riot Fest 2014 RX Bandits by Geoff Henao (2 of 10)

Saturday, in a way, was a ska revival day for me. The first band up to task? RX Bandits. Granted, they're not really a ska band, and they ultimately didn't play any ska songs. However, with their humble beginnings as a ska-punk band (before going the prog-rock route), a small part of my soul hoped and prayed they would play something with an upstroke. I guess the band technically did as they didn't shy away from playing songs from The Resignation despite the lack of the band's horn section. While the absence of horns was noticeable, the songs still hold up on their own, especially my personal RX Bandits song "Decrescendo." It's funny to see a ska-punk band evolve and develop into a prog-rock band, but if ever a band were to do so with a modicum of success, it would be them. - Geoff Henao

I was feeling a little detached from the spirit of Riot Fest early Saturday afternoon due to the fact that I had missed the first day of the festival, was not happy about the ridiculous muddy disaster that was Humbolt Park, and had an almost dead phone so early in the day. All annoyance was forgotten as soon as Matt Pryor took the stage and announced The Get Up Kids would be playing their fan favorite album, Something To Write Home About in its entirety. The large crowd full of die-hard fans (everybody else was at Wu-Tang) screamed along with Pryor as The Get Up Kids plunged into "Holiday," the first of twelve nostalgic tracks off their sophomore album. This set really just reinforced how much I love this band and this record. Every song is packed with sincerity and heart-breakingly emo lyrics that get your stomach in knots at the memory of how alive you felt as an angsty teenager driving around in your car and listening to these songs. Towards the middle-end of the set, Pryor slipped up and went out of order, playing "I'm A Loner Dottie, A Rebel" a song too early. "What can I say, I really wanted to play Dottie," said Pryor after being called out about his mix-up. Most times when a band plays mellower tracks, they lose the attention of the audience, but even when the keyboardist began the soft melodic piano intro of "I'll Catch You," the crowd was right there, singing-along. "Somebody better have just gotten engaged up on that ferris wheel" joked Pryor, "that was the most emo shit ever." The band was having a blast, passing around whiskey and rocketing through their hits like they just put out the record yesterday, exclaiming that "getting old doesn't have to suck." The Get Up Kids finished their set with one of their best tunes, "Don't Hate Me," which may have received the loudest sing-along of all. - Brynn Bixby

Riot Fest 2014 Streetlight Manifesto by Geoff Henao (3 of 10)

My "ska revival" continued immediately after RX Bandits' set with Streetlight Manifesto, one of the most musically-gifted ska bands ever. The band played with a fierce energy that I haven't seen at a show in years. I'll admit, I even skanked (briefly) for the first time in seven years thanks to hearing one of my favorite bands live for the first time in so long. The horns were so tight and powerful in the way a ska-punk band should be, while singer Tomas Kalnoky's machine gun delivery never skipped a beat. One complaint: They didn't play "Point/Counterpoint," arguably the best and most popular song from the band's debut, Everything Goes Numb. Nevertheless, it was great to experience a band that meant so much to me 10 years ago with my friends, both old and new. - Geoff Henao

This was my first time seeing The Flaming Lips live and their performance went above and beyond any of my expectations. With epic lights, people dressed in mushroom and rainbow costumes, and the non-stop energy and whimsical demeanor of front man Wayne Coyne made for an unforgettable performance. I can't over emphasize the insane light set-up for this set, it was truly spectacular and caused the only complete power outage on the Roots Stage just minutes into The Flaming Lips' set. The crowd stayed put while Riot Fest production got the power up and running and the band took another stab at starting "Yoshmi Battles Pink Robots Part 1." Coyne conducted collosal crescendos of sound and full band hits like a madman, instructing the audience to join in on the fun. After a dynamic cover of The Chemical Brothers' "The Golden Path," the band played some of their best originals including the larger than life single "Do You Realize," a tune that surely everyone at Riot Fest could appreciate. Coyne entranced festival goers with every word, preaching love and understanding, while hypnotic rainbow visuals pulsed in the background. The set ended with an explosive cover of "Lucy In The Sky WIth Diamonds," a preview of what is to be expected from The Flaming Lips' upcoming release of "A LIttle Help From My Fwends, a tribute cover album of The Beatles' Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. Either you cover The Beatles spot on and exactly how they performed it, (to the best of your ability) or you re-create the song, producing a new and interesting version. In this case, The Flaming Lips accomplish both approaches, delivering the tune in their own style while staying true to the greatness of the original. I would definitely describe seeing The Flaming Lips live as a religious experience. - Brynn Bixby

