Riot Fest’s 2026 lineup was already batshit crazy, but wait until you see it broken down in its daily schedule form. There are plenty of Sophie’s Choice-level conflicts, as well as some genuinely hilarious programming decisions — my favorite being Riot Fest’s choice to have Morrissey, titan of post-rock melancholy, open for prog-metal masters Tool on Saturday night.
Of course, there’s a very real possibility Morrissey gets sick after eating a bowl of pasta, or passes out from exhaustion after dealing with TSA on his flight over, and is forced to cancel his appearance. But Riot Fest apparently has a solid backup plan, with Chat Pile and Bad Religion already slotted to play at the same time as Moz. But let’s say Morrissey does make it to the stage: will he force Riot Fest to go meat-free during his set? And if he does, will Tool’s Maynard James Keenan, who once mocked vegan extremists as “worse than Scientologists,” have something to say about it? Oh, the drama. Also of note: Riot Fest has counter-programmed Tool’s own set with Afroman and Nas.
Some other observations from Riot Fest’s schedule: In what may be the weekend’s worst conflict, Iggy Pop and GWAR are playing at the same time on Friday night. Riot Fest doesn’t usually drop the ball like this, but did no one think to have them share the stage? Imagine GWAR as Iggy’s backing band.
Polka-dot prog rockers Angine de Poitrine will play before John Lydon’s Public Image Ltd. on the Riot Stage on Saturday.
And yes, 95-year-old William Shatner is indeed playing Riot Fest, slotted between This Is Lorelei and Twin Peaks on the Rebel Stage on Sunday. If you really want to have a day, you can go from Shatner to Patti Smith and Her Band on the Rise Stage at 6:10, then finish the night with ICP on the Radical Stage.
Tickets are now available through Riot Fest’s website.
