Recap and Photo Gallery Day Three (Part One): Riot Fest 2025 at Douglass Park • Chicago

Brassneck | September 22, 2025

Riot Fest 2025

Douglass Park

Chicago, IL

September 21, 2025

Recap by Jeff Elbel, Gallery by Curt Baran

Riot Fest 2025 careened to an explosive and communal finish on Sunday with its third day in Douglass Park. The schedule offered more full-album sets (eight in total) than the prior two days, beginning with The Effigies’ run through 1984’s For Ever Grounded and ending with the 2005 album Almost Here by The Academy Is…

Highlights photographed by IE’s Curt Baran include Riot stage sets by English post-punk band Idles and Prospect Heights’ own Screeching Weasel. The latter band played 1991’s My Brain Hurts during a furious 18-song, 45-minute set. On Saturday, singer Ben Weasel joined Marky Ramone’s band to sing “Judy is a Punk.”

Other local heroes were also on hand for Sunday’s action. Smoking Popes played their 1994 sophomore album Born to Quit with the enduring single “Need You Around” on the Rise stage. The band was followed by the Brighton-based punks, the Lambrini Girls. The stage’s schedule concluded with an hour of music by ascendant Irish rockers Inhaler, fronted by Bono’s son Elijah Henson. The set included “Just to Keep You Satisfied” and “Dublin in Ecstasy” from 2023’s acclaimed Cuts & Bruises album.

Pegboy performed Strong Reaction on the Roots stage, followed by Dance Hall Crashers. Fronted by Karina Denike and Elyse Rogers, the California ska-punks delivered an energetic set before Bad Religion arrived to tear through 1988’s potent and influential Suffer album.

For pop fans, Hanson appeared during mid-afternoon on the Rebel stage. Indie rock trio Dehd and reunited post-hardcore torchbearers Texas is the Reason capped the day’s activity on the Radical stage.

The other four stages shut down in order to bring all attendees together for Green Day’s headlining set on the Riot stage. The band’s set leaned most heavily into touchstone albums Dookie and American Idiot, while also drawing crowdpleasers including “Bobby Sox” and the fiery “One Eyes Bastard” from the latest album Saviors.