Douglass Park will once again be hosting Riot Fest from September 19-21. The largest independent festival in the US, Riot Fest has been a haven for diverse music, great food, and a unique community that can only be cultivated by lineups including anyone from The Beach Boys to “Weird Al” Yankovic. With a full weekend of festivities ahead, 5 stages, 19 full album plays, and a list of demands from John Stamos, here is your guide to Riot Fest as it celebrates it’s 20-year anniversary.
Friday
RIOT STAGE
Friday is incredible strong from the start of the day, up and coming DIY legends Harrison Gordon will be opening the Riot Stage from 12:30-1:00. Their debut album “The Yuppies Are Winning” made waves in the DIY scene as they embark on a headline tour this fall, including a stop at Gabe’s in Iowa City. Honey Revenge is also fresh on the scene with their debut single “Miss Me” being released in 2021. Inspired by the likes of Paramore, Pierce the Veil, and Hannah Montana, this fun and exciting pop punk duo will be a fun show. They play from 3:00-3:40.
Rico Nasty, one of the few hip hop picks for this year, will be playing the Riot Stage from 4:30-5:10. She began releasing mixtapes over a decade ago in 2014, and has put out 3 full length LP’s, including her 2020 debut “Nightmare Vacation” which reached #1 on the US Heat charts.
Touring partners Alkaline Trio and blink-182 will be tag teaming the top two slots on the Riot Stage while on their “Missionary Impossible Tour”. Alkaline Trio guitarist Matt Skiba took over guitar duties for blink-182 from 2015-2022 during Tom DeLonge’s absence. With no bad blood amongst the groups, Skiba joined blink on stage for their song “Bored to Death”, the first single released form Skiba-era blink-182. Alkaline Trio plays their record “Maybe I’ll Catch Fire” in full form 6:20-7:20 and blink-182 will play from 8:30-10:00.
ROOTS STAGE
Local band La Rosa Noir will play the first half hour on the Roots Stage from 12:00-12:30 on Friday. Riot Fest takes on 3 local artists each year, it’s an important tradition that makes Riot Fest, Riot Fest. The Barbarians of California will take the stage next, as a side project of Aaron Bruno who is the lead singer of Awolnation. This hardcore outfit from California will play from 1:05-1:35.
The Roots Stage will be headlined by one of the hottest bands in hardcore, Knocked Loose. Known for their heavy riffs, pig squeals, and wall of death, Knocked Loose has become a must see and main stage regular at festivals around the globe. With a Grammy nomination and an appearance “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” this year, Knocked Loose is on the precipice of superstardom. They will be playing from 7:25-8:25.
REBEL STAGE
Big Ass Truck I.E. will rip into their loud and brash set from 12:50-1:20 on the Rebel Stage. The I.E. was added to their name after a lawsuit by another band that goes by the same name. I.E. stands for “Inland Empire” due to their origin from the inland part of California in San Bernadino.
The Rebel Stage will live up to its name as two Irish punk bands will be playing the final slots of the night. From 7:00-8:00, Stiff Little Fingers will play, followed by The Pogues first show in Chicago since 2011 from 8:30-10:00. Formed in the shadow of The Troubles from the North of Ireland, Stiff Little Fingers doesn’t shy away from attacking the tyrannical and authoritarian in their music. Irish Punk legends The Pogues will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of their record “Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash” by playing it in full to close out the night.
“WEIRD AL” YANKOVICS WEIRD WORLD STAGE
Riot Fest prides themselves on its off the wall picks, and Friday will be no exception. In a very similar fashion to NOFX hosting a stage all weekend last year, the one and only “Weird Al” Yankovic will be hosting the “Weird World Stage” on Friday. Comedian Emo Phillips will MC the stage for the 5 handpicked bands by Weird Al. Making the journey all the way from Japan, Shonen Knife will be opening the stage which will also host Mac Sabbath (a Black Sabbath and metal tribute band dressed up as McDonald’s Mascots), along with Puddles Pity Party (a clown who sings sad songs). The iconic pop pioneers and composers of the bizarre Adam Driver musical “Annette,” Sparks will also be playing the stage leading into Weird Al’s headline set. A wild stage with, frankly, an insanely cool collection of bands awaits you at the Weird World Stage.
