Riot Fest 2016—it's a wrap! And a few additional notes from me...

Some guy totally ruined my excellent selfie!

Riot Fest was a blast this year. There were the usual naysayers who griped and grumbled about some things, but my personal experience was great. Here are a few quick notes about things we didn't get to address in our coverage on Chicagoist.

Morrissey
People complained about his 30 minute pre-show video (some blaming Riot Fest itself for "stalling" under the misconception Morrissey was being difficult about appearing) when this is something he shows BEFORE EVERY SINGLE SHOW HE PLAYS. There were also complaints about vendors not being allowed to sell meat during his set, which I admit was a bit of a stretch but also his prerogative given his highly principled stand against eating meat. I mean, theoretically he could have tried to ask for what he usually does and ban all meat sales, period.

And finally people were upset he didn't play a hits-heavy set, but I walked away satisfied, especially given his powerful performance of the rather prescient 2006 song "Ganglord." I thought his set was, in general, pretty punk rock.*

The layout
Riot Fest finally hit on near perfection with the layout of stages, food and vendors. The grounds were extremely easy to navigate and aside from particularly packed sets on the Rock Stage where the crowds reached back into gently rolling hills, I didn't encounter anything even remotely resembling a bottleneck. This includes exiting through the main gates at the end of each day. Kudos.

The bars
I didn't drink this year (more on that later) but I LOVED the fact that instead of generic beer tents, the bars were sponsored by Liar's Club, Cobra Lounge, Double Door, Motoblot and Reggie's—all local establishments with deep and vibrant roots into the local music scene. And they served beer in cans instead of out of kegs, which seemed to make the drinkers I ran into pretty happy.

Free water
O.K., this is the one area that could use work. Maybe next year they'll figure out how to add more water stations?

The crowd for Andrew W.K.just before everything went completely bonkers.

Happy discoveries
I had just about zero downtime this year because even when I wasn't covering a set I was supposed to catch for the Chicagoist reviews, I tended to stumble across pleasant surprises all weekend long. This included an intimate set by a band that shows future promise, The Walters; Violent Soho, an act that sounds like old school '90s aggressive fuzz pop Chicago and made me appreciate their latest album in a different light; the over-the-top reductive silliness of All Time Low, which I found kind of endearing in an odd way; The Vandals, duh; the crazy fun of Chevy Metal, which hadn't even been on my radar; the absolute power and insane crowd of The Wonder Years; and my way-to-late-to-the-party new appreciation for Motion City Soundtrack. And that's on top of what I had planned to cover and was responsible for.

The Misfits
It was packed and the sound varied depending on where you were, but I walked away happy and heard just about every single song by that band I could possibly want to see live. After too many years of either seeing The Misfits or Glenn Danzig at Riot Fest it was a true joy to see the band get back together. And if you were one of the casual fans who left early because you didn't get it, you fucked up.

The neighborhood
So far the only report of violence in the "bad" neighborhood Riot Fest's new home of Douglas Park I've seen involved a Riot Fest attendee on Riot Fest attendee attack. I even took a walk through the other side of the park—which is truly gorgeous—and enjoyed some quiet time by its lagoon (pond?) and lush greenery. Sure, Humboldt park was closer to where I live, but this location seems to offer Riot Fest great logistics, lovely surroundings and a supportive local community all too happy to set up numerous food stands and bring some more cash into the neighborhood, from what I could see. (And from what I can tell, there are quite a few Humboldt Park businesses none too happy with their Alderman for driving Riot Fest away...)

It's impossible for me to look at this photo and not laugh.

DIY
Riot Fest is still run by a small team. When you see how huge it's become—and believe me you don't know a fraction of what goes into it since attendees are completely oblivious to the small city hidden behind those screened fences surrounding the concert grounds—it's even more impressive that it's still a privately held affair. Even the handful of sponsors were aligned with the fest's philosophies and pretty much completely unobtrusive. No stages with corporate names to b seen here!

