Cleveland – Monday 19 May – Pat’s in the Flats

Prizzy Prizzy Please from Bloomington, IN rock the pants off of Eli and Pamela, even if the rest of the crew has to enjoy the action from the back patio; Pat’s in the Flats proves to be a bastion for band-bonding, as all enjoy many, many Rolling Rocks and the non-freezing patio area. The resulting hangovers are worse in the Jon Garcia and the Best Laid Plans sector, as Jon himself ends up with a searing hangover that causes him to miss the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (get in free if you’re in a touring band and bring them a CD!), which sucks for him because the rest of the folks are shocked and awed by all of their heroes’ artifacts. Many report chills and gaping pie holes.

Side note: In a fit of ego and sleep-deprived delirium, Charmparticles seriously consider petitioning the Ohio state government to change the state nickname from “The Buckeye State” to “The Rest Stop State.” Their rest stops are the Ritz-Carlton to Oregon’s Econolodge.

Detroit – Tuesday 20 May – Paychecks Lounge

Sporting some of the most interesting clientele in the Detroit metro area (a fact that we can neither prove nor attempt to get out of our heads), the venue is in the heart of Hamtramck, Michigan. What can we say about Hamtramck that hasn’t been said about a truck stop bathroom that hasn’t been cleaned in 10 years? You don’t want to be there, but duty calls. The bleary-eyed bargoers part for the briefest of moments to produce Darrell, aka “Slim,” a tall, sparkling young man in a local rap outfit called the Havknotz. Slim stands directly in front of Pamela for the final three songs of the set… while the rest of the room is empty. Jon generously buys late night burgers for everyone at the local 24-hour “you-really-should-check-your-motivation-for-being-there” burger shop, where Jon, Jeff, and Eli witness a crime involving $10, a lot of shouting, fingernails, and a call to the cops. In her post-fracas state, the cashier stumbles upon the words to declare the price of the order: “That’ll be twenty… uh, twen… twuh… twenty fuckin’ forty-five.” All signs point to awesome.

Urbana – Wednesday 21 May – Independent Media Center

There is little to report about this show, as it is falsely advertised as being on the University of Illinois campus (which it wasn’t) and the local band that had been booked for it had to cancel because the drummer has broken his wrist (which sounds painful). The fellows running the place are quite nice, and a local shows the band of merry dorks to a place called Crane Alley where Sarah’s eyes roll back into her head and she snaps into a fetal position (in a good way) upon tasting the steak sandwich on the menu. Charmparticles sleep for 10 hours. Each.

Terre Haute – Thursday 22 May – The Verve

After being stoked on the mere 2-hour drive between Urbana and Terre Haute, the whole group become idiots of stokedness upon realizing that they can see the new Indiana Jones movie in Indiana. So as not to spoil anything for anyone, we’ll just say that it receives seven thumbs up… from a fairly tough crowd. There was just one element that is universally bothersome, but most are able to look past it. Anyway, Thursday night at The Verve is ladies’ night, so there are plenty of women in the house, and plenty of men in the house who have those women in their crosshairs. Easily the best-attended show of the tour, both groups play well and drink pretty much for free the entire night. This, of course, means that load-out is a farce, and herding up that last person to get them in the car is both necessary and terrifying as it is time to leave, but no time is a good time to become a barf receptacle. Just before leaving, a young man yells at Pamela from the roof of the club so that she’ll be able to see him plaster a Charmparticles sticker to the brick wall above the back door. The club owner, Connie, generously offers up her house for all seven van-goers, and all sleep soundly in an old four-square Midwestern house with breezes floating from window to window throughout the night. There are even donuts and coffee in the morning.

At The Verve:

Nate & Guitar Hero:

-Nathanael

Links:
CharmParticleSpace

Photos courtesy of Charmparticles.