Preview: Lost ’80s Live feat. A Flock of Seagulls, China Crisis, Belouis Some, Peter Godwin, and more @ Berglund Performing Arts Theater (Roanoke, VA), 8/9/25

(Editor’s Note: On Aug. 4, the Berglund Performing Arts Theater confirmed to Parklife DC that this show has been cancelled.)

Few things make a spectacular summer better than an outdoor concert in a glorious open-air amphitheater, particularly one in the mountains! And so, Parklife heartily recommends a trip to Berglund Performing Arts Theater in Roanoke, Virginia, for a summer concert, but particularly for the Lost ’80s Live summer show on Saturday, August 9!

The Lost ’80s Live touring festival checks in for an entry under Roanoke’s Vinyl Vault Concert Series, featuring performances by China Crisis, General Public, The Vapors, A Flock of Seagulls, and more! We new wave aficionados at Parklife are perhaps most excited by a rare US performance by Peter Godwin, who also joins the bill.

Oh, famed ’80s KROQ DJ Richard Blade hosts the program at Berglund Performing Arts Theater!

A Flock of Seagulls — the perennial favorite of true synth enthusiasts — nominally headlines the annual touring festival, which is chock full of wonderful “left of the dial” tunes that defined alternative music in the 1980s.

Watch the official music video for “The More You Live, The More You Love” by A Flock of Seagulls on YouTube:

We also heartily recommend that you see China Crisis starring suave vocalist Gary Daly and rocking guitarist Eddie Lundon, who are still making very fine music indeed!

Watch the official music video for “Wishful Thinking” by China Crisis on YouTube:

Belouis Some, the stage name of Neville Keighley, recently returned to touring the USA for the first time in roughly 35 years. Parklife caught Neville, a true gentleman with an array of catchy and thoughtful songs, live on a bill with Gene Loves Jezebel earlier this year, and we can attest that he’s great.

Watch the official music video for “Some People” by Belouis Some on YouTube:

Read our 2025 Parklife interview with Belouis Some!

And as we mentioned, perhaps no Lost ’80s Live is more exciting than Peter Godwin, the brilliant tunesmith who lends an aristocratic air to every thing he touches. Many Americans are perhaps most familiar with the Englishman’s work through his song “Criminal World,” which he co-wrote for his ’70s band Metro. It was later covered by David Bowie on his Let’s Dance album.

However, Godwin also was stepped in the heady new wave culture of the London heyday as a friend of The Blitz Club, where he hobnobbed with Steve Strange and Spandau Ballet. The talented native Londoner created some of the most alluring music of the ’80s, and he is not to be missed.

Watch the official music video for “Baby’s in the Mountains” by Peter Godwin on YouTube:

Read Parklife’s 2020 interview with Peter Godwin!

DJ Richard Blade presents the complete Lost ’80s Live lineup, which includes a number of outstanding musical acts:

A Flock Of Seagulls (“I Ran (So Far Away),” “Space Age Love Song”)
General Public (“Tenderness,” “Never You Done That”)
Big Country (“In a Big Country,” “Fields of Fire”)
The Vapors (“Turning Japanese,” “Jimmy Jones”)
The Icicle Works (“Birds Fly (Whisper to a Scream)”)
China Crisis (“Working With Fire and Steel,” “Arizona Sky”)
Josie Cotton (“Johnny Are You Queer,” “He Could Be the One”)
Belouis Some (“Some People,” “Imagination”)
The Polecats (“Make a Circuit With Me”)
Peter Godwin (“Images of Heaven,” “Baby’s in the Mountains”)

Hey, everyone loves Dave Wakeling and General Public, who are on the road most days of the year as they cross the country from their home base near Los Angeles!

Watch the official music video for “Tenderness” by General Public on YouTube:

Read Parklife’s 2017 interview with Dave Wakeling of The English Beat and General Public!

The Berglund Performing Arts Theater in Roanoke is a polished, intimate venue with excellent acoustics and clear sightlines. Hosting Lost ’80s Live, it’s the perfect spot to relive era‑defining nostalgic hits. Bright lights, vibrant sounds, and up‑close performances by A Flock of Seagulls and others make it a delightful ’80s night out. For visitors from beyond Roanoke, Berglund Center delivers charm and a professional stage — well worth the trip to Virginia’s Blue Ridge.

Sadly, this show has been cancelled. 

Lost 80s Live
w/ A Flock of Seagulls, General Public, Big Country, The Vapors, The Icicle Works, China Crisis,
Josie Cotton, Belouis Some, The Polecats, Peter Godwin
Berglund Performing Arts Theater
Saturday, August 9
Show @ 6pm
$55 GA/$804 Tables
All ages