Every year there’s a long-running joke that Riot Fest, taking place Friday-Sunday in Douglas Park, should be renamed Nostalgia Fest because of all the reunited and revitalized acts appearing on the three-day festival’s consistently stacked lineups. To a certain extent, it’s true: This is the event where (naming a very select few here) I saw the Replacements reunite in 2013, where last year Naked Raygun played its 1985 album “Throb Throb” in full and the Cure played an epic 27-song set to close out the weekend.
But I think the yearly nostalgia barbs, which I’m guilty of too, miss the point—these lineups aren’t clinging to the past or trying to reclaim a fire that died a long time ago. Instead, it’s easier to think of Riot Fest as legacy building and passing the torch down, or at least informing a new generation. It boasts a wildly diverse crowd, where super-young kids who’ve never heard of Merle Haggard or Babes In Toyland give these older acts a shot, while middle-aged music fans who probably saw many of these veteran acts during their formative years end up taking time to check out the new guard like Meat Wave, Sleep On It or Into It. Over It.
What’s consistently the greatest thing about Riot Fest is that its lineup boasts both the young acts who wouldn’t exist without the work done by these veteran performers along with the veterans themselves. For example, without the pioneering Michigan punk of Iggy Pop and his band the Stooges, it’s tough to see how Detroit’s Death would have formed in 1971. Had it not been for the Replacements’ bassist Tommy Stinson, it’s tough to imagine Philadelphia’s Beach Slang sounding the way it does now. The list goes on.
Because of the history that Riot Fest highlights each year, RedEye has made a timeline of our favorite acts, broken up by the decade and year each made its official debut. Spanning from the ’60s to now, there’s over half a century of music in this list. Amazingly, it still sounds relevant enough to make for one of the best festival lineups in recent memory.
The 1960s
1960
Iggy Pop, 8:55 p.m. Saturday at Rebel stage
The Godfather of Punk, Pop’s solo work (along with his band the Stooges) paved the way for noisemakers to add as much feedback and furiously strummed power chords as possible.
1963
Merle Haggard, 7 p.m. Saturday at Riot stage
If anyone has the reputation to call contemporary country “a bunch of [bleep]” it’s Haggard, who throughout his half-century-plus of a career always bucked the polished sound of Nashville for something edgier and, unsurprisingly, better. A true outlaw.
1969
Bootsy Collins, 6 p.m. Saturday at Rock stage
Collins has played with both James Brown and Parliament Funkadelic—that should be enough for you.
The 1970s
1971
Death, 1:15 p.m. Friday at Rock stage
This wildly influential yet still underappreciated protopunk outfit was the subject of the excellent 2012 documentary “A Band Called Death.” If you haven’t seen the film, this Detroit band is nonetheless required viewing.
1975
Motorhead, 9 p.m. Friday at Rebel stage
Due to the ongoing health issues frontman Lemmy Kilmister faces, this unfortunately may be one of the last times fans will be lucky enough to see this pioneering metal act. Armed with vodka instead of his trademark whiskey, though, Kilmister still plans on melting our faces off.
1979
Tommy Stinson, 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Radicals stage
If you’ve read my writing before, you probably know I mention the Replacements every chance I get.
The 1980s
1984
Ice Cube, 9 p.m. Friday at Roots stage
With the renewed interest in the N.W.A. founding member because of the excellent movie “Straight Outta Compton,” his Friday night headlining set will be legendary—especially with the “special guests” he’s expected to bring out.
L7, 6:40 p.m. Sunday at Rebel stage
This L.A. band is responsible for influencing both your favorite grunge bands and riot grrrl acts. Missed opportunity for an easy joke for not booking this group on the Riot stage.
1987
Babes In Toyland, 3:25 p.m. Saturday at Rebel stage
There’s no way to describe Babes in Toyland (which hails from the great state of Minnesota) other than to say that this band shreds.
De La Soul, 3 p.m. Sunday at Rock stage
With its 1989 debut “3 Feet High and Rising,” De La Soul brought some needed weirdness and playful eccentricity to rap.
The 1990s
1991
Rancid, 7:40 p.m. Saturday at Rise stage
Rancid will lift the punk/ska spirits at Riot Fest by performing its seminal 1995 album “…And Out Come the Wolves” in full.
1997
Against Me! 4:45 p.m. Friday at Rise stage
Against Me! may not be the only good thing to come out of Florida, but it’s the only thing besides Hot Water Music I can think of at the moment.
1999
The Lawrence Arms, 4:55 p.m. Saturday at Rebel stage
I wouldn’t go on record to advise breaking festival rules, but this is a band you may want to sneak in a bottle of Malort for.
The 2000s
2001
Desaparecidos, 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Rock stage
This Conor Oberst-led rock band had one of my favorite albums this year in “Payola.”
2006
The Coathangers, 12:45 p.m. Friday at Riot stage
Kick off your weekend with some indie rock straight out of ATL.
2007
Into It. Over It., 1:15 p.m Friday at Rise stage
What can’t local hero Evan Weiss do? See the Pet Symmetry frontman rock yet another Chicago festival.
2008
Heems, 5:30 p.m. Friday at Radicals stage
With his debut studio album “Eat Pray Thug,” Heems proves that rap can be as fun as it is thought-provoking.
The 2010s
2011
Meat Wave, 3 p.m. Saturday at Revolt stage
The Chicago band with the best band name is also one of the city’s best bands.
2012
Sleep On It, 4 p.m. Saturday at Revolt stage
These local pop punks are the only unsigned band to play both Riot Fest Chicago and Riot Fest Denver.
2013
Beach Slang, 6:30 p.m. Sunday at Radicals stage
This lyrically-minded fuzz-rock band recalls the best early Goo Goo Dolls albums and the best of the Replacements. Hell yeah.
