Riot Fest
Riot Fest is the beer-fueled wonderland that rocks Douglas Park to the ground every September with rock, punk, alternative rock and hip-hop sounds. Indeed, it’s whatever you want it to be: A jam-packed three-day festival ode to your pop-punk high-school self, a long-awaited reunion of a favorite band that hasn’t played together in years, a road trip to create memories or to take that perfect Instagram shot. Celebrating their fifteenth birthday in 2019, the homegrown festival manages to pull off a show for all every time. Complete with tons of local beer and food trucks, a Ferris wheel and a traveling circus sideshow, it’s an end-of-the-summer celebration to kiss festival season goodbye that will leave you dirty, sweaty and exhausted. (Vasia Rigou)
Best of Chicago 2018