There’s a funny thing that happens when you’ve been going to concerts long enough to remember when Ticketmaster still printed actual tickets: patterns start to appear. Not the obvious ones — like how you practically need to take out a mortgage to buy seats now — but the sneaky ones you only notice when you dig through your memories and old stubs and realize certain bands have been shadowing you for years.
Somehow, without ever planning it (well, except for The English Beat — I’ve absolutely gone to shows because they were opening), I’ve seen the same handful of groups pop up before different headliners again and again, like the universe kept hitting shuffle on the same six artists. Pixies, The English Beat, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Modern English, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Love and Rockets… apparently these bands and I have been in a long‑term, low‑commitment relationship.
Siouxsie and the Banshees: Goth Before I Knew What Goth Was
My second concert ever was David Bowie’s Glass Spider Tour at Anaheim Stadium, where Siouxsie and the Banshees opened. I maybe knew one goth chick in high school at the time, but they were out in force that night. Even the Los Angeles Times review mentioned their “hard‑core fans (easily spotted in their trademark dyed black hair, pasty white makeup and heavy eyeliner).”
I’d see Siouxsie again at the very first Lollapalooza in 1991 — and it looks like “Christine” and “Spellbound” were the only two songs they played both times.
Pixies (and Frank Black): The Band That Keeps Sneaking Into My Life
I’ve seen Pixies open three times and Frank Black open once for They Might Be Giants. Frankly, I didn’t even remember them at one of these concerts until I was logging my shows on Setlist.fm — the danger of seeing too many concerts in your teens and twenties.
Here’s the rundown:
- 1989: Pixies opening for The Cure at Dodger Stadium
- 1990: Pixies opening for Jane’s Addiction at the Palladium
- 1992: Pixies opening for U2 at the LA Sports Arena (the forgotten one)
- 1994: Frank Black opening for They Might Be Giants — the first concert my wife and I saw together
Not bad for a band I never intentionally set out to see.
Love and Rockets: From Dodger Stadium to the 2020s
Also opening for The Cure at that 1989 Dodger Stadium show was Love and Rockets, who I saw again more than 30 years later opening for Jane’s Addiction on their ill‑fated tour. They were excellent both times, but I’ve appreciated them far more as I’ve gotten older — especially after digging deeper into their catalog following seeing them in 2024.
I even made a playlist that connects Love and Rockets to their Bauhaus roots and related artists.
Joan Jett & the Blackhearts: Twenty Years of Pure Rock & Roll
The gap between my Joan Jett shows wasn’t quite as dramatic as Love and Rockets — only about 20 years — but she’s a legend and puts on a consistently great show.
- 2005: Music Midtown festival in Atlanta
- 2024: Opening for Billy Idol, where she also played a few Runaways classics
She’s one of those artists who never phones it in. Her love of performing and her appreciation of the audience is always apparent.
Modern English: More Than “Melt With You” (But Yes, They Played It)
I saw Modern English last year on a bill with Simple Minds and Soft Cell, where they delivered a tight set including — of course — “I Melt With You.” I’d also seen them earlier on the Retro Futura tour in 2017 at the short‑lived Gas Monkey Live venue. I mainly went to that show for The English Beat, but Modern English held their own.
The English Beat / General Public: My Most Reliable Concert Companion
Ever since I saw the “Mirror in the Bathroom” video on Richard Blade’s show in the early 80s, I’ve been a huge fan. I never got to see them at their peak — I was 13 when they broke up — but I’ve made up for it this century.
I’ve seen Dave Wakeling and company:
- On the Retro Futura tour
- Opening for Reel Big Fish (my wife was a few months pregnant, so we didn’t stay for the headliner)
- Opening for Adam Ant (our son — the one she was pregnant with at the Reel Big Fish show — came with us)
- Performing as General Public at last year’s Lost in the 80s tour
I even backed the Here We Go Love crowdfunding campaign and have a signed vinyl to prove it.
Conclusion: The Accidental Soundtrack of My Concert Life
Looking back at all these shows, I love how the opening acts — the bands you don’t always plan on seeing — end up becoming the connective tissue of your concert‑going life. They sneak into your memories, reappear years later, and eventually feel like familiar faces you keep bumping into at different stages of adulthood.
And this is just one pattern I’ve uncovered while digging through my concert history. Next up, I’m taking a look at the bands I’ve seen twice with decades in between — the musical equivalent of running into an old friend and realizing you’ve both aged in interesting ways. After that, I’ll wrap things up with the artists I saw once long ago and would love to catch again… along with a few bucket‑list bands I’ve never seen but still hope to cross off before the house lights come up for good.
Bonus – Record Store Day 2026
For Record Store Day coming up in April, both Joan Jett and the Blackhearts and Pixies have special live album releases.
