Particle Becomes Whole Again

At the close of Particle's winter tour, guitarist Charlie Hitchcock announced he was leaving the California quartet. After taking the winter to regroup, Particle is preparing to hit the road this spring with new members, guitarists Scott Metzger and Ben Combe. No stranger to the jamband scene, Metzger was a member of Rana and collaborates often with numerous bands, including his Led Zeppelin cover stints with Marco Benevento and Joe Russo. Not satisfied with just one new guitarist, Particle added Combe after being impressed with the Massachusetts native's audition CD.

The two new guitarists will join core members Steve Molitz (keys), Eric Gould (bass) and Darren Pujalet (drums). The new quintet made their first appearance last week at the Henry Fonda Theater in Hollywood, where they not only debuted the two new guitarists, they welcomed special guests like The Doors' Robbie Krieger, Joe Satriani, Blackalicious and DJ Logic.

Particle will kick off their spring tour at the SXSW festival in Texas on March 15 and finish up with appearances at the Green Apple Music Festival, NO Jazz Fest, the Joshua Tree Music Festival and the Ojai Global Groove Fest.