RIOT FEST CHICAGO DAY 2
Rio Fest Official Website: https://riotfest.org/chicago/lineup/#/
Homicide rate aside, Chicago is great in the summer, the only major city where people stay in town all weekend to partake in the egalitarian fairs and fests that pop up in virtually everywhere. Herewith are my notes on Riot Fest, which is sort of our poor man’s Lollapalooza:
Logistics were surprisingly near-perfect—despite three bands playing almost continuously across six stages in a comparatively small park, sound was excellent, with no bleed-over; distances were manageable and (critically) beer affordable. I saw exactly zero mayhem or bad vibes.
On a perfect sunny day, we arrive around 3pm just as GWAR is finishing splashing blood on the mosh pit. We hang around to catch a crowd-pleasing set by old-school ska-sters The Selector, who can still kick it some 40 years later (Pauline Black seems to have reversed the aging process and looks great). On to hear Turnover, who play a sort of pastoral emo-pop with ringing guitars and a good singer. I didn’t find their tunes to be especially memorable, but their numerous 20-something fans disagreed and shouted along to every word, which drove me away to catch the end of a blazing set by Grandson, who mix rap, techno and hard industrial metal ala Ministry. I always feel sorry when bands like this have to play in the sunlight—that black leather looks hot—but these guys had their audience in a beer-soaked frenzy and sounded heavy.
Caught a few songs by The Story So Far, who impressed with their big-sounding, hooky melodic hardcore, then moved to see a full set by the Struts, a Ziggy/Queen-fixated quartet with a fantastic flash guitarist and a flamboyant tranny frontman, who worked the stage like a young Mick Jagger, albeit in flowing red silk pajamas. They are reputedly incredible live and were in fact pretty great—tight, theatrical and mega-talented; their songs are a bit undercooked melodically but they are nothing if not eye-catching.
Roaming a bit, I heard a few songs by Pvris, whose femme-fronted electropop was polished, tasteful and dull. Much better were Senses Fail, who sounded powerful if a bit generic (why does all emo sound the same?), then on to Anthrax who, simply stated, gargled my nads with their pandering faux-metal and Spinal-Tap histrionics.
I quickly fled to catch Manchester Orchestra, who play an-effects laden amalgam of post-rock and neo-psychedelia, with treated guitars, a big orchestral sound and a frontman who sounds a great deal like Thom Yorke or Jim James . Sonically and visually, this was the best set of the day, dynamic, complex and hypnotic; placing the hyperactive lighting guy front and center was a cool touch.
The much-touted Rise Against were a let-down, their pop-punk sounding rather too “adult” and lacking real drive; I moved on to Wu Tang Clan. Not my genre, but they were having a great time and their audience was happy, so God bless ‘em. I left before Slayer, a decision I’ll probably rue on my deathbed.
Good show.
