Riot Fest 2019 (September 13-15) Tour • Page 28

Asking for clarity: So it's more that there's no blanket clause... It's that individual radius clauses are probably determined based on the individual artist.

Which makes a whole lot more sense. Specifically for a band like Bully, or even somebody like PUP or Jeff Rosenstock who might wind up playing Lollapalooza but could play to a completely different audience headlining on their own.

I think it's important to think about why certain bands would play a festival too. To gain a new audience? To make an easy payday, play in front of a ton of people, and not really have to deal with promoting the show? Just to do it? That factors in as well, I'm sure. And that's probably why you see bands who are getting a "buzz" in a major way for the first time do Lollapalooza, Pitchfork, or Governor's Ball or whatever and not Riot Fest the year that's happening. Strike while the iron's hot and all that.

 

I dont know if they are a band for Riot, but Turbonegro is out. They have a Latinamerica tour on Riot dates

 

They've booked Dee Snider and Jerry Lee Lewis, every band is a Riot band lol

 

Except Staind.

 

They are gonna book Staind just to troll us... or worse... they'll book Imagine Dragons again.. and make this year's reunion Jesse Camp & the 8th Street Kidz (if you look this up, whatever happens after is your own fault)

 

I'm 34. No need to look that up. That scarecrow-looking motherfucker and his 80s glam cock-rock revival attempt are unfortunately etched into my brain.

That Imagine Dragons booking was really, really odd. I wonder if it had something to do with one of the other bands on the bill being on the same label or having the same booking agent or whatever.

 

I don't think at the time it was that crazy. They weren't that big of a band then and honestly that first album was pretty decent. I think it just seems weirder in hindsight.

 

Yeah I caught their set because I had just heard of them like a week or two prior. It made sense back then, they just had that first album that was alright. They're kind of in the same ballpark as bands like Young The Giant I'd say, or at least they were.

 

I had no idea Imagine Dragons played that year (and were the first band on their stage). That’s wild in retrospect, but I agree that it probably made as much sense as any other smaller indie band at the time.

 

Look it, to make my smart ass comment I had to pick somebody that played already.. lol

 

Post Malone played one year too. So. There's that.

Not saying it's strange. Just that it happened... And he's massive now.

 

Considering I can barely even keep track of pop music/mainstream rap and I know he's massive, that's saying something.



I guess the most interesting one I've actually been to was Voodoo Fest in New Orleans in 2004 and the Killers were the opening band on the main stage. (Green Day, Pixies, Sonic Youth, New Found Glory, Beastie Boys on one day for $40.. oh how the times have changed)

 

In 2009, The Wonder Years played a DIY stage at the Christian rock festival I went to every summer. There’s a good chance I walked right by them at some point with no idea they’d be my favorite band two years later. I can credit a compilation CD I got at that fest for introducing me to them though.

 

I wasn't even meaning to inspire this kind of conversation with that comment, but here goes...

Fall of 2000. The local "alternative rock" radio station here in Boston sponsored a show called the College Rave. The line-up was really fucking crazy (not in terms of cool, but strange).

From headliner to opener: Kittie, the Get Up Kids, Kottonmouth Kings, and Nickelback. Fucking bizarre.

I also went to this thing called SkateFest at the Worcester Palladium in fall 2002. Senses Fail, My Chemical Romance, OK Go, All-American Rejects, and A Wilhelm Scream were all very low on the bill (Senses Fail and MCR were both the first few bands on the side stage). Not that AWS would be much higher now...

That's pretty fun, honestly. And a crazy cool line-up from what you laid out right there!

That's a lot of fun, though always kind of a bummer when you look back on something like that years later and realize what you missed.

 

On the note of the radius clause - Lollapalooza has had people say in interviews that they no longer enforce it because they're making money no matter what now. Maybe that tune will change as it continues to not sell out as fast.

As for Riot Fest, they for sure still do enforce the radius clause.

 

And a bit more insight into what triggered Lolla relaxing their radius clause enforcement: Lollapalooza and Antitrust

 

Are you sure it still exists for Riot? I think it's relaxed for Riot too.

 

Confirmed.

 

Are they gonna play "Let It Enfold You"?

 

I sure hope not

 

Riot Fest doesn’t control the market like Lollapalooza so they can still enforce it. Some bands they give passes to, others they don’t. So what I’d say is that they’re selective.

 

I was hoping we’d get Ben Folds since his tour with Violent Femmes skips Chicago, but his new dates with Cake take him out. I assume Violent Femmes are still pretty likely though.

 

I am The Big Sad this morning

 

On the plus side, this may mean Chicago might be getting a Folds symphony show in early 2020.. and that shit is amazing

 

That’s true. With both of his major tours skipping Chicago, I kind of wonder if he had something planned and had to postpone due to the symphony strike.