The weather for this year’s Riot Fest forced a bit of that discovery. The early-fall festival usually calls for rain but on occasion holds out. Not true this year. While Friday proceeded without interruption, Saturday and Sunday suffered from the rain showers. The festival even cautiously condensed the festival on Saturday to avoid the storms, which resulted in sets being shortened and some bands being cut outright. The adjustment even cut Tool and Morrissey’s headlining sets significantly. On Sunday, overnight showers pushed doors back a few hours, but really only affected bands earlier in the day.

Despite the conditions there were some intensely great sets at this year’s Riot Fest, which I will recap in detail below. Beyond and between rock and punk Riot Fest served up exciting sets from legacy artists, present luminaries, and probable legends. Here are the highlights from each day that made the rain and mud worth trudging through.

Day 1 Friday September 18

Day one of Riot Fest had a wide variety of bands making it hard to nail down who exactly day was for. Headliners of the night were Twenty One Pilots, who exist in a genre-less zone between hip-hop and rock, so that could have something to do with the day’s lack of focus. From the jump there was a difficult-to-choose split of bands between Fleshwater, Soul Glo, and Greet Death, who are certainly bands to watch in the alternative space. Chicago-locals Alkaline Trio and Rise Against, were early evening rock attractions. Legacy punks got the short end of the stick though at the day’s end, with Sex Pistols and Iggy Pop relegated to secondary stages during the night’s headliner.

Soul Glo

Hailing from Philadelphia, Soul-Glo blend hardcore and rap in a singular way. The high words per-minute delivery of vocalist Pierce Jordan is reminiscent of Bad Brain’s H.R. The often frantic fast-punk of the band may leave you in shambles if you are not braced properly. The set included new songs from their upcoming album, Na I’m Gon Grab Allat, coming out on Epitaph early-2027. Where Soul Glo really connected was with their familiar “Gold Chain Punk” and “If I Speak”.

Motion City Soundtrack

Another Epitaph band on my list was Motion City Soundtrack who’s Commit This To Memory is a record I continually return to more than 20 years on. Vocalist Justun Pierre and company delivered a high energy performance with plenty of nostalgic hits, focusing on the band’s first four albums. The largest pops came from expected places. MCS has a way of making bangers out of the most self-destructive (“LG.Fuad”) and nervous thoughts (“The Future Freaks Me Out”). The set also consisted of new material from their 2025 album The Same Old Wasted Wonderful World, their first album in a decade, and those songs fit right in with the old favorites.

The All-American Rejects

Speaking of old favorites, my day one favourite came from The All-American Rejects. With a primetime spot in the lineup, performing right at sunset. The All-American Rejects commanded one of the most energetic sets of the whole weekend. In recent years the “Dirty Little Secret”- band has been making waves in the underground, mounting DIY tours and espousing the virtues of being independent. AAR’s bootstrapping efforts paid off and a headliner sized crowd
made their way to their stage. Frontman Tyson Ritter was giving somewhere between 110% and 150% energy, bopping around the stage barefoot. Closing with 2008-hit “Gives You Hell” The All-American Rejects closed their set on top, exiting stage-right to continue their resurrection.

This is Lorelei at Riot Fest 2026 photo by Rachel Zyzda

Day 2 – Saturday, September 19th

The second day of Riot fest started on time with not nearly as much rain as was forecasted. Headliners for the night were Tool and Morrissey. The running joke was that Morrissey’s appearance was just about as reliable as the weather. Rain trickled throughout the start of the day but the ground remained solid. Only a few pockets of mud emerged and was mostly taken care of with woodchips dispersed in the problem areas.

Around 3PM festival organizers condensed the schedule to end early in a cautious attempt to avoid any mishaps with the weather. This news flowed through the festival grounds more like gossip than an actual update from the fest. I overheard many false reports of “Morrissey backing out” or “Bright Eyes not playing,” but with the updated schedule things cleared up. Eventually notices were displayed on video screens across the grounds. Many were shortened and moved up in the day. To the chagrin of Johnny Rotten, who expressed disappointment from the stage, Public Image Ltd.’s set was cut in half. Other acts changed stages to accommodate the adjustment. Notably, the new schedule meant that Chat Pile, Nas, Bright Eyes, and Bad Religion would all conflict with Tool.

Show Me The Body

Modern Hardcore has been getting slow recognition at Riot Fest these last few years. Each year a few more bands seem to crop up across the fest. Early on Saturday Bangkok, Thailand’s own Whispers opened the fest, but I sadly missed them. Holding it down for New York City was Show Me The Body. Just off their excellent Alone Together album, Show Me The Body took the stage with their banjo-led crossover hardcore. Frontman Julian Pratt is a menacing presence making the barricade feel like something protecting the crowd more than the band. The ground was soggy but solid for the mosh pit which remained in motion through the set. Sometimes new material bogs down a set, but Alone Together tracks were the highlights for Show Me The Body.

PUP

Canada’s own PUP from Toronto, Ontario performed their beloved The Dream is Over, celebrating it’s 10 year anniversary. PUP played slightly earlier due to the festival adjustment, but they did not miss a beat in their set. The opening duo of “If This Tour Doesn’t Kill You, I Will” and “DVP” shut out the festival context and made this a PUP show. I had forgotten how much this album connected with me when it first came out. Since its release the band has grown a lot and the sizable crowd showed that. Singer Stefan Babcock remarked on the album closer “Pine Point” that they don’t typically play it because it’s such a sad song. While it was downer, PUP gave “Pine Point” a magical performance that stuck with me.

