-
“Don’t Worry, Darling” is as enjoyably creative as it is messy
Everyone’s a sucker for a twist on the romanticism of the 1950s housewife and psychological thrillers. What could go wrong when the two are mixed, a la Stepford Wives?
The opening of the film does an effective job at appealing to the fantasy of an easy, routine life: husband goes to work, wife tends the house and goes shopping, takes care of the husband when he comes home and then commences amazing sex and cocktail parties. The honeymoon comes to an end when strange things start to happen, and fellow housewife Margaret (Kiki Lane) seems to have gone insane.
The best thing about this film is that it looks nice. Florence Pugh as Alice Chambers is perfection, as her performance is stunning across the board. Her reactions show genuine curiosity, dread and eventually horror as she realizes what her life has come to. Combined with amazing costumes, production design and cinematography, the whole setup is a real treat for the eyes. Some trippy sequences such as the famous “wall squish” scene and the empty eggs are effective at communicating to the character as well as the audience that something is off.While the visuals are stunning, it’s hard to tell if some of the issues are glitches in the program or some kind of malicious test performed by the leader Frank, played by Chris Pine. He does an effective job as the smarmy villain, but the writing does little to reveal the reasoning behind his motivations. Did he mess with Margaret the way he is implied to be messing with Alice, or was it all unintentional? It’s hard to tell if that matters to the writer, let alone the characters. This is a consistent issue, as some lines of dialogue and character decisions seem to favor getting to the next plot point as opposed to achieving dynamic worldbuilding or storytelling.
It’s a stark shock to see Harry Styles as a greasy, grungy incel as opposed to the sleek and debonair character we see him as throughout the film. He succeeds at giving the character surprising depth as you realize he did what he did to spend more time with her and give her a break, while grossly not realizing that its ultimately at her expense not her benefit. Its an overall selfish move as he effectively and by force strips her not only of her autonomy but her sense of reality and security. His attempt at killing Alice at the end of the film is extremely out of left field and seems to only have been added to enable inclusion of a quasi-exciting chase scene as a climax.
Don’t Worry Darling isn’t a masterpiece by any means, but it’s not a complete and total train wreck. It introduced some interesting themes and concepts, but unfortunately some just fall flat. Why is it only men that die in real life when they die they in simulation? Was Frank’s wife a victim or an accomplice?An interesting combination of Alice in Wonderland, The Truman Show, and Stepford Wives, Don’t Worry Darling asks a lot of questions without really bothering to answer most of them. However, for a try hard film that looks smarter than it actually, is the viewing was plenty enjoyable.
Don’t Worry Darling is currently playing in theaters. -
Op-Ed: When We Were Young Fest 2023 announcement, too early?
If you even follow the emo and alternative music scene in the slightest you have probably heard of When We Were Young Fest. This is a music festival that is taking place for the first time this year and has both the favorite acts from the early 2000’s and popular acts from the current scene.
The festival announced on October 11 it will be returning in 2023 and announced who is slated to perform. The line up is stacked, with Green Day and Blink-182 scheduled to headline. It is scheduled for October 21, 2023 at the Las Vegas Fairgrounds, the same place as this year.
Only one date has been announced and tickets are already sold out, but the festival announcement came before this year’s festival even occurred.
This has many people like myself concerned and feeling a bit unsure about the announcement. Ever since this year’s festival was announced, concerns about how the festival will run, customer service and just overall lack of information has even worried those not attending.
Scheduling over 50 acts for one day, the time frame, lack of information about stages and more left people feeling the festival will be a disaster. While more dates were announced, every act is performing on one day, essentially making three separate one-day festivals. This left many concerned about how long each act will perform, factoring in longer sets for headliners, time to change equipment, staggering acts and more. No information was provided before the festival was announced. No one has been able to get straight answers and the socials and the website for the festival do not provide much clarity.
On October 6, the map for the festival was provided and set times were posted on October 17, which will hopefully aid in concerns. However, with still many questions and concerns, announcing a second year for a new festival still feels risky. It is locking in people to attend a festival a year from now, without seeing how the first year goes.
The announcement most likely was related to Blink-182 announcing their comeback with Tom DeLonge on the same day. It is definitely a strategic marketing move done well, driving people to check out the festival with Blink-182 being one of the headliners. Mix that with Green Day and acts like Waterparks, 5 Seconds of Summer and Pierce the Veil with their return music, people were bound to buy tickets. And those who missed out on this year’s tickets are definitely going to get tickets for next year.
