Despite many lineup changes (due to COVID and other reasons), Riot Fest 2021 began on Thursday (9/16) with the "preview party," which featured Morrissey, Alkaline Trio, Patti Smith and Her Band, Joyce Manor, WDRL, and Kristeen Young. The smaller lineup had no overlapping sets, and it included Joyce Manor playing their debut LP in full for its 10th anniversary, plus a cover of My Chemical Romance's "Helena" (more on their set here). Later, Patti Smith played tons of classics, including "Dancing Barefoot," "Because the Night," "Pissing In A River," "Land" / "Gloria," and more, as well as the cover of Bob Dylan's "One Too Many Mornings" that Patti just released on her new Live at Electric Lady EP. Pictures from the day are in this post.

Riot continues today (9/17) through Sunday (9/19), and you can check out the full lineup and set times here.

Photos of Thursday by James Richards IV continue below…