The Original Misfits “Walk Among” Riot Fest, Sunny Day Real Estate reunite, Yungblud arrives

Photos by Andy Argyrakis

If there was a theme that tied the second round of Riot Fest together at Douglass Park, it was complete performances of landmark albums, a trend that started right at the top when The Original Misfits marked the 40th anniversary of their debut, “Walk Among Us.”

Co-founding front man Glenn Danzig, bassist Jerry Only and nearly as long guitarist Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein led the band through the entire horror punk project, along with several game-changing essentials, many of which didn’t repeat from their 2016 appearance.

No matter the material, the nucleus nailed it and drew an extremely dedicated, cross-generational crowd, much of which sported their signature skull logo as they took turns in the mosh pits and pumped their fists in unison.

Taking a tamer but extremely innovative and influential approach, Sunny Day Real Estate reclaimed its territory as emo/indie rock kings with an emotional look back on a short but brilliant recording career, touching on 1994’s “Diary” through 2000’s “The Rising Tide,” while sounding ripe to record again, as evidenced on 2014’s sole single, “Lipton Witch.”

Just beforehand, Chicago Concert Reviews connected with The Juliana Theory’s guitarist Joshua Fiedler, who flew in early to catch the solid Sunny Day set (along with The Joy Formidable), but will also be amongst the most anticipated acts of Sunday when his recently re-formed band offers a career overview up through 2022’s “Still The Same Kids Pt. 1.”

Speaking of getting back together, the violin-centered Yellowcard not only reunited following a half-decade apart, but cracked open the time capsule to passionately play 2003’s pop/punk long-player, “Ocean Avenue,” shaking off members’ self-admitted nerves within seconds to please locals and those who flew in for the unexpected occasion.

Destined to be mentioned in the same breath as those other alternative behemoths, England’s Yungblud arrived as a fully-formed superstar with an exhilarating Britpop/emo/punk peek into his self-titled blockbuster (and third overall album), dropping unforgettable originals, sampling The Cure’s “Close To Me” throughout the Robert Smith-approved “Tissues” and collaborating with fellow ascender Jxdn for “I Think I’m OKAY.”

Various shades of punk continued to emerge, including the classic origins of the always topical and thought-provoking Bad Religion, plus the current likes of The Menzingers, who boldly celebrated the tenth birthday of the popular “On The Impossible Past.”

Hardcore punk heroes, 7 Seconds, reunited as well to raucous results, and though like-minded veterans, Fear, have technically never stopped, it was even more rare to hear all of 1982’s scene-setting “The Record.”

The Get Up Kids were amongst the soonest to pack the park, thanks in part to the benchmark collection, “4 Minute Mile,” reaching the quarter-century mark, which gave Riot Fest a history lesson on emo’s emergence and claims to yet another extraordinary exclusive.

Riot Fest continues at Douglass Park through Sunday, September 18. For additional details, visit RiotFest.org.

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