However, there is still little to no information, except what we know for this year’s festival. So once again, people are buying tickets blindly, with no knowledge of how the festival works or if anything went wrong and needs to be fixed after the first year. It is not like Riot Fest or Lollapalooza that have some years under their belt and people know what to expect. It is a brand new festival where kinks are about to happen.
In my opinion, they should have waited until after at least the October 22 and 23 dates of the festival to give people an idea of how the festival runs. In a perfect world, they should have waited until every date was over. Let the 2022 festival be the focus of the attention then turn attention to 2023. Let people get all their 2022 questions answers and information they need, then allow an influx of questions and information for the second year. Especially announcing it just under two weeks before the first date, people have questions they need answers and all they are seeing is their website and social media feeds full of 2023 news. Meanwhile, 2022 is happening soon and they still feel in the dark.
While I think the announcement was not a smart move, I think it definitely drove people to talk about the festival and drove people to the site and to want to get tickets. It was a marketing and PR move well done. The excitement around the festival was high with the dates for this year being so close, so adding in dates for another year definitely increased the excitement and made people want to buy tickets over a year in advance.
Only time will tell if this announcement was a smart move or will backfire. How smooth the 2022 festival goes will reveal a lot.
Will people regret buying tickets ahead of time or will it make people mad they did not get tickets already?
-
(G)-IDLE welcome you to their glamorous and sensual “Nxde” show
A “wild, wicked and wonderful show” is promised in (G)-IDLE’s latest comeback teaser.
The first frame of the video shows a curvaceous, rubber hose-style pin-up girl introducing the (G)-IDLE girls as “loves, ladies and lusty legends” before cutting to Soyeon. Dressed as a flapper, the group’s leader sits at a piano and sings the thesis of the upcoming title track “Nxde.”
“Why you think that ’bout nude?” Soyeon asked. “‘Cause your view’s so rude. Think outside the box, then you’ll like it.”
As she sings, a kaleidoscope of the rest of the group dressed as flappers plays before cutting to a wide shot of the theater and going to black.
While the girls aren’t likely to actually bare it all like the opening card promised, fans are certainly in for a treat with this comeback.
(G)-IDLE’s fifth mini-album I Love will be available to stream on October 17, and physical copies will become available to purchase on October 18. Three versions of the album – Born, Act and X-File – is currently available for pre-order.
Watch the full teaser below!
-
Le Sserafim cannot be broken in first comeback teaser
Do you think Le Sserafim are fragile?
On October 14, K-pop rookies Le Sserafim put out the first teaser for their upcoming comeback ANTIFRAGILE. The teaser shows a large meteor heading straight for Earth as people are panicking and attempting to flee the impending disaster.
Meanwhile, the girls of Le Sserafim are showing no fear. Kazhua is stretching on a rooftop and Yunjin appears to be tuning a guitar, while Sakura seems to be nonchalantly shopping for clothes. The most interesting displays of nonchalance come from leader Chaewon and maknae Eunchae. The former skips merrily in the opposite direction of the fleeing public while the latter stands still and smiles at the sky.
The teaser ends with a shot of the meteor from outer space and a small taste of the title track, which seems to have tropical production and Le Sserafim’s trademark confidence displayed in their debut.
This came four days after the release of the album’s official highlight medley, which features snippets of the five tracks of the album.
ANTIFRAGILE by Le Sserafim will be available to stream and purchase on October 17, but is currently available for pre-order. Watch the full teaser below!
-
Rina Sawayama recovers and rediscovers herself with Hold the Girl
Not since Lady Gaga released Born This Way have I been this excited for an artist or album, and Rina Sawayama doesn’t disappoint on her sophomore release Hold the Girl.
From the first measures of “Minor Feelings,” I had a feeling this album was going to hit me hard. So much of it is an apology to her younger self, whether directly on songs like “Phantom” and the title track or indirectly on tracks like “To Be Alive” and “Holy (Til You Let Me Go).” The latter is an especially sharp knife to anyone who has been “shut out of religious communities for being queer,” as Sawayama said to Apple Music. The concept of being “holy til you let me go” is a blunt and biting critique on how often the church is forgiving and gracious only to those they accept while shunning all others.
