Looking back at Uptown’s best concerts and music festivals of 2012

By Logan Broyles | SDUN Reporter

As we turn the year and get set for a 2013 music season full of new bands, amazing shows and annual awards, a look back at this year’s highlights is in order. From the New Year’s kick-off at the Lafayette to Soda Bar’s Halloween spectacular, Uptown hosted some of the year’s best music events. And even though summer concerts in Mission Hills’ Pioneer Park and North Park’s Bird Park didn’t make the list, we’re sure to look forward to them all this coming year.

Jan. 1: New Year’s Eve with The Silent Comedy

2012 started off with a bang thanks to a sold out New Year’s show at the Lafayette Hotel in North Park, featuring live performances by The Silent Comedy, TRANSFER, The Creepy Creeps, The Heavy Guilt, Hell on Heels Burlesque, Low Volts and The Visual Underground. Not to be outdone for 2013, this time around the Lafayette will be hosting Little Hurricane, Get Back Loretta, Blackout Party, The Creepy Creeps, Shake Before Us and the Visual Underground in a show that was originally scheduled for the Casbah, but sold so many tickets that it had to be moved to the bigger location.

April 21: Adams Avenue Unplugged

Replacing the Adams Avenue Roots Festival after an 18 year run, Adams Avenue Unplugged was created to ease the sting for music lovers in Normal Heights and surrounding neighborhoods. For one weekend, local bars and restaurants along a two-mile stretch of Adams Avenue hosted more than 170 musicians for intimate acoustic sets.

Aug. 12: CityFest

As if Hillcrest’s annual Cityfest celebration wasn’t already great enough, with a water slide, beer garden and over 150,000 attendees a year, this past August marked the first time that guests were invited to stay past sundown for a night of live music and dancing. Local DJs and bands like Bitter Sober, Mad Traffic, The Black Sands and the Young Rapscallions took to a makeshift stage set up on the streets right under the Hillcrest sign.

Aug. 13: San Diego Music Awards

While Humphreys by the Bay isn’t technically in Uptown, the San Diego Music Awards featured a heavy presence of Uptown-based bands and musicians. Live performances included spots by P.O.D., Unwritten Law, Dead Feather Moon, Euphoria Brass Band, Hyena, Mattson 2, The Howls and Hills Like Elephants, who took home the award for Best New Band.

Sept. 9: SoCal Music Festival

Held during Labor Day weekend, this interactive music experience was created to celebrate the Southern California lifestyle through music, arts, visual effects and loads of great food. A lineup of popular local bands and EDM artists performed, including Vokab Company and Hyena, and the streets of the East Village were covered in art exhibits, skateboard competitions, stages adorned by go-go dancers, an interactive zone hosted by Vavi, and food and drink specials from some of San Diego’s best bars and restaurants.

Sept. 14-15: San Diego Music Thing

For one weekend back in September the Lafayette Hotel was filled wall-to-wall with some of the most talented musicians, producers and agents that San Diego has to offer, thanks to this annual two-day festival centered on all things related to the music business. Over 150 bands performed at 14 venues throughout Uptown, including Hills Like Elephants, Dead Feather Moon, Family Wagon, Ghetto Blaster, Pinback, Retox, Sculpins, The Heavy Guilt, The Howls and The New Kinetics. The event was organized by the San Diego Music Foundation, the North Park organization responsible for hosting the San Diego Music Awards.

Sept. 30: Adams Ave Street Fair

This year’s 31st annual Adams Ave Street Fair saw a lineup with more than 90 musical acts performing on seven stages set up along Adams Avenue, right in the heart of Normal Heights. Billed as Southern California’s largest free two-day music festival, the Adams Ave Street Fair is a popular event that celebrates the best of local music and business.

Oct. 20: Roctoberfest

Coming back for it’s third go round, this annual outdoor music festival was held in the parking lot and street behind the Birch North Park Theatre and West Coast Tavern. For only $15, attendees got to rock out to some of San Diego’s best bands, from Mrs. Magician to Family Wagon, New Mexico, The Euphoria Brass Band, Blackout Party, The Silent Comedy and Hyena, all topped off by a headline performance by Los Angeles based Mariachi El Bronx.

Oct. 31: All Hallows Eve

Soda Bar’s annual night of Halloween inspired dress-up saw local bands don costumes of their favorite bands while belting out covers of their famous songs. Indie band Roxy Jones did their best impression of rapper Devin the Dude, hip-hop masters Brendan B & the Breaks paid their tribute to the ghost of ODB adorned in full Wu-Tang Clan gear, Teddy Fantastico went to work on the electric guitar to cover the hit NOFX album The Decline, and The Wild Wild Wets tackled the iconic ’70s band, Blondie.

Dec. 7: Wrex The Halls

Tickets sold out more than a month before for this highly anticipated annual Christmas music festival, hosted by 91X at the Viejas Arena at SDSU. The event’s all-star lineup included The Killers, M83, Passion Pit, Tegan and Sera, The Joy Formidable, Imagine Dragons, Youndblood Hawke, and San Diego’s own Audio Addiction.