We have the final day’s gallery of Riot Fest 2025! Dying Scene caught a ton of killer bands…IDLES, Lambrini Girls, Jawbreaker, Bad Religion? An unforgettable headlining performance from Green Day? This might have been the best day yet. Check it out!
British post-punk band IDLES may have had one of the best performances of the day with their insane energy; right out of the gate guitarist Lee Kiernan ricocheted into crowd, sending fans into a frenzy. Jack White made an appearance joining IDLES performing “Never Fight a Man With a Perm” and if that was not enough, Soft Play took the stage as well for “Rottweiler”.
I hyped up Soft Play a lot in the last year; first in my top picks of 2024 for their song “Act Violently” and album Heavy Jelly, and again for their sold out show at Chicago’s Bottom Lounge in April with Babe Haven. No surprise, Soft Play’s Riot Fest performance was also fantastic and insanely fun. The two-piece duo Isaac Holman and Laurie Vincent own the stage wherever they play.
Keeping up with the English punk rock theme, Lambrini Girls hit the ground running with the release of their debut album Who Let the Dogs Out on January 10th, 2025 via City Slang Records. The record received widespread praise and charted at #16 on the UK Albums Chart. The album has themes of calling out misogyny, transphobia, homophobia, and politics with their live shows being no different. Personally, they are also one of my favorite bands and finally seeing them live at Riot Fest was nothing short of magical.
Influential and poetic Jawbreaker played a highly anticipated set at Riot Fest. Their controversial major label debut Dear You was released 30 years ago on September 12th, 1995 (and we are so happy they are back!).
Fans flocked early Sunday for Footballhead as they opened the day. I became a fan of Chicago-based alt rock band after hearing their single “Face to Face” on a local college radio station.
Atlanta pop punk band The Paradox was not previously on my radar but I can say I became a fan after their Riot Fest performance. Outrageously fun, the band quickly rose to stardom after just a short period of time opening for Green Day and playing at Warped Tour.
British math rock Delta Sleep played an intricate and melodic guitar-driven set.
Punk rock staples Bad Religion performed a powerful album play-through of 1988’s Suffer.
Take a look back at our day one and two galleries if you’re feeling nostalgic. Riot Fest may be over but we are already thinking about what magic they are cooking up for next year. What’s your dream lineup? We’re dying to hear about it!