Riot Fest 2014 Mighty Mighty Bosstones by Geoff Henao (4 of 6)

"Ska Revival 2014" continued with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, one of the pioneers of the ska-punk subgenre/sound. Personally, I never much cared for the band, but given the fact that the band doesn't tour much, I had to at least check them out. Imagine my surprise when I found the band had a hype man - that's not something you see much these days outside of hip hop, let alone for a ska band. It was also nice to see the entire band clad in the red Mighty Mighty Bosstones suits, as well, adding an extra element to their stage presence. Outside of that, I honestly couldn't say much about their set. - Geoff Henao

Immediately after the Bosstones' set, I made my way to the Radical stage to see one of my new favorite local bands, The Crombies. I absolutely fell in love with the band during last month's Midwest Ska Festival thanks to their stage presence, covers of ska/2-tone standards, and all around amazing sound. Or it could just be because their guitarist resembles Tim Armstrong, both physically and musically. Nevertheless, The Crombies is made up of veterans of the Chicago ska community, and their ability to focus in on what makes ska so fun to listen to is what separates them from other ska bands. - Geoff Henao

It was a long day of mud and rock 'n roll, so when I was notified that The National was running ten minutes late due to traffic, I was not thrilled. However, it was worth enduring the cold and the wait to witness The National conquer Riot Fest with a striking performance Saturday night. Though they were not necessarily everyone's favorite choice for the headlining spot, they brought something different to the lineup, surprising first time listeners with their old hits and new tracks off their latest album, Trouble Will Find Me. Trouble has gotten a ton of buzz and has pushed The National even deeper into the spotlight. After lead singer Matt Berninger was done apologizing for their tardiness, (apparently they got stranded in Canada... blame Canada) the band charged into "Don't Swallow The Cap," which honestly isn't my favorite track off of Trouble due to it's lack of melody in the verses, but the longer they played, the happier I became. "Blood Buzz Ohio," a tune off of The National's fifth studio record, High Violet was played early on and the lovely but bloody visuals on the screen behind the band were the perfect compliment to the tragically beautiful song about debt, loss, and devastation. The band pulled out a few more tricks that night with a fantastic performance of "Fake Empire" with a horn section, and a heated performance of "Mr. November" which lead to Berninger jumping off stage. I intended to leave before the set was over because I couldn't feel my toes, but as soon as a song started, I found myself singing along and never wanting to leave the sound of Berninger's chilling and seductive baritone voice, until it was over and I didn't have a choice. - Brynn Bixby

Riot Fest 2014 Descendents by Geoff Henao (1 of 2)

To end my night, I waited more than an hour after The Crombies' set to catch the Descendents' headlining set. The wait was more than worth it. Frontman Milo Aukerman came out and played up the whole school/teacher thing, introducing the rest of the band (including original bassist Tony Lombardo!) to play their pivotal punk rock debut album, Milo Goes to College. Right off the bat, listening to "Myage" live for the first time was mesmerizing. Honestly, the hour-long wait for the photo pit was worth just hearing Milo screech "She don't need no one" only a few feet away. What I lacked in terms of photos from the band (there was little to no lighting illuminating the band), I made up for with memories. - Geoff Henao


[RH Photos] Riot Fest 2014: Day 1 (9/12/2014)

Photos by Geoff Henao.

