Anti-Flag will come back big in September
Anti-Flag will make its return to the stage in September in a big way, playing the Day 1 lineup of Riot Fest in Chicago on Sept. 17.
The veteran Pittsburgh punk band will be on the main stage in Douglass Park with Chicago natives Smashing Pumpkins, plus Coheed and Cambria, Lupe Fiasco, NOFX, Dinosaur Jr., Circle Jerks and more.
“We are going to do two shows before it on our way out to Chicago to shake off the rust,” singer-guitarist Justin Sane told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Monday. “Riot Fest will be our official ‘Festivals Are Back and The Flag Is Back!’ gig.
“I’m really looking forward to it. We have a really good slot on the main stage and the show will be juiced. I hear from people all over the country who are unbelievably excited for live music, myself included. Riot Fest is a really cool celebration of punk and community around it. The atmosphere is always very positive, so it’s going to be a really fun way for us to enter back into the live music arena.”
Riot Fest’s marquee acts also include Run the Jewels, Faith No More, Dropkick Murphys, Rancid, Nine Inch Nails, Pixies and Taking Back Sunday.
Tickets are on sale at riotfest.org. After Riot Fest, Anti-Flag will head to Las Vegas for Punk Rock Bowling (Sept. 24) and then to Orlando, Fla., for its debut at Rebel Rock Fest (Sept. 26).
“The main thing for us was to enter back into live music in a responsible way where everyone could feel safe while enjoying themselves,” Sane said. “While we can’t predict the future, we feel confident about mid-September. The punk community is smart and mindful of those around them so we have a lot of confidence that the overwhelming majority of people attending our shows will have made a good-faith effort to be vaccinated before going to shows.”
Anti-Flag played its last show on March 11 in Ottawa, the day before venues started closing. It was just beginning the touring behind the band’s 12th album, “20/20 Vision.”
During the pandemic, Sane and Chris Dos stayed busy doing livestreams. The documentary “Beyond the Barricades: The Story of Anti-Flag,” which chronicled the band’s rise from local DIY group to international sensation, was also released.