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Everyone who thinks “hey, don’t worry, bands and labels can make up all that money lost from dropping-like-a-stone CD sales on the road”–and even people who have some semblance of sense–should read this Oregonian piece on the effects of high gas prices on touring bands, which contains factoids like this: “But a $200 door guarantee doesn’t stretch nearly as far these days. [Portland duo] Talkdemonic, for example, travels in a van that gets close to 17 miles a gallon on the highway ‘if we don’t drive over 70 mph,’ O’Connor says. Covering the 635 miles to San Francisco takes about 37 gallons of gas each way. With gas well over $4, that’s more than $300 for a round trip.” (Hey, you know what can make up that shortfall? Selling CDs! Oh, wait.) [The Oregonian / Photo: Jamie Carroll]