Weird and crappy, but not totally uncommon misfortune, often befalls touring bands. Car trouble? It happens. Stolen gear? Pretty much a worst case scenario and yes, it seems to occur a lot. Not to mention high gas prices and the appallingly bad food one finds on the road. As Elvis Costello once sang, it's a dog's life, (whether) on a rope leash or a diamond collar.

The UK pop/electronica duo The Kills, however, may be holding the trump card when it comes to completely bizarre, not to mention annoying tour stories: Um, their ride disappeared. Not broken down, or it was impounded, or it was in a wreck; disappeared. The band have not seen their tour bus, or its driver, or their belongings, in a week. The bus was last seen by the band on September 26 in Los Angeles. The Kills left the confines of the bus in order to fly to Austin to play the Austin City Limits Festival. The bus was scheduled to make the drive to Austin, where it would be met by the band and crew. Well, things didn't exactly go as planned. It is thought that the driver may have fled from a previously unknown legal issue, or may have committed suicide. Now, rock n' roll really has seen it all. Here's what the band has to say on their MySpace blog:

I've got a lot of news from the road and i will fill you in soon, but first:

OUR BUS DRIVER IS MISSING AND/OR HURT/DEAD/or A THIEF. OUR BUS HAS DISAPPEARED.

How can 3 tons of black metal vanish into thin air?

Im asking myself the same fucking question.

Anyone seen a black ziggys tour bus traveling somewhere between los angeles and austin texas?

Eyes peeled ladies and gents

The Kills are obviously without their belongings at the moment, so if you have a spare pair of skinny jeans or black, vaguely rock n' roll-looking accessories, please forward to the band. They'll be at the Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn tonight and tomorrow for two sold out shows.