Sobriety and gratitude
This was my first Riot Fest where I didn't drink a drop of booze. And I still really enjoyed myself. I was graciously given a pass with lots of access but all I partook in was the free water and coffee. There was free food as well, but I spent my money on the local vendors on the festival grounds instead. I reckoned it was the very least I cold do when gifted with great access while others paid a pretty penny for their tickets. In fact this was the first year I was sober for all the major music festivals and it just made me appreciate even more just how lucky I am to attend these events and take in so many great bands. I've been writing about music for 27 years now, and I never take anything for granted just because I've been doing this for so long. Every concert is still an event for me (no matter how much I might grumble at times about being tired or sore or exhausted) an I hope it will always stay that way.

Thanks again, Riot Fest. I'm already looking forward to next year.

Check out our coverage on Chicagoist:

• Riot Fest 2016, Friday
• Riot Fest 2016, Saturday
• Riot Fest 2016, Sunday
• Riot Fest 2016, Fest fashion

*I'm still bummed some people misinterpreted our Morrissey-related headline on Saturday and didn't actually read our piece since I think they missed the nuance that hed was trying to convey, something that actually taking in Stephen's thoughtful review of Morrissey's set would have immediately countered and clarified. Stop just reading headlines and pretending you get all the content of an article out of them, people!

My dogs are barking.

Day one of Riot Fest is over and my feet are broken. Seriously. I'm hobbling around like an old man! The forecast called for rain so I wore my boots, which are on their last legs (oof, no pun intended) instead of something sensible. And then it didn't rain.

Oh, how were the bands? Good enough to make me forget about the agony my lower extremities were in until I returned home!

Riot Fest is coming! Riot Fest is ALMOST HERE!

Riot Fest kicks off tomorrow!

Check out my preview to help you plan your weekend if you are going (or watching the livestream)!

"How does he skate in those jeans?"

This has been making the rounds again, so I'm sharing it for those who might have missed it. It could've easily been titled When Grunge Ruled The World™ if it weren't for the fact this clip was shot about four years after the death of "grunge."

Tele Novella's "Heavy Baloon."

Tele Novella's new album is a nice like slice of catchy, old school indie rock, and "Heavy Balloon" is my favorite trackoff it. So I'm pleased to see they chose it for their first video!

If you live in Chicago they play Redline Tap on September 30.

Cheerleader is my new band crush and they might just be yours as well.

I hit up three shows in three days over this weekend, and they were all good.* But the biggest surprise was Cheerleader's opening set at last night's Caveman show at Schubas.** Prior to a couple hours earlier that Sunday I had never heard of Philadelphia's Cheerleader. I walked out of the venue a fan and haven't been able to stop streaming their debut full-length, The Sunshine Of Your Youth,  today.

Cheerleader describes themselves as an "Indie Haze-Pop Quintet from Philadelphia" but that kind of undercuts their actual sound, since their songs are filled with bouncy hooks and a rhythm section that demands you dance, not gaze dreamily into the distance. And there's just something so solidly optimistic about their sound—something that doesn't feel like it happens all that often any more without the results being stifling. The Sunshine Of Your Youth is wide open and welcoming. So give into it.

If you only have time for a song or two, jump to "A Million Ways" or "Perfect Vision," and then just try not to listen to all the other songs. You'll be hooked.



*For the record: Friday was Matthew Sweet and Material Reissue at Park West and Saturday was Band Of Skulls—who were far better than I had expected and may now be my favorite frontrunner of all the heavy blues based bands, even outstripping The Black Keys at this point.

**Caveman was also really good, even pulling out a cover of The Stone Roses' "I Wanna Be Adored" for their encore, but to my ears the night really belonged to Cheerleader.

Wicked "Warszawa" cover!

Donny McCaslin's jazz combo backed David Bowie on his final album  a.k.a. Blackstar, and the band just released a mid-period Bowie cover of Warszawa. They take the song's gently swelling synth basis and blow it into another dimension of tension through the band's instrumentation and inventive arrangement.

Dig it.

What does ACD stand for?

Figure 1, keeping me grounded

I'm glad you asked. It stands for "Associate Creative Director," which coincidentally is my new job title. That's right kids, little Tankboy got a promotion! That means I'm the day-to-day creative lead on a whole bunch of accounts and I can't tell you how excited I am to tackle this new-ish role (like any promotion, I've already been handling most if not all of the tasks the role demands on my current accounts—it's how you get promoted, silly!).

This is really exciting news, and I am eternally beholden to all of my awesome co-workers—nay, teammates—who I have worked along side over the past few years. I can't wait to take this next step of my closerlook journey with such an amazing group of people.