Religious trauma is the most apparent connective tissue to these songs. You’re hard-pressed to find a song that doesn’t reference church, forgiveness and similar themes. It’s not the only trauma Sawayama unpacks, however. “Minor Feelings” examines how racist microaggressions can build up and be majorly debilitating. If any of that is something you have personal experience with, “buckle up, at dawn we’re riding.”
The immediate standout track is the first single “This Hell.” Between a Paris Hilton-esque “that’s hot” before the second chorus and a “let’s go girls” that grabs Shania Twain by the hair, it’s a full-on Y2K pastiche with a dash of disco. However, the song isn’t just a party serving wine and early 2000’s cheese. In fact, “This Hell” is a powerful rallying cry to queer kids spurned by the faith they were raised with. Sawayama not only decries billboards and bigots who insist on damning those who disagree, but also parasitic paparazzi when she practically snarls, “fuck what they did to Britney/to Lady Di and Whitney.” A pride anthem for a new generation, this song struts all the way from a white wedding to the honky-tonk reception.
Much of this album is rooted in country music, with Kacey Musgraves and Dolly Parton being cited directly as inspirations. Both “This Hell” and “Phantom” have wailing guitar solos that communicate the tone of their songs, whether defiantly euphoric or heart-achingly sincere,=. “Catch Me in the Air,” the second single off Hold the Girl, wouldn’t be out of place on Musgraves’s 2018 album Golden Hour. Lightweight and boundlessly confident, it’s a lively track and a welcome respite from heavier songs to come. The most overt country-influenced track on the album is “Send My Love to John,” an acoustic guitar ballad with haunting vocals that sound nearly siren-esque.
“Your Age” is a song for anyone whose favorite track on the self-titled was “STFU!” The production is reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails with elements of Linkin Park, sonically less chaotic and harsh but no less angry. It feels like it ends a little too soon for my liking, but still a fantastic track for fans of her heavier tracks. “Imagining” draws on these while twisting them up with dance music and the aforementioned Nashville influence into a genre-fuck that’s manic, lost and confused in only the best ways. “Hurricanes” is a fascinating track that feels like Sawayama and her creative team found a way to split the difference between Bon Jovi and Jimmy Eat World, equal parts “Livin on a Prayer” and “Bleed American.”
A hidden gem of Hold the Girl is “Frankenstein.” At its core, it’s the sound of a woman who has exhausted herself with recovery, a sentiment anyone who’s faced their own trauma head-on can relate to. Personally, I like to describe therapy as self-surgery without anesthesia. It comes through, painfully but perfectly, in this desperate plea for someone, whether a lover or a therapist, to put the pieces of her back together in any way they can.
Honestly, the entire album feels like a confused genre-fuck in a way that is not only sonically engaging, but thematically appropriate. Recovery, regardless of what you’re recovering from, isn’t a linear process. There will be moments of deep pain and missteps, but also moments of triumph and growth. It’s okay if you need to cry more than you need to dance, or vice versa. Ending the album with “To Be Alive” is an absolutely brilliant decision for exactly that reason: no matter your journey, the ideal end result will be coming out the other side knowing “what it feels like to be alive.”
Beyond that, it’s brilliantly performed and incredibly well-produced. Sawayama’s vocals are indescribable, harnessing every emotion she needed and unleashing them all with unparalleled passion and fury. There is no point where she falters, even on the songs where she rips herself open and bleeds all over the lyrics. The other standout performance comes from guitarist Vixen Jamieson, who absolutely kills it. No matter what he was paid, it wasn’t enough. Neither was the person who decided the key change on “Hold the Girl” would go up instead of down.
Overall, Hold the Girl is an outstanding album free of skips or even the slightest misstep. Regardless of your trauma, or lack thereof, it is easily one of the best albums you’ll hear this year.
Hold The Girl by Rina Sawayama was released on September 16 and is currently available to stream and purchase.
-
Do Revenge brings the 90’s teen movie back and better than ever
Not since Mean Girls has a teen revenge flick been so engaging, quotable and utterly addictive.
Jennifer Kaytin Robinson’s Netflix film, released September 16, follows high school queenpin Drea Torres at the height of her success and popularity. After she’s dethroned via a leaked sex tape, she teams up with scorned transfer student Eleanor Levetan so they can exact revenge on each other’s tormenters. Since nobody at the esteemed Rosehill Academy knows they know each other, nobody will suspect them of performing cruel (and occasionally felonious) acts on their classmates.
