Riot Fest | Photos & Recap: Punk Rock, Dirty Boots & Lots of Black Clothing

In true Chicago fashion, we had a week filled with sunshine and mild weather, only to ramp up to a music festival weekend filled with rain and dropped temperatures. Granted we are inching our way into officially being in Fall, and any day the skies will open up on and bestow upon us another snowmageddon. For now, attendees at Riot Fest: Chicago had better packed their parkas and worn their work boots, because the scene at Douglass Park was not a pretty one. So many ruined Vans and Chuck Taylors it could make a style writer cringe.

The unique and really amazing piece about Riot Fest is the night doesn’t just close down with one big, huge band. Instead you get to watch clinger bands back to back to back. And that’s after a day of navigating through puddles and filth (but we did it smiling, mostly) of watching the artists that took us back to our college days – like Every Time I DieAtreyu and Coheed and Cambria. These guys are still big now, no doubt, but we remember the debut album releases that got it all started. 

Eagles of Death Metal also proved you shouldn’t put them on the dusty shelf just yet. With their first album in 7 years coming out next month, the guys convinced us that we should be counting the days until we can pick up the new record. 

Last but obviously not least, a pretty well known guy named Ice Cube took to the Roots Stage. Rumor has it that all the original remaining members of NWA are going to tour with another pretty well known guy, Eminem. While we didn’t get any deep insights into the word on the street, we did get an amazing show. 

All Photos: Derek Georgevich

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