Few things are more Chicago than debating the merits of deep dish, deciding who actually gets to claim the city, and taking a shot of Malort just to prove you can. So when Sincere Engineer’s Deanna Belos sat down with us at Riot Fest this year, the conversation went about as expected: equal parts hometown pride and horrifying liquor talk.
Deanna Belos has spent years building Sincere Engineer into one of Chicago’s most beloved pop-punk exports.
She’s known for songs that trade the genre’s usual nasally-teenager schtick for something rawer and more autobiographical. Belos has put in the work and earned her place among one of the most promising acts in the scene. Whether she likes it or not, she has also become something of a corndog icon. It’s a bit that started with a song title and somehow refused to die.
Coop: One of the trademarks of Chicago is how its people love to insist that those who live in the suburbs aren’t from Chicago. What’s your take on that?
Deanna: Well, umm… I’m one of those burbs people, so I get it. But I don’t really tell people I love IN Chicago, like the city.
See, because I do.
Wait, you do or don’t?
I mean, I just say Chicago because it’s just easier. If they ask what part, I say the South Side, and they just understand.
Oh well, yeah, like if I’m on tour or something, and they ask where I’m from, I’ll say Chicago. But if it’s here, then I’ll just say the neighborhood!
How do you feel about Chicago’s music scene?
I think it’s amazing! I’m kinda biased, obviously, but it was always a great place for a band to grow when I was starting out and playing shows every night. It’s super supportive. Tons of bands come here. Every tour either ends or starts here. Like, it’s just a really good place to have a band or be a fan of bands.
What’s your favorite venue to see a band?
Gotta be The Metro.
I knew you were gonna say that. Who doesn’t love the Metro?
Some honorable mentions would be Sleeping Village, Salt Shed, and The Empty Bottle!
On the topic of obvious choices, how about some Chicago tropes as you see on TV or in movies or whatever?
They are like my favorite thing! I absolutely love those! Like calling dibs in the winter!
How about how they’re always depicting Chicagoans as name-dropping cross streets like ‘d’ya its at 55th and Kedzie…’ No one talks like that!
Ehh, I dunno, I think we probably do!
Okay, maybe we do. We just talked about gatekeeping the city.
I live for the tropes, though. I just met Tom Skilling yesterday. That was cool.
What was he like!? For those not from the area, Tom Skilling is a legendary, now-retired meteorologist at WGN.
Oh, he was super nice! He was ready to chat, and his person was like, ‘Hey, we gotta get going’.
My Dad was a contractor, so weather was really important. If the weather was bad, there was no work. So he hated Tom Skilling.
Ha! That’s very Chicago Dad too. Blame the weather on the weatherman! Like Jerry Taft? Hate that guy. That’s hilarious.
What about the pizza argument? Do Chicagoans really hate deep dish as much as we claim to? I think it’s delicious; it’s just not pizza.
Right? I like all of it! To be honest, I think I like Detroit-style the best anyway.
Yeah, there’s no wrong way to eat pizza. I don’t care if hipsters think it’s tourist food. It’s good!
I didn’t even know that was a thing. I get it regularly!
Have you ever had ketchup on a hot dog?
Yeah, of course.
*gasp*
Deanna: I don’t do the whole… Chicago dog thing. (laughs)
I like ketchup on a corndog.
Yeah! When I go to a Cubs game, I always get one of those shitty hot dogs in the tin foil? I’ll have a little ketchup on that.
Man… Should I cut that from the interview for your safety?
Umm… yeah, maybe (laughs)
Where did the whole Sincere Engineer corndog lore come from anyway?
Well, I wrote a song and named it “corndog,” and the whole thing sorta snowballed into this out-of-control thing! The song isn’t even about corndogs! It’s crazy!
I was gonna bring a corndog to the pit, but I ended up eating it on the way there.
Yeah, I’m probably gonna die and take a corndog to the grave now. I cannot escape it. It’s cool, though. I’ve embraced it at this point, but there was a time when I was trying to get away from it.
If you think corndogs can’t be classy, technically, they’re Wellingtons.
Ooh yeah, very true. Very British.
What do you like on your Italian Beef?
Green peppers. Not the hot ones, though! I don’t do hot peppers.
Is it more fun for you to play Riot Fest as a band or attend Riot Fest as a spectator?
Umm, I love both, but it’s more fun to just go to Riot Fest.
Stoked to see any particular bands this weekend?
Elvis Costello, Alanis, Alkaline Trio, and I’m excited to catch Less Than Jake later today. Just so many bands!
I don’t drink, but I assume you do.
Oh yes. Well, not all the time. Just sometimes.
So the whole Malort thing is kind of a rite of passage around Chicago. How would you describe the taste of Malort to someone who has never drunk it?
Dirty Lettuce.
Dirty Lettuce? See, I always imagined it as being spicy. At least, going by the faces people make when drinking it.
Nope, it tastes like a garden and dirt.
Is it good?
No. But I like the way it makes me feel. It kinda settles my stomach, you know? I think it’s like a digestive thing. I could be wrong, so don’t quote me on that!
Oh! That’s interesting. People usually describe it as dying.
Yeah, it tastes bad, but then you’re like, “Well, I’d do that again.”
I mean, that’s kinda like going to a music festival, though, right? Like, I get here with all the people, and I wish I were dead. But then I look back and think of all the fun I had.
Yeah, you’re all sunburnt, and you don’t know the suffering when you look back and think, “Yeah, it was worth it”.
Do you have a favorite Riot Fest experience?
Oh, there’s lots! Like I figured out what Fireball was one year with my friend. Maybe I shouldn’t say this? No but yeah. Do you know The Lawrence Arms?
Yeah yeah!
Their old band, The Broadways, were united that one year. I met Toby from Red Scare that year, and I found Fireball and had a great time.
The names of these drinks are enough to put anyone off. Not to mention squares like me.
Yeah yeah it was really fun!
What’s next for Sincere Engineer?
We’re doing a Hives cover set on Halloween at the Cobra Lounge! We just announced that yesterday. We just got done with the tour last week, so after this, we get some chill time.
Nice! You’ve more than earned it!
Then I’m going to Europe for an acoustic solo in January, too! Just trying to take it one day at a time!
That will be cool. One thing I’ve always appreciated about the music of Sincere Engineer is how it’s pop-punk but not the stereotype. Like you’re not doing the nasally voice, perpetually a teenager thing.
Oh! Thank you for that!
Do you purposely approach your music in that sense?
It’s really just autobiographical or telling a story based on something I’ve experienced. The melody just kinda does what it does, and it all just happens.
Well, I really want to thank you for taking the time to chat!
Hell yeah! Thank you for having me!
Photography by Oscar De Leon. Check out the full Riot Fest 2026 recap here.