Playing our endlessly narcissistic revenge mommy Drea is Camila Mendes of Riverdale fame. Her performance is simply delicious, a queen bee completely oblivious to her own venomous stinger but hyper-focused on those who sting her. Maya Hawke (Stranger Things) completes the other half of the vengeful duo as Eleanor. Hawke’s Hollywood heritage is evident in the way she plays Eleanor, effortlessly cool like mother Uma Thurman with the cultivated grit of father Ethan Hawke, but talent isn’t hereditary. Hawke cultivated that all on her own and she leaves it all on the screen, cavorting effortlessly between a meek pawn in Drea’s scheme and a conniving bitch in her own right. Mendes and Hawke play off each other like Janis Ian befriended Courtney Shane: an utterly toxic duo you can’t help but root for.
This is supported by Austin Abrams (Dash and Lily), who plays Rosehill’s golden boy Max Broussard. His performance as the textbook Nice Guy, totally respectful of women and certainly not someone who would ever stoop so low as sending revenge porn to protect his own fragile ego. Abrams somehow balances being a boy everyone in school wants to be with and a sniveling weasel with a believable ease that comes with the character’s level of power and privilege. Sarah Michelle Gellar is hilarious and scathing as the Headmaster, not unlike Allison Janney’s character in Ten Things I Hate About You.
Hawke’s character isn’t the only disciple of the 90’s teen movie, as Robinson and costume designer Alana Morshead have beyond exhibited. Pre-makeover Eleanor is somewhere between Tai from Clueless and Cady Heron from Mean Girls, but comes out of the montage as a Fern Mayo Bratz doll. The school uniforms are very Cher Horotwitz, fitting as her surname graces name of one of the school buildings, and the tone can be best compared to Heathers (1988). While Do Revenge doesn’t capture how high school works, it certainly captures how high school feels through terrific camp and occasionally painfully-honest black comedy.
It’s the subtle, nuanced storytelling that construct the strengths of this film. The 4-D chess of this film’s drama is honest and brilliant, with a genuinely tasty third act twist that left me in genuine awe at how well-crafted it all was. From Drea and Austin’s performative public activism to the more tactical rumor campaign Drea’s ex-clique conducts to save face after a massive scandal, it’s a sharply written microcosm of modern interpersonal politics and how noble causes can be weaponized for personal gain.
Rounding out the film is its soundtrack. It contains the perfect mix of old school grunge, including “Celebrity Skin” by Hole and “Flagpole Sitta” by Harvey Danger, and Gen Z anthems like “Brutal” by Olivia Rodrigo and “She’s All I Wanna Be” by Tate McRae. It ties the film and its influences together quite seamlessly, somehow making a film that is undoubtedly timely but inevitably classic.
Do Revenge takes the best ingredients from the most iconic teen films and puts them in a blender for the perfect revenge smoothie. Like a Bitchasaurus Rex, Do Revenge is deliciously twisted in a way I didn’t know existed anymore.
-
Palaye Royale leave it all on stage at the Fever Dream World Tour
Nothing will stop Palaye Royale from putting on the best show they can every night.
On September 29, Palaye Royale took the stage at Kemba Live in Columbus, OH in support of their upcoming album Fever Dream due for release on October 28. While they had to overcome one obstacle after another this tour, they were not going to let their fans, the Soldiers of the Royal Court, down.
In return, the Soldiers were going to give all the love support back to the band that they love.
Walking into the venue, you can feel the love, energy and support from the crowd. Looking around you can see fans talking as they wait in the long line for merchandise. From shirts to their own makeup palettes,, a graphic novel, bags, jewelry and more, this band has no shortage of items to choose from. Narrowing down what you want is always a difficult challenge for these fans. The pit is beginning to fill as everyone scopes out their perfect spot for the concert. Those who managed to snag a spot at the barricade held their spot, wanting to be as close as they could to the band they love. As COVID caused many cancellations and rescheduling of tours of their 2020 album The Bastards, finally seeing Palaye Royale at a headline show will be a moment to remember.
carolesdaughter To get the crowd going, Starbenders, carolesdaughter and MOD SUN opened the night. Each act had their own unique sound and performance. As each went on, you could feel excitement growing, people were getting antsy and ready for Palaye to take the stage and were getting into concert mode. The pit was still quite small for Starbenders, but those who were there were rocking out. The group was high energy, had a great sound and got the night started out on the right note. carolesdaughter interacted with crowd and had people singing along with a variety of songs, giving those who were unfamiliar a taste of their sound and maybe even gaining new fans.