After a long year, Riot Fest finally returned to Humboldt Park last Friday, and with it was an unseasonal chill and rain that attempted to damper the good mood that spread across the crowd. The move to the Northern end of the park was necessary for the festival to grow, adding a couple more stages to the festival grounds. Unfortunately, this also meant trampling through muddier grounds that weren't covered by baseball field dirt. Nevertheless, the fatigue and callouses that formed on Riot Fest attendees' feet were more than justified by the amount of talent that performed at the three day event. Here is my recap of Riot Fest 2014: Day 1.

I started Day 1 off by checking out one of my favorite surprise performances from Riot Fest 2013, GWARAs I mentioned in our "Bands to See" list, GWAR added a new vocalist following Dave Brockie/Oderus Urungus' death earlier this year. In his place was a platoon of vocalists, including ex-GWAR bassist Mike Bishop. GWAR has quickly become one of my favorite bands to photograph thanks to their elaborate costumes and stage theatrics that include beheading politicians and pop culture icons (Barack Obama was this weekend's victim) and spraying endless amounts of "blood" on the audience.

Following GWAR's set, I headed out to the Root Stage to catch Stiff Little Fingers' set. With my luck, they opened their set with their most popular song, "Suspect Device," following that up immediately with "Wasted Life." The crowd mostly consisted of older people, which made sense given the band's longevity. However, that's not to say their set was lacking energy; far from it. On a cold September afternoon, Stiff Little Fingers delivered a performance worth braving the mild drizzle for.

Afterwards, I soon made my way out to see NOFX. I'm not the biggest NOFX fan (or of pop-punk, for that matter), but my curiosity and cursory knowledge of the band led me to check them out. The band's singer and bassist (as well as Fat Wreck Chords founder/owner) Fat Mike is known for his sense of humor and open-mindedness. Sure enough, just as the band was preparing to take the stage, he began to berate and insult Failure, the band playing just before them on the stage directly across the field from them. If you're a fan of NOFX, especially Punk in Drublic, their Riot Fest set must have been magical for you. For myself, they were just a band to take photos of. Meh.

Unfortunately, I called it a night just after I shot NOFX due to the impending rain and not wanting to risk being sick for the rest of the festival. You can check out my photos of GWAR, Stiff Little Fingers, and NOFX below. We'll have more from Days 2 and 3 throughout the week!

You can find more of my photos from Riot Fest 2014: Day 1 here.


ShowYouSuck performing live

[Riot Fest] Riot Fest 2014 Video Playlist

With Riot Fest starting in a mere few hours, I thought it'd be fun to compile a video playlist of all of our 20 recommended bands for this year's festival. For the most part, Brynn and I incorporated live videos of each of our selections. I feel that live videos give a way better representation of an artist, especially when you're preparing to see them. The playlist order goes chronologically based on when they hit the stage, so the flow is admittedly not as cohesive and smooth as a playlist normally would be. However, we can all overlook this, right? Anyways, enjoy some amazing footage from some amazing bands below!


Riot Fest Logo

[Riot Fest] 20 Bands to See at Riot Fest Chicago

Riot Fest Logo

The 10th Anniversary of Riot Fest is almost upon us. Can't you feel the excitement across the city? Just like last year, if you consider yourself a part of the hardcore, punk, ska, indie, or emo scenes, chances are there'll be at least a handful of bands you'll be interested in seeing. Also considering the commemorative 10th year and 10 bands are playing their most influential/essential albums IN FULL, this weekend is gonna be absolutely amazing for anybody that ever dreamed of picking up a guitar and learning their way through the same three power chords

Read on as we share our list of 20 bands you absolutely MUST SEE at Riot Fest this weekend in Humboldt Park.


Riot Fest Chicago 2014 Set Times Available

A week before Riot Fest's 10th Anniversary, the weekend's full set times have been released. Much like last year's Riot Fest (read our Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3 recaps!), there aren't many scheduling conflicts on my tentative schedule. I'll go into more detail on my "Top Artists to See at Riot Fest 2014" list next week, but I'm feeling really excited about this year's lineup. It may not carry the same "Wow!" factor that last year's did, but this year does feature some amazing Chicago talent, including my good friends ShowYouSuck and Netherfriends, plus rising Chicago artists Lucki Eck$, The Orwells, The Crombies, and more. You can check out the set times by date and stage below, and if you want something a bit more informative/interactive, you can find the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday set times on the Riot Fest website.