PUP at Riot Fest 2026 photo by Anthony Lin Nguyen

Chat Pile

One of the biggest conflicts as a result of the schedule adjustment for yours truly was Chat Pile conflicting with Tool. When I interviewed guitarist Luther Manhole we even discussed that Tool was one of the bands they were hoping to see. So it goes, I guess. I couldn’t miss seeing Chat Pile, no matter how much I crave to open my third eye. Chat Pile took the stage fresh off the release of Who Loves The Sun, their excellent third entry into their dystopian catalog. The set was heavy with the new album but split the time with old favorites. Since the band doesn’t pre- plan their setlist, there’s never a guarantee for what they will play night to night. Lucky for me they closed with an early EP gem, “Dallas Beltway,” a personal favorite. Despite the scheduling shuffle Chat Pile crushed and also got to say something they probably never thought they would ever get to say, “Bright Eyes is up next.”

Day 3 – Sunday, September 20th

Overnight rain showers ahead of day three of the festival pushed the gates back a few hours. Again, certain set times had unplanned overlap but the bands that I planned to see had little to no overlap. The main headliners for the night were Pierce the Veil and Alanis Morissette. Out of all the days this was the most indie/alternative day with sets from The Format, This is Lorelei, and The Beths. There was emo bent to the day with Ben Quad, Saturdays At Your Place, and Algernon Cadwallader.

With plenty to choose from, the primary obstacle of the festival on Sunday was the transforming landscape. What was lush green grass on Friday was quickly becoming sloppy mud. With thousands of attendees treading the same main pathways and a near constant drizzle the solid ground could not hold. Each step through the fest became a balancing act. From what I saw, festival attendees were quick to help prevent others from falling or assist those that had. Other chaotic festival goers relished in the opportunity to cover themselves, embracing the inevitable. Those that were able to manage the conditions and find their place in the muck were treated to a great day of music

Haywire

At the start of day three I betrayed my emo heart in favor of hardcore. Arm’s Length and Algernon Cadwallader started around the same time, while a difficult split in themselves, Haywire is a can’t miss whenever they are in town. Similar to The All-American Rejects, Haywire have been grinding on their own behalf and the results speak for themselves. Haywire was recently signed to Roadrunner, home of Turnstile and Slipknot, and their ceiling has yet to be defined. The question is, how big can a band get off of sheer will power? Haywire is determined to answer that. To start their set they tossed out Riot Fest branded cassette tapes, presumably with their new record. The crowd knew the deal when Haywire kicked off. Out of all the pits of the weekend Haywire’s was the most active. Frontman Austin Sparkman’s infectious energy was the fuel on the fire. The Riot Fest crowd did their homework on the Conditioned For Demolition tracks which was released 2 short years ago. Shoutalongs with “Like A Train” and the eponymous “Haywire” made them sound like classics. Haywire’s new batch of tracks on I Don’t Wanna Say Goodbye, coming October 2nd, hopes to make the same impact.

Chat Pile at Riot Fest 2026 photo by Z Vazquez

The Format

I’ve written about a couple of successful comebacks in this article already, and I am going to round it out with a third. The Format released Boycott Heaven earlier this year and it transformed my entire perception of Nate Ruess, formerly of Fun. and his own solo work. Ruess’ voice is so singular to me. His time charting hit after hit with Fun. cemented my image of him as “the other Fun. guy.” Watching Ruess’ return to the project never had a hint that he needed to overcome his time in the limelight. While introducing “Shot In The Dark” from the new album, Ruess said that the song was about how mad his mom was at him for The Format breaking up. 20 years later I would say that Nate’s mom was justified in her anger.

Alanis Morissette

Besides Tool, the only other headliner I was remotely anticipating was Alanis. By the time Alanis was set to hit the stage, the festival grounds were a complete mud pit. The mud was ankle height and festival goers needed to take considered steps or brace onto friends or strangers to navigate safely. If there wasn’t something worth seeing people would cut their losses and head for the gates. Still, 15 minutes ahead of Morissette’s set there was a sizable crowd fit for a headliner. The Riot Fest crowd knew that the wait would be worth it.

With a career as long and impactful as Morissette’s it’s hard to bet against her. With a clutch of bonafide hits with “Ironic” and “You Outta Know” which have transcended generations, even a casual music fan can connect to her show. The stage displays would flash shots of teen girls singing along to Morisette’s songs. The band was tight and Morisette’s voice was unbridled. As she sang Morissette would flail and whip her hair around but she would never miss a note. Even the lesser known songs were enthralling with Morissette’s magnetism, making her 11 songs feel like 20.

A personal highlight for me was “Thank U” which she used to close her show. The song is all about gratitude. As my own Riot Fest was wrapping up I could not help but also feel a sense of gratitude. Thankful for my friends that all descend into this festival year after year. Thankful for a chance to write about my favorite bands and the opportunity to discover new ones in the city I love. Simply thankful for the power of music.

At that moment, while the Douglass Park mud seeped into my boots, and my legs were aching from standing for the last three days, the only thing I could think of was how lucky I was to be doing it at all.

Alanis Morissette photo at Riot Fest 2026 photo by Rachel Zyzda

Words by Blake Correll

Check out more info on Riot Fest HERE