Michael Doherty's Music Log: Charming Disaster at Permanent Records Roadhouse, 3-5-26 Concert Review

Charming Disaster

Los Angeles has more than its fair share of cool little music venues. One of the coolest is Permanent Records Roadhouse, where last night we were treated to excellent sets by both Artichoke and Charming Disaster. It is a record store, a live music venue and a bar. So, yeah, nearly everything that makes me happy is located in this space. I could probably just live there if they'd allow it. Maybe they would. I didn't ask. I did get there early enough to check out their patio vinyl selection. There were fewer boxes than usual, but that was fine because it meant I had time to go through each box and not worry that I was missing something. Did I find any records worth buying, you ask? Did I! I got the soundtrack to Wild In The Streets and an unopened copy of the self-titled debut Cruzados record from 1985. Only a dollar each. Life is good, despite all the efforts of the monsters in the White House and Congress to ruin our party.

And life is especially good when there are some fantastic bands playing. Artichoke started the night off, taking the stage at 6:40 p.m., the band members all dressed in green. Their very first song contained a reference to Kurt Vonnegut, so of course I fell madly in love with them immediately. Shawn Nourse was sitting in on drums for this set, which was great. Lead singer and guitarist Timothy Sellers stepped off the stage and into the audience at one point during that first song, and then again during the second song, that time going all the way to the opposite wall. "You know, I love not being tethered to my guitar," he said once he was back on stage. There was a delicious pop punk (or punk pop?) flavor to their music, and also a sense of humor. That second song, "Cool People," is on the band's latest album, which is available on vinyl. And the band's next song ended with a Camper Van Beethoven reference. My favorite song of the set was "Skull With 3 Eyes," another song from the band's newest album, a self-titled release. That song had a particularly delicious rhythm, and some great lyrics, with lines like "I had a dream that lasted all my life" and "I found me an answer, but the problem disappeared" standing out. And when Timothy sang the line about loving the 1980s sound but not the drums, Shawn stopped playing for a moment. The Charming Disaster duo made an appearance during one of Artichoke's songs, carrying paintings back and forth in front of the stage. And for the following song, a guy in the audience did the same thing with a sign that read, "No Kings: An American Tradition Since 1776," that sign receiving appropriate cheers from the audience. Timothy then announced that the next song was one we might know. "Is it 'Trash Day'?" a woman called out. "It is 'Trash Day,'" Timothy confirmed. A song about trash day in Highland Park, and another delight. The band has quite a few songs about Highland Park. The set ended with one of the band's many songs about scientists, "Galileo Galilei." "Well, there may be a center, but it's not Earth," the band sings in this one, something certain religious people still haven't grasped. The set ended at 7:24 p.m.

"Gang Of Two"

Charming Disaster was on the stage and ready to go less than ten minutes later. While the Artichoke guys were all in green, the Charming Disaster duo was dressed all in pink. Ellia Bisker announced that they'd come all the way from New York to bring us songs inspired by the dark, and that the set would be determined by a deck of oracle cards, each card representing a song in the duo's repertoire. Not only would we be treated to a delicious set of music, but, after a fashion, our fortunes would be told. Jeff Morris stepped out into the audience to get a volunteer to select the first card, and thus the first song. What was drawn was the Misadventure Card, signifying "Gang Of Two," a song from the band's newest album, The Double, and perhaps a perfect opening number. At one point during the song, Ellia blew up a balloon and briefly played it before letting it fly off. "So that's the current situation," she said after the song, and announced that the second card is "what crosses us." Interestingly, the Artichoke Card was drawn, and when Jeff announced that, the crowd cheered. There was a larger cheer toward the end of the song when Ellia and Jeff held a note for an impressively long time. Ellia played kazoo on that one.

"Showgirl"

The next card was, as Ellia explained, "what crowns us." Jeff announced the card selected was The Captive/Captor Card, and the duo began "Stockholm Syndrome." The next card drawn was the Showgirl Card, for the song "Showgirl," which they mentioned was a true story. The song featured more kazoo toward the end, and was a total fucking delight, one of my favorite songs of the set. Ah yes, we all get carried away at one time or another, and I suppose if we get carried away enough, someone will come and really carry us away. "Grifters" followed, with the lines "Those fish'll be begging for the hook/Reeled in by our seductive serenade." Certainly by that point, everyone in the audience was hooked. Charming Disaster invites an audience into its own realm, its own game, making willing participants of us all. And someone in the audience did me the kind favor of choosing the Lighthouse Card, for the song "Haunted Lighthouse," one of my favorites from the latest album, and the one I would have requested last night had it been that sort of a gig. While the card was being drawn, Ellia mentioned that the card would signify the immediate future, saying playfully, "It's coming up so immediately that this information will not help you." Perhaps so, but the music most certainly helped me.

"Time Machine"

It was after "Haunted Lighthouse" that Ellia explained the type of reading that was being done, the Celtic Cross, and that while the cross was now complete, the final four cards would make up the staff. The duo offered plugs for the various goodies on the merchandise table, including not only CDs and records and T-shirts but also card decks. Then they opened up for a brief question and answer session. The first question someone shouted out: "What's your favorite color?" Ellia answered pink, while Jeff chose black. Another person asked for their favorite dinosaur, and both answered "Triceratops" simultaneouly. Back to the music, the next card selected was the Monsters Cards. "Monsters" is the lead track from the duo's Super Natural History album, released in 2023, and it is a song I love. They delivered a particularly good rendition last night. "We are grotesque and powerful." "Blacksnake" was up next, that song containing a Macbeth reference, which I appreciated. And the woman behind me was especially excited when the next card was drawn, the Manta Ray Card. "Manta Rays," if you haven't yet heard it, is a completely fun song from Super Natural History. It's a song that makes me laugh every time I listen to that album, and it made me laugh last night too. Ellia explained that the final card was the conclusion card, the card that would tie everything together. What was picked was the Time Machine Card. "Time Machine," a song from the latest album, seemed the perfect choice to conclude the evening, with lines like "It's not too late/To change the past/The future, it won't last" and "This moment's all we've got." That and the "Artichoke" card made me wonder briefly if there was a bit of the magician's method of getting a volunteer to select the desired card at play there. But no matter either way. It was a fantastic performance, ending at 8:34. This was the first stop on the band's west coast tour. Those folks in Fresno, Albany (California, that is), Eugene, Portland, Seattle and Vashon should keep an eye out for this band over the next ten days. Check the duo's website for more information.

Charming Disaster Set List