Friday, September 12

Riot Stage
3:00pm - 3:30pm: Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears
4:00pm - 4:45pm Circa Survive
5:15 - 6:00pm Failure
7:00pm - 7:45pm Gogol Bordello
8:45 - 10:00pm Jane's Addiction

Roots Stage
3:30pm - 4:00pm Title Fight
4:45pm - 5:15pm Stiff Little Fingers
6:00pm - 7:00pm NOFX
7:45pm - 8:45pm The Offspring

Rock Stage
4:00pm - 4:40pm All
5:00pm - 5:45pm Senses Fail
7:30pm - 8:15pm Murder City Devils
9:00pm - 10pm Rise Against

Riot Fest Speaks Stage
5:45pm - 7:00pm Pussy Riot panel

Rebel Stage
4:15pm - 5:00pm Gwar
5:30pm - 6:15pm Clutch
7:00pm - 7:45pm Mastodon
8:45pm - 9:45pm Slayer

Rise Stage
3:45pm - 4:15pm Ur Lineup Sux, Bro
5:00pm - 5:30pm Emarosa
6:15pm - 7:00pm We Came as Romans
7:45pm - 8:45pm Of Mice & Men

Rev Stage
3:00pm - 3:30pm Somos
4:00pm - 4:30pm Plague Vendor
5:00pm - 5:30pm Hotelier
6:00pm - 6:30pm From Indian Lakes
7:00pm - 7:30pm Pianos Become the Teeth
8:00pm - 8:30pm Pity Sex

The Radicals
3:30pm - 4:00pm Vamos!
4:30pm - 5:00pm Baby Baby
5:30pm - 6:00pm Wounds
6:30pm - 7:00pm Radkey
7:30pm - 8:00pm Red City Radio

Saturday, September 13

Riot Stage
12:05pm - 12:35pm Pizza Underground
1:05pm - 1:50pm Orwells
2:30pm - 3:15pm Dandy Warhols
4:00pm - 4:45pm Die Antwoord
5:30pm - 6:15pm Paul Weller
7:15pm - 8:00pm Metric
9:00pm - 10:00pm The National

Roots Stage
12:35pm - 1:05pm Wavves
1:55pm - 2:40pm Tokyo Police Club
3:15pm - 4:00pm City & Colour
4:45pm - 5:30pm Afghan Whigs
6:15pm - 7:15pm Wu-Tang Clan
8:00pm - 9:00pm Flaming Lips

Rock Stage
12:00pm - 12:30pm Frank Iero
1:00pm - 1:45pm RX Bandits
2:15pm - 3:00pm Streetlight Manifesto
3:30pm - 4:15pm Saosin with Anthony Green
4:45pm - 5:30pm Say Anything
6:00pm - 6:45pm Dashboard Confessional
7:15pm - 8:15pm The Used
8:45pm - 9:45pm Taking Back Sunday

Rebel Stage
1:10pm - 1:40pm Samiam
2:20pm - 2:50pm Buzzcocks
3:45pm - 4:25pm Face to Face
5:10pm - 5:55pm Me First & the Gimme Gimmes
6:55pm - 7:55pm Cock Sparrer
8:55pm - 9:55pm Samhain

Rise Stage
7:55pm - 8:55pm Descendents
5:55pm - 6:55pm Get Up Kids
4:25pm - 5:10pm Mighty Mighty Bosstones
2:50pm - 3:55pm Television
1:40pm - 2:20pm 7 Seconds
12:25pm - 1:10pm Anti-Flag

Rev Stage
12:00pm - 12:30pm Picturebooks
1:00pm - 1:30pm Rose's Pawn Shop
2:00pm - 2:30pm The Bots
3:00pm - 3:30pm The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die
4:00pm - 4:30pm Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas
5:00pm - 5:30pm Lemuria
6:00pm - 6:30pm Nostalgia
7:00pm - 7:30pm Skaters
8:00pm - 8:30pm Citizen

