SAN FRANCISCO — Although iconic rock quintet The Go-Go’s last graced a San Francisco stage in 2022, riding the high of a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, that was without original drummer Gina Schock, who’d sat out the reunion to recover from surgery. That makes the last time the five members played in the Bay Area all the way back in 2018. Tuesday’s show at the Warfield was rarer still because it was just one of five on their schedule and one of only two that aren’t part of a festival (Coachella, Cruel World).
Vocalist Belinda Carlisle, guitarist-keyboardist Charlotte Caffey, bassist Kathy Valentine, singer-guitarist Jane Wiedlin and Schock—who calls the Bay Area home now—are all in their 60s or 70s, but their 75-minute set was impressively fiery from start to finish, full of rattling percussion, forceful guitar riffs and energetic bass lines.
In colorful outfits, playing sparkly instruments, The Go-Go’s covered their biggest hits while working in several lesser-known songs. They kicked off on a high note with “Vacation,” a confectionary rush. The sound was crisp throughout the night, with each instrument and the vocals mostly clear in the mix, but this was especially true on the opener. Carlisle twirled in place before starting to work the stage on the next song, a hard-rocking “Tonite.”…