6 Must-See Bands at Chicago Open Air 2016

By: Josh Terzino –

The summer festival season in Chicago is crowded, but the Chicago Open Air music festival has chosen to act as counter-programming to Pitchfork’s annual gathering this year (both take place July 15-17). What sets Chicago Open Air apart from other festivals is a focus on one particular genre-hard rock/metal. Some of these acts have played Chicago’s other big name festivals before, but this is a chance for the fans to have a fest of their own. It’s also more accessible for people who live south of the city, taking place at Toyota Park in Bridgeview rather than in the thick of the city like Lollapalooza and Pitchfork.

The music will be joined by culinary delights from some of the best-named eateries around, including: Aporkalypse Now, Cheeze Louise, and The International Spud Station. Craft beers from many of Chicago’s breweries will also be available.

Tickets to the Chicago Open Air 2016 are on-sale now here.

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Korn
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It seems like forever ago since Korn appeared on TRL with their videos for “Freak On A Leash” and “Got The Life.” In 2015 they went on tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut album, and with a new album in the works, the nu metal pioneers can still rock with the best of them.

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Bullet For My Valentine
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Welsh metal band Bullet For My Valentine have been together for almost 20 years, and they’ve amped up their sound over the years, becoming more aggressive, and going back to their roots of hard hitting metal. They’ve aged well, and sound as good today as they did playing in small clubs in Wales in the late 90s.

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Deafheaven
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After releasing three very well-received albums in a row, it’s surprising that the San Francisco group aren’t headlining Chicago Open Air this year. Their live performances get unbelievably good word-of-mouth and no frontman can take charge of an audience like George Clarke. If you want to know what the future of metal sounds like, look no further than Deafheaven.

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In This Moment
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One of the few metal acts who take the “show” as seriously as the music. Lead singer Maria Brink gives her all on stage and turns in performances that are half Marilyn Manson, half Lady Gaga. Their newest album, 2014’s Black Widow, saw them team up with long-time collaborator Kevin Churko and created their most accessible album yet. Make sure to put them in your schedule.

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Jim Breuer And The Regulators
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Call this one a curiosity. Don’t you want to know what a hard rock band fronted by the guy that played “Goat Boy” on Saturday Night Live might sound like? It should be at least half good-his record was produced by a former Anthrax member and features guest vocals from AC/DC’s Brian Johnson.

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Butcher Babies
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If you get to the park early enough on Friday, you can catch Butcher Babies getting the party started. For pure fun, there aren’t many metal bands better than this quintet. They’ve been favorably compared to Pantera and Alice Cooper, and their debut album made it to number three on Billboard’s Heatseeker Chart. With dual vocalists they keep the energy at maximum from beginning to end.