MOD SUN MOD SUN definitely had the most recognition of the openers. Members of the crowd even had his merch on. So, from the moment he started with KARMA, it was energy. He used the whole stage, the crowd was singing along at the top of their lungs, clapping and swaying their hands. He opened up about the story behind his song “Battle Scars”, allowing for the audience to connect with him and the song.
Now, it was time for the main part of the night: Palaye Royale. The stage was set with their iconic light up name and flowers filled the front of the stage. As the lights went out, the crowd started chanting “Sebastian,” the lead guitarist, and got louder and louder as the band began to fill the stage. When the first note of the opener, “Nightmares”, everyone went crazy. Phones were out moment the show began, snapping pictures and taking videos, while others just took in the moment. Everyone sang along at the top of their lungs and just let loose.
The moment we all were waiting for Lead singer Remington Leith came out and moved around the entire stage. He rocked a black suit jacket (taking off later in the show to the crowd’s delight) and matching pants. He was jumping, dancing, moving from one stage to the other, giving emotion and life to the songs. Not one inch of the stage was not covered by him. He even hopped into the area between the stage and the crowd, crawled along the floor, hopped onto the barricade and leaned into the crowd and sang into the embrace of those lucky fans. At one point, he got guitarist Andrew Martin up on his shoulders. Never standing still, singing with emotion and power, you could feel every story told.
Touring guitarist Andrew Martin The band performed songs from across all their albums, including songs off of their upcoming album. Classics like “Mr. Doctor Man” and “You’ll Be Fine”, fan favorite “Dying in a Hot Tub” and of course the title track for the new album “Fever Dream”. That song is a musical masterpiece. He has so many levels and details that were brought to life while hearing it live. Every song went just as hard as the one before it. The setlist pleased everyone from old fans to new fans, including songs the fans loved for years and new favorites. It represented the band and how much they have grown over the years.
While they had tweeted that Leith had strep throat and the band had IV drips given to them at the hotel the day prior, Leith wearing a blue bandage on his arm as evidence, you would have not known. They gave their all. Sebastian Danzig rocked the guitar and looked fantastic in one of his classic suits, Emerson Barrett killed the drums and Leith’s vocals were killer. They demonstrated how much they cared for their fans and love what they do.
They closed the night with “Lonely” from The Bastards. If you are familiar with Leith, he likes to climb things, hang off lights, balconies and more. During the encore he ran to the upper level of the venue, climbed over the railing and sang part of the song from there: a classic Remington Leith moment.
Leith gets up close and personal with his loyal Soldiers The band hinted at how hard this tour has been from illness, to their tour manager quitting and the tour buses breaking down. However, they expressed how that was not going to stop them from putting on the best show that they can. The crowd was also going to give their all right back to the band that means the world to them. Looking at them, you can see the effect their music has on their fans. The Fever Dream World Tour did not disappoint.
Palaye Royale left it all on stage. The Soldiers of the Royal Council brought the energy needed to the band they adore and let go, surely ready to be exhausted and to have no voice the next day. The songs were brought to life, every instrument, every note, every lyric was full of energy and love of their craft.
Drummer Emerson Barrett Tickets for upcoming Palaye Royale tour dates can be found on their website. Fever Dream will be available on all streaming platforms on October 28. You can preorder and presave now.
-
Meet Me @ the Altar clap back with new single, music video
In their first single since their 2021 release Model Citizen, breakout pop punk trio Meet Me @ the Altar offer a cathartic response to online hate.
The band’s latest single “Say It (to My Face)” have had it with online haters. Frontwoman Edith Victoria smacks down commenters who accuse the band of being industry plants and insulting her specifically before mocking them for their fixation on her.
“It’s so obvious you really want my attention/Hope you’re having fun,” Victoria sings in the pre-chorus.
Her attitude really comes through in the second verse, where she says she very nearly didn’t even finish the song she’s singing because that’s how much she cares (“you’re so irrelevant, almost didn’t commit/almost didn’t write you a second verse”).
