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Riot Fest 2025 has come to a close. Here is a look at some of the biggest things to happen during the 20th anniversary of the Chicago festival.
Matt Skiba Reunites With Blink-182
Riot Fest this year featured both Blink-182 and Chicago’s very own Alkaline Trio.
And while the two acts have been touring together in recent weeks, Riot Fest must have seemed like the perfect opportunity to bring Matt Skiba back onstage during Blink-182’s set.
The Alkaline Trio founding member previously joined Blink-182 on a full-time basis following guitarist Tom DeLonge’s departure. He exited upon DeLonge’s return to the band.
“He kept the band alive,” DeLonge told the crowd while introducing Skiba on Friday. “He’s always been such a great person and such a great friend.”
Skiba took over on guitar during “Bored to Death” before handing things back over to DeLonge.
Blink-182 (featuring Matt Skiba), “Bored to Death” at Riot Fest 2025
Jack White Joins IDLES
Saturday night at Riot Fest saw Jack White rip through a blistering 13-song set in just under an hour. White leaned heavily on material from The White Stripes, forgoing his solo stuff for the most part.
He also tossed in “Broken Boy Soldier” from his side project with The Raconteurs and a cover of The Stooges’ “T.V. Eye.”
White was still hanging at Riot Fest the following day when he found his way onstage to join IDLES on guitar for their song, “Never Fight a Man With a Perm.”
This is the last live date the British band has scheduled for the foreseeable future, wrapping up touring behind 2024’s Tangk album. What a way to head into an extended (and much-deserved) break.
IDLES (featuring Jack White), “Never Fight a Man With a Perm” at Riot Fest 2015
GWAR Creates Social Media Stir With Mock Beheading of Elon Musk
GWAR is a Riot Fest staple.
You can almost guarantee the band will be listed somewhere on the lineup when it drops every year. And despite the act’s high frequency of appearances, they still back fans in front of one of Riot Fest’s stages on a near-annual basis.
Of course, the whole GWAR experience probably has something to do with it.
Riot Fest 2025 saw the band take aim at Donald Trump and Elon Musk. A character made to look like the latter was mock beheaded, spewing “blood” across the first few rows of fans.
A video of the spectacle was shared on what seemed to be a rage-bait X account that called the act “grotesque and reckless.” Many commenters who were unfamiliar with GWAR just could not comprehend what they were seeing.
John Stamos Finally Makes It to Riot Fest
After years of festival organizers pleading and tributes to the actor, including art exhibits and butter sculptures in his likeness, John Stamos finally landed at Riot Fest this year
The Full House star accepted the festival’s invitation, which also saw him performing with The Beach Boys, as he has done off and on for the last 20-plus years. Stamos also took a moment onstage to show his appreciation for the Riot Fest’s seemingly never-ending pursuit to have him appear in person.
“It’s been the sweetest, honestly, one of the most fun, kind-hearted things anybody has ever done for me,” Stamos told the crowd.
The Academy Is… Announce First New Album Since 2008
Riot Fest continues to be the spark that reignites The Academy Is…
Less than four years after the band said goodbye on social media, they were right back at it to play 2005’s Almost Here in its entirety during Riot Fest in 2015.
It was a great moment, but not one that brought The Academy Is… back from extinction.
In 2022, the band returned yet again for another Riot Fest set. This time, however, they would go on to play some additional one-off shows after their festival appearance.
Fast forward to Riot Fest 2025 and we finally have something more definite from The Academy Is… with the band debuting two new songs on stage and announcing a new album is on the way.
The Descendents-Hanson Collab You Didn’t Know You Needed
Hanson (yes, the Hanson of “MMMBop” fame) was among the more curious bookings for this year’s Riot Fest.
It may have been difficult to see how the brothers’ pop act would slot among the typical punk/emo/metal/alternative fare when the festival first announced its lineup. But Hanson had a few tricks up their collective sleeves.
One of them was asking Stephen Egerton of Descendents to join them onstage. They then proceeded to play a cover of the long-time punk act’s “Hope.”
Oh, and John Stamos showed up, too, because of course he did.
Hanson (featuring Stephen Egerton), “Hope” (Descendents cover) at Riot Fest 2025
Riot Fest will return to Douglass Park in Chicago in 2026 on Sept. 18-20. Early bird tickets are already on sale via the festival’s website.
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