Of course, the only person not impressed by this news? Pickle the Kitten (see Figure 1, above). She helps keep me humble.

Let's celebrate with a song! This one has no lyrical connection or meaning, I just have always found it super sonically bubbly and catchy and it does kind of mirror my current mood sound-wise.

This is not a parody. In fact this TV show ran for FIVE seasons!!!

Notice that the only person sexualized in these opening credits is Lorenzo Lama. Presumably because Lorenzo didn't want anyone else to seem sexier than him.

Please be careful watching this since there is a chance your jaw will break as it plummets to the floor.

This needs to be a stand-alone sitcom in the Marvel Universe.

I love that Marvel has a sense of humor, but I love even more that Chris Hemsworth pulls this off while still remaining convincingly in character.

Bonus points for the extra Avenger cameo.
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Takin' today off....

...because I don't feel like laboring on Labor Day. I've actually been up and busy since 6 a.m. so it's not like I'm completely work free today, but I think I can skip a post that requires too much effort. Oh holy heck, just typing this counts as effort, right? Auuuugh! Looks like I labored on this post on Labor Day—albeit just a bit—after all!

Day before the holiday weekend.

The office is nearly empty.

I think I'm the only left who actually has any work to do.

And we are all counting down the seconds until the clock strikes three and we are free, free, FREE for the looooong holiday weekend!

Decreasing poundage.

I'm down almost 20 pounds over the last three months. And I expect I'll drop anther 10 to 15 in the next three. The first half of this weight decrease was probably driven by unhealthy habits, the next half will be driven by building positive habits. I'm looking forward to getting in even better shape the right way!

Cartwheels and such!

Up until today it had been a bit of a week. Well, weeks. I haven't been feeling well and a bunch of behind-the-scenes stuff has kept me incredibly occupied. I can't go into all the details here, but today was a nigh perfect day. Early workout, lunch by a rooftop pool, extremely good news, and optimism infecting my future all came together to craft one of the best days I've had all year.

Oh! And the latest Bloom County book I pre-ordered months ago showed up, and I completely forgot that it included an actual autograph from Berkeley Breathed on the frontispiece!

Color me a pretty happy, if somewhat exhausted, boy right now.

Creepy crawly.

I'm not really familiar with K. Flay but I got sent a copy of her new EP, and while it's O.K. (not really knocking me out on every level) the lead off track "Blood In The Cut" is quite nice. It's a sultry little burner that crawls along like a menacing wolf creeping through the dark underbrush barely illuminated by a moon half hidden behind a bank of menacing clouds.

Big, big day.

I know I don't usually post inscrutable stuff here, so for once indulge me and let me write this for myself. Big steps are being made starting today that will have far reaching impact and a deeply positive effect.

Maybe sometime I'll spill the beans. Maybe I never will.

You'll just have to wait and find out!

Oh yeah, I also got two new tattoos yesterday. They ended up a little bigger than I think I envisioned, and I'm still getting used to them. But they mean something to me—that even extends beyond the obvious Bowie nod—that reaches deep into my family and will serve as a mile marker for future actions.

At least that's the thinking.

Yesterday marked my 4700th post here.

Photo by Epic Fireworks

That a lot of posts! I mean, maybe not to folks who are required to kick out 5-8 posts (or more) a day for their job. But for a little website I quietly started in May of 2002 and has only ever written on a labor of love (and sometimes anguish) I'd say it's a reasonably impressive milestone.

So a sparkling cider toast to this little site—I mean, it is still underage so we'll hold off on the champagne for for now—and to you as well, no matter how long you've been visiting here.

Today was a good day.

Excellent presentation at work. Excellent fried chicken for lunch. Excellent progress in my James Bond movie watching. Excellent.

Rachael has a new song.

Photo by Laura Crosta

You should listen to it. Also I managed to get my hands on the new album and it is amazing. I can't wait to write about it closer to its release date.

New routine.

Lately I've been spending a lot of time on my porch. I get home from work, make some dinner and listen to podcasts. And after the sun goes down I break out the iHome and listen to some tunes to catch up on all the music I get sent. And if I'm not doing that I've started to mainline the entire James Bond series from start to finish.

I know, this sounds boring but it's not.