Particle: Full Circle

Words By J-man

LA band and former scene giant, Particle, lost their original guitarist to an untimely death early on in their existence; foreshadowing what would become continuous problems with that position in the band. Charlie Hitchcock joined Particle a mere six performances after the band's origination, yet was always treated like a hired hand. In 2005, Charlie was dismissed from Particle causing immediate controversy. The band claimed on their website that Charlie's departure was a mutual decision, however, Charlie would later come forward saying that it indeed was not.

Particle Live at Bonnaroo Music Festival on June 22, 2002.



In 2006, the band re-emerged in a "Transformation" with a revamped line-up featuring two new guitarists, Scott Metzger and Ben Combe. Within the year, Metzger was out. Again, controversy set in as claims of Scott having family issues to address came to light, while Scott continued to play with other projects and outwardly denied the band's story.

Particle Live at Gothic Theater on April 8, 2006.



Particle would continue on for a couple of years with Combe on guitar. Eventually, Combe was no longer performing with the band after deciding to "move in a different direction" and Particle took a guest guitarist approach, utilizing the talents of such players as Robbie Krieger (Doors), Michael Kang (String Cheese Incident), Brian Jordan and others. Combe would later return to play with Particle on and off.

Particle Live at Crosstown Station on April 17, 2009.



In the later years, Particle would call upon saxophonist, Pete Wall, and Charlie Hitchcock would return in 2010 for what would be billed as reunion gigs. The bad blood was still very evident and within a short time, Hitchcock would fade from the group.

Recently, Particle announced that they would be performing once again with both Metzger and Combe, raising the question of, "What the fuck is going on here?"

And here we are...

Particle Live at Fox Theatre on October 30, 2010.



www.particlepeople.com