Are you ready to dial it to 11? On a somewhat remote field two hours east of Minneapolis, the 1980’s still rages on. These 360 otherwise bucolic acres are the home of Rock Fest Wisconsin, which is, as their website states, “a place where rock music still matters.” Each summer, thousands of rock fans dressed in their best all-black outfits come to mosh to the sounds of their glory days and fucking rock. And glorious it is. Rock Fest draws big names like Kiss, Motley Crue, Fleetwood Mac, Tom Petty, Kid Rock and Shinedown. Plus, many attendees camp on one of the field’s 7,000 camping spots, allowing a spontaneous community to develop for the weekend. When they’re not headbanging, attendees can get a tattoo, take a helicopter ride, and deck themselves out in gore for the Zombie Crawl. It’s kinda like Burning Man, but with a lot more eyeliner. If you plan to attend this year, check out their app which will help guide you through the weekend.
Lineup:
Evanescence
Halestorm
The Pretty Reckless
Black Veil Brides
Ignescent
John 5
Shinedown
Mudvayne
Disturbed
Warrant
Lita Ford
Firehouse
Paralandra
Otherwise
Islander
Saint Laveau
Lamb of God
Theory
Hatebreed
Ayron Jones
Fire From the Gods
The Issue
VIA
Peace of Mind
Rebel Queens
Nita Strauss
NonGrata
2022 Rock Fest Poster
2021 Weekend Recap
2019 Weekend Recap