What a Riot!

     This past weekend, we saw one more signpost that summer is almost over, the annual return of Riot Fest to its Humboldt Park abode. Celebrating its 10th edition this year, the fest has grown from a few bands playing in a scattering of area clubs to more than 160,000 fans cramming into the outdoor venues. Many different acts graced the stages, ranging from Dashboard Confessional, The National, Wu-Tang Clan, to acts like Patti Smith, but one of the most highly anticipated bands came directly in the face of international infamy.


     I am specifically referring to the Russian femme-punk group Pussy Riot, fresh out of a 20-month stint in a Russian jail for daring to criticize the Putin Regime(you mean there's an act out there that got sent up the river for a good reason rather than dealing drugs/other shit like that? Yes Virginia, I guess there is a Santa Claus after all). The panel featured several other punk names, from such acts as Black Flag, Bad Religion, and Rise Against. On the final day of the festival, Patti Smith took the stage to perform a moving set as she paid homage to her late husband, while at the same time extolling the youth of today to not lose their edge: "We do have the power!...Don't forget it!...People, you can change the f*****g world!"


     Of course, having 160,000 people roaming around a wet field all weekend isn't going to be very good for the field.  In fact, so bad that the field was a wet, muddy mess afterwards.  There was scheduled to be a walk through today to see how bad the damage is, but last year's cleanup cost $54,000.  With this year's increased attendance, costs could only go up.  So we'll see how that goes.  Otherwise, Riot Fest proved to be yet another successful festival in the city's crowded music calendar.