Riot Fest has a reputation for chaos. And for Logan Gaval and Harper Boyhtari of Greet Death, that unpredictability is part of the appeal. Fresh off a set at the Radical Stage during Day 1, I caught up with the Michigan-via-Detroit duo to talk about the strange rhythms of festival life.
We also got into the emotional weight behind Greet Death, the catharsis of turning hard feelings into songs people can hold onto, and why writing anything but their own experiences feels disingenuous. Naturally, with Halloween creeping closer and horror references baked into tracks like “Country Girl,” we couldn’t resist talking scary movies. Read on!
Coop: Aside from audience reach, how do you compare festival dates to your own tour stops?
Logan: I think there’s a lot more chaos, in a good way? It’s a bit more scrambled, but I think I kinda enjoy how that sorta bleeds into the performance.
Yeah, you have to kind of hope for the best sometimes.
Logan: There is sort of a recklessness you have to embrace. I also like not doing drawn-out soundchecks!
Harper: Yeah, I like the throw-n-go nature of it. And you don’t know who’s gonna be there. You just have to get there like 30 minutes before you play, soundcheck for 10 minutes, then just go. It’s kind of a fun shoot-from-the-hip thing that we actually deal with pretty well.
See, if I were in that situation, I would probably instantly forget how to play the moment I stepped on the stage!
Logan: Well, the performance angle really isn’t as different as I originally thought it would be. I mean, we’re still sort of new to the festivals and stuff. But by the time we all lock in, it feels the same.
Greet Death is very emotionally heavy at times. Is that mentally exhausting to get in or be in that particular headspace when performing?
Logan: I think it’s mostly cathartic. But I guess sometimes I can get into my feelings when we play.
Harper: I think cathartic is a good word for it. Logan’s got it. They are feelings that we once felt and memorialized in a song, so it’s cool to be able to celebrate that.
When working on a song, do you go in writing with a particular experience in mind? Or does an idea just kinda happen and you go with it?
Harper: You know, I mean, I think if we’re writing a song about a specific subject, feeling, or something we’re grappling with, and we’re trying to unpack it. So it’s a vulnerability thing. It can be therapeutic in a way. It’s like trying to work through something that you’re feeling. You know?
Logan: It feels most natural to us to sorta write about our own perspectives, feelings, and experiences. So any time I try to write a song that’s a fictional story, I just kinda feel like an asshole!
I will say, “Country Girl” wrecks me every single time I’ve heard it. In a good way, of course. Or maybe a bad way, I dunno. But I really appreciate the horror movie references in it. This is gonna sound totally generic but…
Harper: No no, you’re good!!
I gotta know what your favorite horror movie is. I guess we’re close enough to Halloween to go for the spooky content!
Harper: Hmmm, there are so many! But Probably like Alien? You know, it’s classic with good cinematography, a slow burn. I don’t know, it’s one of the classics you can’t beat! There’s probably a better one that I could have named, but you know.
It inadvertently covers some good bases. It’s science fiction on the outside, but at its core, it’s really a haunted house film.
Harper: Yeah, I love haunted house stories! But not so much some of the recent ones that are super traumatic or anything.
Are you gonna check out any other bands today? That is, if you have time away from talking to people in the press area!
Logan: I walked past 3OH!3 on the way here, and that was pretty awesome. I was eating a cheeseburger while listening to 3OH!3 as one does.
Harper: I want to hear the song from Suicide Squad. The first Suicide Squad, the one Twenty One Pilots does. That’s pretty much the only thing I really wanna see.
Logan: I’m also excited to see the Pixies.
Harper: Oh yeah! I gotta see the Pixies. I’ve never had a chance to see them before.
What’s next for Greet Death after Riot Fest?
Logan: We’re about to go on tour with our friends AJJ. So that’s up next!
I want to thank you two for taking the time to hang! I loved your set earlier, and I look forward to catching you all out on the road!
Harper: Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy the rest of your day! It’s really nice out!
Photography by Oscar De Leon. Check out the full Riot Fest 2026 recap here.