Mark Stefanos
The fourth edition of Proper New Year’s Eve and Day brought 2026 in with a blast of bass at San Diego’s Petco Park. The two-day festival presented by FNGRS CRSSD, now a staple in the West Coast dance music scene, drew sold-out crowds on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1, and featured a diverse lineup blending house, techno, melodic sounds, and bass-heavy rhythm. Read our preview of the fest with HI-LO, Noizu, Nora En Pure & Max Styler here.
Proper is very much an electronic music festival, with CRSSD’s penchant for delivering premium house and techno, but it’s not exactly a rave. It’s a bit of an older crowd, so it’s less frenetic — less kandi and no totems, and more black-on-black and streetwear. It has a San Diego vibe of baseball caps and jerseys. Maybe this shows our age, but given the uptick of aggressive behavior we’ve seen at raves over the last few years, this is all very welcome.
(Daniela Becerra @itskinderella)
There were five stages this year, with the Lot and Park feeling like major stages, the Field hosting the main event (literally on the Petco Park baseball field, which was laid out with a comfortable dance floor, and viewable from the stands if you preferred to sit), plus two smaller side stages, Wall and Terrace.
New Year’s Eve was a bit soggy, but that didn’t stop people from dancing (in ponchos) to the brilliant lineup, including Sammy Virji, Gorgon City, Adam Beyer, Disco Lines, Purple Disco Machine and many more.
We got there a little after working hours, just in time to see Hayden James at the Lot — a large stage across the street from Petco, in what I’m guessing is normally a parking lot, but covered with comfortable AstroTurf. We then bounced easily between the Field and Lot to catch some Max Styler and Purple Disco Machine — all of whom were on point.
As the clock struck 10 p.m. and midnight excitement trickled through the crowds, we made our way back to the Field to make sure to catch Sammy Virji for the countdown. The rain started coming down a bit harder for Sammy’s set, but his relentless energy, infectious tracks and beaming smile kept everyone active. We got a full 60-second countdown, and at the strike of midnight, the Field erupted in a full 360-degree fireworks show.
Sammy Virji as the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve (Gina Chong @ginajoyphoto)
CRSSD put together a thoughtful slate of after-hours parties for Proper at some of San Diego’s best clubs, billed as “After Dark” shows, with four on the night of New Year’s Eve — three of them going til a very respectable 4 a.m (all sold separately but reasonably priced). They were kind enough to invite us to an afters featuring Gorgon City, Ugo Banchi and Eve Lauren.
We left the fest just as Sammy Virji’s set ended at 12:30 a.m. and made our way to the trolley, which was free with extended hours for New Year’s. After riding about five stops and walking ten minutes, we made it to Spin just in time for last call and to catch the end of Gorgon City’s set. Eve Lauren took the decks next and delivered a hell of a good time, keeping us grooving until the lights came on at 4. There were Ubers aplenty at that time, and it didn’t take long to get home.
The sun was shining when we got up on Thursday, New Year’s Day. After a lovely lunch and some pre-gaming, we were able to get to the fest by mid-afternoon. Without the rain, and with what seemed like a denser crowd, Thursday felt more cohesive and even higher energy, with partiers looking to go full-force to start their new year off right.
That matched a slightly more uptempo lineup. We caught SG Lewis at the Lot and a bit of Nora En Pure, who both delivered, then popped by what started as a lovely set by Flight Facilities at the Wall stage. We didn’t stay long as Disclosure was simultaneously at the Field, and they are a must-see for our crew.
The logistics on Day 2 were a bit more challenging, which appeared set up to accommodate a larger crowd. We had to wait at times to enter the Field and navigate around the Lot stages, which seemed at capacity. But no wait was too long, and with clear skies and a consistent beat to keep your feet moving anywhere you were around the Petco Park complex, spirits were high and crowds stayed friendly.
After about a twenty-minute line, we made it onto the field for Disclosure. They were soulful and electric as always, and with a quick transition to the next set — Skrillex B2B to Four Tet — we opted to just stay on the Field, and we were happy with our choice, as the two legends got an already hyped crowd to the most amped energy we saw between the two days. We ended up just sticking on the Field for Justice, who closed out Thursday, delivering a mishmash of their classics, some house, techno, plus some rock remixes with a punchy throughline and visual spectacle that was a fitting baseball cap to the Proper Petco experience.
(Daniela Becerra @itskinderella)
With Thursday’s festival ending at 10 p.m., Proper hosted five after-hours with some of the big names that played the day — MK, Flight Facilities, HI-LO, SG Lewis and Chris Lorenzo.
We opted to follow the throngs of festival goers into the Gaslamp, where we ended up clubbing again until the wee hours with a mix of locals and festival attendees from across the state and beyond.
Everyone we talked to gave the festival high marks, commending CRSSD for what they were able to pull off. Several who attended in previous years noted that this year was much better planned, with the logistics working out pretty seamlessly.
Really, the biggest complaint, if you can call it that, was with such a stacked lineup across five stages, there was bound to be overlaps, which made planning your festival journey challenging — but that’s a first-world festival problem we love to endure.
And, of course, it would be nice for festivals to run into the twilight hours, but as we’ve discussed in these pages before, that’s becoming less and less feasible to do in any of California’s big cities, with municipalities setting strict and early curfews for sound. Proper’s After Dark options are an excellent workaround for this.
Overall, San Diego gives the greater LA area a run for its money as a host for a giant festival. Between the reasonable accommodations, ease of transport and trolley, and the mere fact that Petco is in the middle of a lively downtown — let’s just say San Diego gives LA much stronger competition as host city for a major festival than the Padres are for this winning era of the Dodgers.
All-around electric and well-executed, with Proper NYE and NYD, FNGRS CRSSD has figured out the sauce.
Stay tuned to upcoming FNGRS CRSSD events at crssd.com.