In an interview with Kerrang, the band say the song isn’t just a diss track, but a call for empathy.
“When our fans listen to this song and encounter bullies in their day-to-day life, we want them to remember that those people are only cruel because they’re hurting!” they said. “Part of growing up is figuring out how to not internalize anyone else’s bad vibes and just loving yourself instead.”
That’s not to say the band doesn’t get their revenge. In the music video, they track down the one person commenting negatively on their content and trash his mother’s basement where he dwells. While petty and not exactly the ‘shake it off’ attitude the band wants to promote, who hasn’t had a fantasy like this in their youth?
While the song isn’t as lyrically strong as previous releases, the instrumentation is high energy as usual and Victoria delivers the song with her signature passion and sass. Here’s hoping there’s more where this came from.
What did you think of the song? Let us know!
-
Riot Fest Retrospective: Rage On!
This may have been one of the best Riot Fests in recent memory (fight me). Let’s break it down day by day.
FRIDAY:
Many Riot Fest attendees used Friday as a spectacular opportunity to camp out the Riot Stage, including these authors: even with arriving around two o’clock to grab drinks, scope out the new punk super group L.S. Dunes and finally take their place behind the barricade to join the crowd, they didn’t miss out on a damn thing.
Riot Stage’s first standout was Australian minx Aviva, who kept rapt attention whether she was shaking her hips or using her microphone chord to mime a noose. Her stage presence evoked a black widow spider or a venomous asp, seductive with dark unknowable motives. Yet, there were times she seemed blissfully unaware of the crowd, lost in her own smoky world. *Adorable as she is threatening, Aviva is definitely a star to watch out for on all the music magazine covers.* Standout tracks “Dead2me” and “Grrrls” should be added to every goth night playlist, immediately.
“Played those little games, only got yourself to blame…” When British rock band Placebo had to pull out of Riot Fest, El Paso rockers Sparta quickly stepped in; but, don’t call them a filler band. Mainstays in the scene since 2001, Sparta stepped in to provide Rioters with some goddamn great punk rock, plain and simple. Songs like “Glasshouse Tarot” and “Miracle” kept fans entertained and engaged between frontman Jim Ward stumping for Beto O’Rourke, who is currently running for Governor of Texas against Greg Abbott. With a new self-titled album coming this October, there’s plenty of time to continue their crusade while putting out great music.
“Static screams deaf the masses, but what do they have to say?” Taking Back Sunday was incredible, as usual. Frontman Adam Lazzara addressed the crowd with the fervor of a Southern Baptist preacher *(even going as far to suggest that God parted the clouds to see His favorite band live)* between iconic tracks “You’re So Last Summer” and “MakeDamnSure,” among others. It’s difficult to find words to describe a band this consistently great, especially with Lazzara being as happy to be there as the fans. Whether it’s just pure nostalgia or the band’s electric onstage chemistry and passionate performance, Taking Back Sunday was a can’t-miss band this year and in years prior.
“And all I need to know is that I’m something you’ll be missing…” With over 90 bands on the roster, one reigned supreme. A sea of emos, elder and otherwise, baked beneath the Chicago sky from the moment the festival doors opened. Only the breeze and the promise of their favorite band kept them cool and (mostly) conscious: My Chemical Romance. This legendary quartet almost seemed mythical as the day drew closer and closer to their performance but the crowd exploded the moment members began stepping onstage, before they even kicked into their newest track “The Foundations of Decay.” The setlist included classics like “Teenagers” and “I’m Not Okay (I Promise),” as well as deep cuts “Boy Division” and “Thank You for the Venom.” Through squished toes and allegations of broken limbs from the excitable crowd, who had to be reminded between songs by Gerard himself and a prepared “pick up your friends” slide on the big screen to calm down and back up, it was a wild night be experience and behold.
Many waited anywhere from two to ten years (or more) for this moment and, while My Chemical Romance has stated the contrary, it’s safe to say they’re not men to these dedicated fans. They’re heroes.
“Like tiny daggers up to heaven…” SATURDAY:
Charlotte Sands began our Saturday before we realized, as her bombastic performance was engaging even from miles away. She was even more incredible up close, commanding the stage like a seasoned veteran with years of hits under her belt despite being just 26 with two EPs under her belt. A clear standout from her setlist was her viral hit “Dress,” which amassed over 1.3 million views on TikTok. If that’s your cup of tea, “Every Night Ever” and “Want You Like That” are two other bangers to steep because Sands is a rising star with nowhere to go but up.
