Riot Fest is what used to be a punk-rock festival that traveled around from year to year. Now it just happens in a few different locations every year only returning to Chicago every year. Also, the festival's lineup offers a little more variety getting a few bands that you wouldn't consider punk. But, it's still mostly punk.
I was there last year but I only had a one day ticket for that Saturday. I saw Minus the Bear, Dropkick Murphys, and Rise Against. Basically, it was a really good time. Such a good time that when the lineup for Riot Fest 2013 was announced, I did not hesitate to buy a three day pass at that very moment.
To get my bitching out of the way first, probably the worst part of Riot Fest is that it's in Humboldt Park. Now what most of you probably think is that I don't like Humboldt Park because it's in a shady area. Actually, I can verify that Humboldt Park is definitely a better neighborhood now. You should feel safe walking down the street, even at night. Just don't be an idiot and walk down dark alleys or be unaware of your surroundings. Being with a group is also a good idea.
Now the real bad part of it being in Humboldt Park is that it's difficult to get to. In order to use public transportation to get there, you either need to transfer buses, transfer from the L to a bus, take a bus and then walk the rest of the way, dish out a bunch of cash for a cab, or you could walk the whole way. From Ogilvie Transportation Center to Kedzie and Division (the entrance to Riot Fest) was an hour and twenty-six minutes in order to walk the whole way (according to Google Maps). So, it's really just a pain to get to. Whereas, Lollapalooza, which is in Grant Park, is only about a ten to fifteen minute walk from Ogilvie Transportation Center. Much more convenient for those of us who have to commute from the suburbs to get there.
You can always drive yourself. The issue with driving yourself though is that it's not downtown. There are no parking garages. There's very little parking to find for outsiders. Most lots in the Humboldt Park neighborhood are for residents and require passes. Basically, if you have a car, you'll be taking a while to park it. And when you finally find a spot, make sure that it's not a place where it will get towed.
I wasn't ready to risk getting my car towed or driving around forever to find a spot. I just took the train and a couple of buses.
Anyways, enough of that shit. Once you enter the festival, you have walked through the gates of punk-rock heaven.
Yellowcard:
When we got there, Yellowcard was just starting. I've been wanting to see them for awhile now so I was glad that they were here. They put on a pretty stellar show. It was high energy and the crowd got into it. They got a large circle pit going for a bit, until it just kinda got stuck. Though, my best friend and I found ourselves at the front so that was pretty cool. They played a good amount from Ocean Avenue. They kicked of the show with Breathin', and also included Way Away, Only One, and, of course, ended the show with Ocean Avenue. They also played a couple of songs from Lights and Sounds. However, they did not play the title track Lights and Sounds which was disappointing. They played mostly stuff from their new album which were actually really cool songs. I may explore that album a little more in the near future. I would also like to add that they played Only One in a different key. I can understand that since the key it's in on the album requires Ryan Key to sing really high. It still sounded cool in the different key though so, I approve.
Bad Religion:
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| Bad Religion at Riot Fest Chicago, September 13, 2013 |
GWAR:
I've never been a GWAR fan. I think their music is pretty mediocre metal. However, I knew about their live show so I figured that I really ought to see it. It was pretty fantastic. It's funny, it's bizarre, and if you're close enough, it's gory as hell. Some of the things that they did included jizzing blood out of a dick strapped onto the guitarist's waist, a reenactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ (a very gory one at that), and a buzz saw spraying blood all over the crowd. My tall best friend could see better than me so you would have to ask him for the details but basically, for the crucifixion, they cut Jesus' limbs off starting with cutting off his legs at the waist. It was fucked up. My best friend and I got in the pit towards the end of the show. It was a pretty good pit. There were a lot of guys really aggressively going at it in there. It didn't last long though. For the last song, they sprayed blood from that buzz saw and my best friend and I got covered in the dyed water. It's hard to get the color out as well. I had blood all over my face for the rest of the night.
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts:
Joan Jett put on a solid show. Considering her age, she brought quite a bit of energy. The Blackhearts sound really great live. They sound just about the same as the studio recordings. Also, the guitar player from Against Me! joined The Blackhearts for a song that him and Joan had written together. It wasn't bad. Don't get me wrong, it was a really good show but it is rather overshadowed by the other punk greats that were at the festival this year.
Sublime with Rome:
Sublime with Rome and Joan Jett were playing in basically the same time slot. When Joan Jett ended I did manage to catch the end of Sublime with Rome. They seemed okay. It's also a very laid back show but, then again, from what I know, Sublime does have very laid back music. They sounded good. I can't really say much more beyond that.
Fall Out Boy:
Fall Out Boy was about the most.........shocking.......performance of the night. Not because of Fall Out Boy themselves. Fall Out Boy sounded fine and had a high energy show. If you like their music, I'm sure you would have really enjoyed the concert.
What was shocking about Fall Out Boy was the fan base. Just the sheer volume of people there to see Fall Out Boy was astounding. I was standing in the back by the sound booth and everyone around me was singing all of the words back. Not to mention that a mosh pit opened up back there as well. That was really weird. Also, I got to see a cat fight. That was pretty interesting. This group of girls were trying to leave and they weaved their way past this one girl that completely flipped out. She yelled at the other girl for pushing her (because pushing never happens at a punk festival) and they started having a shoving match until the girl trying to leave grabbed the bitchy girl by the hair and punched her four times in the head. I had a thought of breaking up the whole thing but the bitchy girl deserved what she got. She got put back in her place. We left shortly after that for a few reasons. One, they had to stop the whole concert because people were ending up on the ground in the front. Two, my friends and I didn't really care about seeing Fall Out Boy. We just went home.
Overall, Day 1 was pretty cool. I got to see some great bands and I was especially eagerly awaiting Day 2.
Bad Religion Image:
http://www.altpress.com/images/made/images/uploads/photoblog/2013-APRiotFest/ChicagoOneTwo/AP_RF_reed_Bad_Religion-9_900_600_70_s.jpg
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