RADICAL STAGE
Playing next to the Weird World Stage, the Radical Stage will house some great bands throughout the day. Stage headliner Rilo Kiley makes their triumphant return, as Jenny Lewis of The Postal Service and her solo work leads this band in their first tour in 17 years. They will be playing from 5:55-6:55.
Saturday
RIOT STAGE
If you wanted to plant yourself at the Riot Stage all day, you’d be in for a treat. New indie rock outfit Wishy will start the day, followed by LA hardcore band Militaire Gun, and then into the electric punk group Superchunk. English 80’s band James make their Chicago return after their most recent coheadlining tour was brought to The Riveria Theatre with Johnny Marr of The Smith’s.
We wouldn’t have Riot Stage’s headliner if it wasn’t for its #2 band. America’s finest band, The Beach Boys, will make their Riot Fest debut. Taking up the drums for The Beach Boys will be long time Riot Fest avoider John Stamos. With a full-size butter statue made in his honor last year, and a list of demands for this year, he will finally attend with the band. They will play from 6:20-7:20.
Weezer will be ringing their “Voyage To The Blue Planet” tour to Riot Fest this year as an extension of their 30 year anniversary of the self titled debut album that brought them so much fame. With the Blue Album being played in full, a visit to “The Pinkerton Asteroid Belt”, and a trip trough a collection of their hits, Weezer will play from 8:30-10:00.
ROOTS STAGE
Girl In A Coma make their return to Chicago for the first time since 2008 from 1:10-1:40. Later, The Front Bottoms will play their 2015 record “Back On Top” in full from 5:15-6:15. They’ll play an aftershow as well on this anniversary tour that is being opened up by Chicago favorite and Gabe’s alum Sincere Engineer. The incomparable Jack White will be headlining the Roots Stage from 7:25-8:25. He returns to Chicago for his 5th show in the past 12 months after performing at Reggie’s and The Metro in October of last year and 2 nights at The Salt Shed in April.
REBEL STAGE
Traveling from “the deepest reaches of outer space”, GWAR makes their seemingly annual visit to Douglass Park. With countless prosthetics and gallons of fake bodily fluid, GWAR is not for the faint of heart, but a spectacle, nonetheless.
Heavy on the classic punk, the Rebel Stage will have aftershow mates Marky Ramone and the Buzzcocks playing back to back from 5:30-6:30 and 7:00-8:00 respectably. With the absence of Frank Carter and The Sex Pistols headlining this stage due to a broken hand for guitarist Steve Jones, punk legends The Damned will take over that duty from 8:30-9:30.
RISE STAGE
Some of the most electric young bands will be taking on the Rise Stage including Cliffdiver, Free Throw, and Citizen. Now Free Throw and Citizen have both been around for well over a decade (which is nothing compared to some other bands on the lineup), but emo darlings Cliffdiver released their second LP “birdwatching” just last year. They are an electric live band and seeing them get on a major festival bill is amazing to see.
Chicago favorites Knuckle Puck will play their breakout record “Copacetic” in full for the second time this year in Chicago. First came back in January to a sold-out Salt Shed, now second will be playing from 5:20-6:20 on the Rise Stage. After “Copacetic” finishes up, All Time Low will take the stage from 7:30-8:30. They will also be making an appearance in Iowa later this fall on October 29th at Vibrant Music Hall.
RADICAL STAGE
Helmet will make their Chicago return after having to cancel their most previous tour, playing their album “Betty” front to back from 2:50-3:50, with The Bouncing Souls following suite playing their 2001 record “How I Spent My Summer Vacation” from 4:30-5:15.
With a heavy Irish presence at the 20th edition of Riot Fest, the Radical Stage will feature Dropkick Murphy’s as their stage’s headliner. With a combination of traditional Irish music with a few shots of classic punk Ken Casey and company will run through their hits and their new album “For The People” that includes a tribute to former Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan.