“You’re so masculine, sweet like cherry cola…” The Rebel Stage was home to most of the more hardcore punk acts, so it’s no surprise War on Women wrecked house. Whether making calls of violence with “Aqua Tofana” or calling out racist politicians in “This Stolen Land,” frontwoman and total badass Shawna Potter knows how to rile up a crowd. Potter added humor to her politics by addressing the band’s Riot Fest 2016 performance where she destroyed a Trump effigy onstage…only for him to get elected. She announced she would not make such a grand political statement at the time to prevent electing someone else “who shouldn’t be elected.” It’s beyond clear War on Women knows the power they hold, as they should be.
“Shake the cages and storm the gates, the clock is ticking and they can’t wait…” Rocking out the Roots Stage was South Yorkshire native YUNGBLUD, sporting a bloody knee and an electric energy that ran through an audience ready to see what antics he has in store. While it could be construed to be for the show, it wouldn’t be hard to imagine YUNGBLUD taping up his knee minutes before his set time due to some wild antics backstage. Running back and forth, jumping and gyrating, this rocker really drove the girls on the barricade wild. Performing crowd favorites “superdeadfriends”, “I Love You, Will You Marry Me?” and a cover of MGK’s “I Think I’m OKAY” featuring jxdn doing Machine Gun Kelly’s part, YUNGBLUD proved that it doesn’t have to take a full band to cover a stage. Sometimes you just need a drummer, an acoustic guitar, and the energy of the Energizer Bunny to rile up a crowd.
“So I don’t wanna go out today, wanna lie in my bed so that I run away…” Yungblud was followed up with easily the greatest spectacle of the weekend: Gogol Bordello. The eight-piece Ukrainian punk outfit performed a show that was powerful and political, bolstered by the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia. If the inclusion of “Not a Crime” into the setlist wasn’t effective enough, folk dancers from Chicago’s Ukrainian community certainly was. Also included were crowd favorites “Start Wearing Purple” and “Wanderlust King,” led by frontman Eugene Hutz who commanded the crowd with any language and a bottle of red wine in his hand.
“Familia inside your fireball, there is the crucial sound of all…” Yellowcard played the entirety of their 2003 masterpiece Ocean Avenue, pointing out before playing the title track that they usually use this song to close their sets. However, since they played the entire album in order from front to back, it was the third song they played. As such, they requested the crowd bring that same energy from the end of their shows to the beginning of their set. Based on Riot Fest’s energetic response during “Ocean Avenue,” I hope they weren’t disappointed.
“We could leave this town and run forever…” SUNDAY:
The last day of Riot Fest was more relaxed, but no less meaningful or memorable. Jimmy Eat World rocked Douglass Park with classic after classic, including “Sweetness” and “Bleed American,” including their newest track “Something Loud.” They closed their set with “The Middle,” a song that has saved my life more times than I can reliably recall. There truly is something special about standing in a crowd of hundreds who may have felt the same.
“Sign up, the picket line or the parade…” Returning eight years from their last reunion, New Jersey punk band Midtown rocked the Roots Stage in the early afternoon. The crowd was an impressive dancing mass as they performed an even mix from all three of their albums, including “Frayed Ends”, “Become What You Hate”, and “Give It Up” among other songs. The fans in the audience showed their love, not seeming to matter that it had been so long since they’d been together. Midtown clearly has the stones and the talent to keep the music alive no matter what projects they explore.
Closing out the day were headliners The Academy Is and Nine Inch Nails, but we closed out Riot Fest by seeing The Maine. Closing out the night was “Black Butterflies and Deja Vu,” a tear-jerking love ballad evocative of every time I have to leave Chicago.
It’s impossible to see every single band on any festival, but the ones we were able to catch were beyond worth the wait. Though the future of the festival is up in the air due to protests by Chi-town locals, and likely other outside factors, the success of this year’s fest will hopefully keep the crazy alive for seasons to come.
At the end of the day, we hold the daring opinion that Riot Fest does not, in fact, suck.
Written in collaboration with @pennyraehawkins2014
-
Subscribe
Subscribed
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
The In-Crowd 