I think last year's moth was a tiger moth of some sort, likely in the genus Grammia. I'm having a hard time pinning it down to a species level, but one significant feature seems to be that the abdomen/hindwings seem to be the same pale brown as the forewing markings, rather than being, for instance, orange or pink.

That's still a lot closer than I got in previous identification attempts - and only happened because I happened to see a picture of Grammia virgo while I was trying to identify yesterday's moth. Grammia virgo clearly isn't the correct species, though, based on range (doesn't come as far west as the coast) and body colour.