Sunday
RIOT STAGE
Hosting 3 album plays, the Riot Stage will be busy from start to finish on Sunday. The Effegies will play “For Ever Grounded”, Zero Boys will play “Vicious Cycle”, and Screeching Weasel run through “My Brain Hurts” all before the clock hits 5:00. IDLES will be make a stop as their busy year continues with opening dates for Deftones and My Chemical Romance. From 6:05-7:05, IDLES’ rise to stardom continues at a blistering pace.
Former touring mates, The Linda Lindas and Green Day will come back together for the first time since Green Day’s North American leg of “The Saviors Tour” wrapped up last year. Green Day will be playing the longest set of the festival, closing it out from 8:15-10:00. They are only the second band to ever play unopposed at Riot Fest, first being done by The Cure in 2023.
ROOTS STAGE
One of the punk world’s newest bands, The Paradox, will open up the Roots Stage. They were accompanied on stage by blink-182’s Travis Barker at Warped Tour earlier this summer as they begin a busy stretch opening up for All Time Low on their fall tour. The Paradox bring the tally of Green Day opener’s playing Sunday at Riot Fest to 2 as they took the stage at Truist Park in Atlanta last summer.
Ska legends Dance Hall Crashers began their comeback tour this past year and will make a stop at Riot Fest from 3:25-4:05. Brothers John Haggerty (Naked Raygun) and Joe Haggerty (The Effegies) will be bringing their band Pegboy to play their record “Strong Reaction” in full as well as Bad Religion playing through the entirety of “Suffer” as the sun begins to set on Riot Fest 2025. Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz started Epitaph Records in 1981 and have gone on to put out records for countless bands at Riot Fest including Weezer, The Linda Lindas, and Alkaline Trio.
Jawbreaker will play the final slot on the Roots Stage from 7:10-8:10 marking 8 years since Riot Fest brough them back from the dead to headline 2017. Chicago has always been good to Jawbreaker as they embark on their “The Chill of Fall Tour”.
REBEL STAGE
Boasting a busy day with 9 bands playing the stage, there is a lot to see at the Rebel Stage. There is everything from Chase Petra (who recently came through Iowa playing with Origami Angel and Saturdays @ Your Place) to Hanson famous for their song “MMMBop” all on the same stage. Later in the day, Fueled By Ramen legends Gym Class Heroes and Cobra Starship will take the stage. Cobra Starship are on their comeback tour, after a decade of no live shows, they began their resurgence at When We Were Young festival last year.
RISE STAGE
Chicago legends Smoking Popes will be playing their record “Born to Quit” from 1:40-2:25 in full. Not long after, new scene favorites, Lambrini Girls will take the stage from 3:05-3:35. The busy day continues with Microwave’s make up set from a rained out 2023, The Wonder Years, and Ireland’s Inhaler closing the stage out for the festival.
RADICAL STAGE
A personal favorite of mine, indie rockers Weakened Friends will take to the stage bright and early at 12:00 to start the final day of the festival. Track Zero veterans, DEHD, will make their Riot fest debut from 4:50-5:30 with their fun and danceable tunes. Riot fest got a lot of reunions for their 20th anniversary, and with only 77 U.S. shows in their 30-year history, Texas Is The Reason returns with their brief but impactful discography to headline the Radical Stage from 6:25-7:10.
AFTERSHOWS
If a full day in the sun isn’t for you, you have schedule conflicts during the day, or you don’t want the fun to end at 10:00, Riot Fest also puts on a collection of aftershows throughout Chicago’s collection of independent venues. Starting on Wednesday and running through the weekend, there are bands playing the fest like Delta Sleep, in addition to Naked Raygun coming out of the woodwork to headline The Metro for the first time since 2013. Almost half of them are sold out, you can find the list of shows here.
Riot Fest, even while sharing a headliner with Coachella, still holds DIY values at heart. From uplifting local artists, to hosting camps in Douglass Park during festival offseason, there is a distinct feeling only found at Riot Fest. You can find the full daily schedule below and design your own here. 3-Day GA passes are sold out, but 1-day and 2-day tickets can still be found here.
