Fans wait in front of the main stage at Douglass Park a full hour before the band Foo Fighters is set to play. Another concert goes on next to the main stage as the band Turnstile hypes up the crowd. Soon the clock strikes 8PM sharp and without warning, Foo Fighters open the show with energy and perform the song, “All My Life.”
Riot Fest is a punk-rock music festival that happens for 3 days in Chicago, Illinois at Douglass Park from 10am to 10pm. It is a large festival that brings together many artists and concert-goers. The 2023 lineup featured Foo Fighters, Turnstile, The Cure, AFI, and many other artists all performing between Sept 15 to 16. The festival features not only the many bands performances, but a wide variety of food, merchandise, and small carnival rides.
Foo Fighters was the final band to perform on the first day of Riot Fest.
“Will you sing this song with me?” Dave Grohl, the lead singer of Foo Fighters, often asked the crowd before starting each song.
Foo Fighters performed a variety of their songs including, “The Pretender”, “No Son of Mine”, “Walk”, “Breakout”, “The Sky Is A Neighborhood”, and many more. All these songs brought so much liveliness into the crowd as they jumped up or sang along with Dave Grohl. The visuals on the big screens and the stage made the experience of each song feel unreal.
By a fan request, Foo Fighters also performed the song, “White Limo.” An upbeat song on their seventh album, Wasting Light, has strong and rejuvenating vocals. Despite the song being a fan request and initially not being on the track list, Foo Fighters presented the song with so much energy. They did not disappoint, and once the song was over, Dave Grohl chuckled and asked the audience, “any more interesting requests?”
Dave Grohl introduced another song that was dedicated to Foo Fighters former drummer, Taylor Hawkins. “Aurora” was Hawkin’s favorite song, and as tribute, Grohl sang it. A beautiful tune, it was soothing and calming compared to the other songs performed that night. It was the 15th song out of 19 songs on the track list.
Lastly, the final song was “Everlong.” Foo Fighters traditionally closes every concert with that tune. The song is their most frequently played, another calming and rather peaceful melody. It was their way of saying thank you and goodbye at Riot Fest. As well as saying goodbye to Chicago. The crowd sang alongside Dave Grohl this one final time, and they’ll hope to sing it once again in the future.