The Radicals
11:45am - 12:15pm Buffalo Rodeo
12:45pm - 1:15pm Dan Wade
1:45pm - 2:15pm Ex Friends
2:45pm - 3:15pm Broncho
3:45pm - 4:15pm American Scene
4:45pm - 5:15pm Restorations
5:45pm - 6:15pm Crombies
6:45pm - 7:15pm Unlikely Candidates

Sunday, September 14

Riot Stage
1:45pm - 2:15pm Kurt Vile & the Violators
2:55pm - 3:35pm Superchunk
4:30pm - 5:15pm Tegan and Sara
6:00pm - 6:45pm Patti Smith
7:45pm -10:00pm The Cure

Roots Stage
11:45am - 12:30pm Menzingers
1:00pm - 1:45pm Bouncing Souls
2:15pm - 2:55pm Billy Bragg
3:35pm - 4:30pm Naked Raygun
5:15pm - 6:00pm Dropkick Murphys
6:45pm - 7:45pm Social Distortion

Rock Stage
1:15pm - 1:45pm Only Crime
2:15pm - 3:00pm Silverstein
3:30pm - 4:15pm La Dispute
4:45pm - 5:30pm: Mineral
6:00pm - 6:45pm Blue Meanies
7:15pm - 8:15pm New Found Glory
8:45pm - 9:45pm Bring Me the Horizon

Rebel Stage
1:10pm - 1:40pm Front Bottoms
2:10pm - 3:00pm The Hold Steady
3:45pm - 4:25pm Motion City Soundtrack
5:05pm - 5:55pm Hot Snakes
6:40pm - 7:40pm Cheap Trick
8:40pm - 9:55pm Weezer

Rise Stage
12:40pm - 1:10pm Laura Stevenson
1:40pm - 2:10pm Whigs
3:00pm - 3:45pmAndrew W.K.
4:20pm - 5:05pm Lucero
5:55pm - 6:40pm Mudhoney
7:40pm - 8:40pm Primus

Rev Stage
12:00pm - 12:30pm Chumped
1:00pm - 1:30pm Survay Says!
2:00pm - 2:30pm Pup
3:00pm - 3:30pm Tiny Moving Parts
4:00pm - 4:30pm Cerebral Ballzy
5:00pm - 5:30pm Dads
6:00pm - 6:30pm Modern Baseball
7:00pm - 7:30pm I Am the Avalanche

The Radicals
11:30am - 12:00pm Grizzled Mighty
12:30pm -1:00pm Mutts
1:30pm - 2:00pm Team Spirit
2:30pm - 3:00pm Netherfriends
3:30pm - 4:00pm Lucki Ecks
4:30pm - 5:00pm ShowYouSuck
5:30pm - 6:00pm My Gold Mask
6:30pm - 7:00pm In the Valley Below
7:30pm - 8:00pm Archie Powell & the Exports


New Location, Attractions for Riot Fest Chicago 2014

If you couldn't already tell, I'm extremely excited about Riot Fest's 10th anniversary. It's been less than a month since the punk rock-themed festival released their lineups for the year, and now we're supplied with even bigger, more exciting news. Riot Fest will be moving its location from Humboldt Park to... Humboldt Park! The festival will simply migrate to the north end of the park with North Ave. serving as its Northern end, Kedzie to its West, California to its East, and Division to the South. This will make access to the festival much more convenient for commuters as the North Ave. bus will now be accessible right on festival grounds.

Even better, more attractions are being added to the festival this year. In addition to the staple carnival attractions that Riot Fest has been known for, a 9-hole miniature golf course (supplied by our homie Artpentry), a haunted house, Gospel for the Guilty burlesque show, a 20-game arcade supplied by Emporium Arcade Bar (with proceeds going to the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless), and more!

Haunted house and miniature golf tickets are on sale right now over at Ticketfly. Take a closer look at the updated map for Riot Fest Chicago 2014 below. We'll see you next month!

Riot Fest 2014 Grounds