Day 2 of Riot Fest 2019 was designed to kick your ass and have you say “thank you, may I have another?”
I arrived in the afternoon, with just enough time to see people get doused with GWAR blood, which has become an annual ritual at this point for the Punk-celebrating festival.
My Saturday journey included checking out performances from the likes of The Selecter, Avail, Cursive, The Damned Things, The Struts, Anthrax, Rise Against, Andrew WK, Slayer, and Bloc Party. This was by far the hardest day to navigate when it came making decisions on who to see starting as early as 6pm.
The biggest highlight of this day has to be how it was such a perfect way to enjoy Metal. Anthrax gave fans exactly what they wanted and Slayer’s appearance (their final one in Chicago) was a spectacle for the genre. I’ll never forget the look on Tom Araya’s face when he said his thanks and goodbyes at the end of the set, leaving us with a heartfelt and sweet “I’m gonna miss you.” Well I’m missing them already too.
Check out our pictures in the gallery below.
Photos by Oscar Oliva Jr / Pursuit Of Dopeness
