North Park Music Fest

Last weekend, on Saturday, June 6th 2026, North Park Music Fest took the neighborhood by storm, filling up community spaces, dive bars and small businesses with local bands and DJs, and everyone came out to play. The streets were packed with people jumping from one venue to the next, from punk rock at the Office Bar to Appalachian field music at Pure Pawsh, where even some pups came to experience the magic.

The first act I caught was The Microblades at the Office Bar, an all girl rock band from San Diego. They were absolutely electrifying live, with Guilietta Randell as lead singer and lead guitar, Imogen Collis on bass, and Lauren Deerinck on drums. The energy was high and they were having beautiful fun rocking together. There were whispers upon whispers throughout the crowd, “Wow they’re so good!” They played their song Cowboy, which was recognized as Best Pop Song at the San Diego Music Awards in 2024! They put on a fantastic set and it was an energizing start to the festival day.

I made a quick stop to Pure Pawsh to catch Supper Club String Band, playing beautiful Appalachian field music for dogs and their owners alike. Next I made my way to the North Park Community Park to see Spacehall Sound Machine, a beloved local psychedelic dance rock group. They had two guitarists, a bassist, a drummer, a bongo player, and someone controlling a soundboard on stage. The music was rich, colorful, and enticed the crowd to dance along, grabbing the hands of friends and twirling them around. There was a table center stage with multiple different sound makers, creating unique distinct sounds with Middle Eastern and Latin American influence.

After Spacehall Sound Machine, I ventured over to Bivouac Adventure Lodge to catch Gayle Skidmore. She played the banjo and even a beautiful Baroque ukulele, giving her a unique Baroque-inspired folk sound. Her and her guitarist charmed the space with their performance and adding an acoustic ambience to everyone’s Saturday afternoon drinks. 

Next I headed to back to the park for Brainstory. They had an extremely fun, with the crowd having filled up nicely by that time of day. They had excellent energy on stage and lead singer, Kevin Martin was having so much fun engaging with and encouraging the crowd. It was the perfect sunny Saturday afternoon groovy music, the audience flowing and swaying to their psychedelic jazzy rock sound. They played an even longer set than intended by the crowds demand and the collective feeling that we just had to have them for a couple more songs!

Next stop was back to Queen Bee’s for local darlings Wild Wild Wets who absolutely rocked the stage with their trippy dance music. Standing out was the magnetizing energy of Mike Turi who became one with the keyboard as he hypnotized the crowd with his vocals and dance moves. Their performance transformed the energy of the space and served as a great kickoff to the evening portion of the festival. Later, Queen Bee’s filled to the brim in anticipation of the headline act, Frankie and the Witch Fingers. The crowd went wild for their set, giving every last ounce of energy they had left and then some. The chandeliers reflected the glittering lights from the stage, the room was on fire as the front of the crowd moshed to every song they could and fans surfed the crowd as long as they could go. 

North Park Music Festival brought the community together, artists and enjoyers of art alike, to liven up the neighborhoods’ Saturday plans with rocking to our local legends.

Photos by: Claire Irigoyen
Review by: Claire Irigoyen