Riot Fest 2015 Predictions

Despite it being mid-April, the Riot Fest lineup still hasn't been announced.  I did a little searching online for some rumors or predictions but the lists that I found seem pretty unlikely or unreasonable.



Prediction 1:  http://www.timeout.com/chicago/blog/riot-fest-2015-headliner-and-lineup-predictions

This blog post above takes some guesses as to what the Riot Fest headliners might look like this year.  I think that almost all of them are incredibly unlikely despite what the writer says the probabilities are.  Though, I think that Faith No More and System of a Down are decent guesses and would be embraced by the recent incorporation of big name metal and metal-influenced bands to the festival.  As far as Modest Mouse goes, I think that 90% is a pretty big stretch

In fact, it seems to me that Lollapalooza really missed an opportunity to improve their lineup this year.  Other than Paul McCartney and Metallica, the lineup is rather ordinary.



Prediction 2:  http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/riot-fest-bike-cops-roach-beach-ganser-luggage/Content?oid=17242885

This next prediction seems a little more reasonable with its guesses.  I could definitely see Blur playing at Riot Fest following their upcoming album release at the end of the month.  However, I kind of doubt that Kendrick Lamar would play Riot Fest due to his popularity.  However, somewhat big name hip hop groups have made appearances in the past like Public Enemy and Wu-Tang Clan, so I wouldn't rule him out.  This writer also predicts a Modest Mouse appearance at the festival which I don't see very likely as there aren't very many bands that fall into the general alternative category that end up on the bill.



My Predictions:

I don't claim to be a know-all fortune teller or even an expert on current music culture or gossip.  But, from what I know, here's some predictions I'm going to try and make about the lineup.


Alkaline Trio

I actually think it's incredibly likely that Alkaline Trio will play Riot Fest this year.  Not only have the Chicagoland area natives not played the fest since 2012, they have no Chicago dates announced yet this year.  An Alkaline Trio appearance at Riot Fest would be a great way to secure more ticket sales as well.


Bad Brains

There's no tour announced but Bad Brains is just about the only well-known 80s hardcore band to not make an appearance at Riot Fest since it moved to Humboldt park.  Bad Brains were originally on the bill in 2013 but there was a last minute change, too bad.  I wouldn't say that Bad Brains are an incredibly likely appearance but they wouldn't be surprising either.


Green Day

Punk revival is well represented at Riot Fest from year-to-year with The Offspring, NOFX, Rancid, and Pennywise all making at least one appearance.  It's about time that Green Day did too.


Sum 41

Sum 41 is a bit of a long shot but if they do go on tour this year, I wouldn't rule them out as a Riot Fest candidate, especially considering they haven't played the fest before.  They used to play the Q101 Jamboree so, why not Riot Fest?


David Bowie

Another long shot but it wouldn't be surprising seeing David Bowie at Riot Fest since we've also gotten acts like The Cure and Elvis Costello at the fest.  Bowie is currently on a European tour, no US dates yet.


Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse's current tour schedule ends July 26th without a Chicago date.  Obviously, another announcement should be made soon with more tour dates.  If they make the bill at Riot Fest, they will be the token indie/alternative band like Tegan and Sara, Metric, and The National had been in the past (though 2012 had quite a few of these acts like Minus the Bear, Imagine Dragons, Awolnation, The Gaslight Anthem, and Neon Trees).


Blur

Whenever Blur decides to come to NA after finishing their current European tour, I could see them fitting right in at Riot Fest despite not being a punk band.


System of a Down

With an unscheduled block between June 20th and September 24th and very few US tour dates, there's a lot of opportunity for System of a Down to make an appearance at Riot Fest.  Considering that Riot Fest has gotten some big name metal bands in recent memory such as Slayer, Danzig, and Mastodon, I would actually be a little surprised not to see System of a Down announced this year.



There's also some Riot Fest regulars that wouldn't be surprising at all to see on the lineup such as Bad Religion, The Lawrence Arms, Andrew W.K., GWAR, or Flatfoot 56 but really, I guess we'll see.



Rumor that lacks credibility:  http://jamesunitedsports.com/2015/02/02/leaked-riot-fest-2015-lineup/

Considering that this is all the way back from the beginning of February, there's no source, and the guy writing it has no inherent credibility, I wouldn't put much faith in this rumor.  However, if this lineup ends up being true, well...not bad.

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