The punk supergroup that is Professor And The Madmen are a prolific outfit. Four studio albums in as many years is some going, especially given the fact members have been busy with a range of other projects. Indeed, drummer Rat Scabies alone has been involved in three separate album releases during 2020.
The band consist of Alfie Agnew, (Adolescents, D.I.), Sean Elliott (D.I., Mind Over Four), Rat Scabies (legendary original drummer with The Damned) and Paul Gray (current and classic era bassist with The Damned). Formed in 2016 following a meeting at a party and a subsequent session, the band’s output thus far has been a classy match-up of cross-Atlantic punk musical minds, inspired by the song-writing of Alfie and Sean.
2016’s Good Evening, Sir! and Elixir, Vol 2: Election, got the band moving. A fallow year followed (!) before Disintegrate Me appeared in 2018. Finally, a live album recorded in London, Live At The 100 Club, was released in 2019.
2020 is upon us, with all its darkness and uncertainty. So, thank fuckin’ god there is another Professor And The Madmen long player due. And the fact it is an album a world away from their previous releases makes it even more hotly anticipated.
Séance was recorded either side of the Atlantic. Vocals, effects and guitars in the United States, rhythm section in the United Kingdom.
The result is unconventional. A concept album. A concept album made by a punk band, featuring the man whose tribal drum sound heralded the dawn of British punk rock. Rat pounded out the intro to the UK first punk rock single, New Rose, see. Seance comes complete with the world’s first punk rock board game. Yep, you read that correctly. The vinyl has the game on its gatefold sleeve, the compact disc version has the game on an insert. Up to five players can take part, go to iconic venues, get mugged on the underground on route, steel cash and get up to all manner of other gig-night related activities. If only in 2020, eh?
As you can see, this is no ordinary release. The ‘concept’ is a séance held by a group of friends, who wish to say a final goodbye to friends already passed. In the supernatural fog they visit purgatory and hell and get a check on their own current ‘reality’. There is a twist at the album’s finale.
But is it any good?
Totally. A breath of much-needed air, loaded with strong tunes and plenty of humour, an understandable (not always the case with concept albums) plot line and of course, tight as you like musicianship. Its running time just flies by, with plenty loaded into its duration. Especially stylistically -
‘It’s less punk-influenced than our previous three albums. The 1960s and ‘70s musical influences are more pronounced. We’re big fans of The Kinks, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Brian Wilson, Led Zeppelin and of course, The Damned.’ - Alfie Agnew
PATM’s trio of long players are not just punk rock records. There are touches of progressive rock (Haunted House and End Of The World from Good Evening, Sir!), psychedelia (Space Walrus from Disintegrate Me) and bright sixties mod rock (Faces, from Elixir, Vol 2).
So, the many musical styles of Séance should come as no surprise. Furthermore, The Damned’s more complex moments, such asCurtain Call, heavily featured both Rat and Paul. The new album contains a heavy dose of English and West Coast sixties pop and has very definite influences of The Monkees and The Kinks. The material is written by Alfie and Sean, and both have proved over time what gifted, inventive and productive song writers they are -
‘I’m always impressed by the high quality of tunes they (Alfie and Sean) bring me.’ - Rat Scabies
‘My thoughts were Damned meets Cheap Trick via The Kinks.’ - Paul Gray
Moving through Séance, it is clear from the opening notes and words it is a different kind of animal. The spacey, atmospheric sonics of All the Lonely Souls, set the scene, assisted by Sean Elliot’s other worldly vocals. He continues the vocal duties on the title track, which builds up the tension and then rips in nicely, introducing and arranging the séance itself. The album is propelled forward from this moment. A muscular track, by no means an out and out punk tune. It is bright, full on and contains narrative. After contacting the dead, the ‘This is what they said’ line is effective. Simple but phrased in such a way you want to hear what happens next.
This review will not go ahead and tell you what happens next, however. Go buy the record and find out. Or at lease download it.
The review, however, will highlight the rest of the album. The Alfie Agnew sung Song Long has a nice blustery feel, and Real Me has a definite sixties sound swagger. It lies somewhere between The Monkees and The Small Faces. Possibly even with a touch of Liam Gallagher’s arrogance.
Time Machine, an appropriate title for a tune in this project, is pure pop bounce combined with a Beach Boys-esq quality. The sing-along ‘da-da-da’ hook grabs the listener instantly.
A Child’s Eyes is another blustery number, with vocals by Alfie. Like much of the album Paul Gray’s bass line is highly melodic, leading the track along.
A real highpoint is the riffy Two Tickets For The After Life. Bluesy rock riffage, terrific vocal harmonies, dynamics and humour. What more do you want? It’s all waiting for you -
‘We got bills! We got pills! We got million-dollar bills!’
It is followed by the quirky step of The Council of Purgatory. An acoustic guitar with a subtle, restrained vocal and a medium tempo. Early era Pink Floyd, right up to the pre-Dark Side Of The Moon album Meddle, is a decent reference point. It is crucial to the plot, too.
Any self-respecting concept album would not be complete without some sort of musical reprise. It is provided here with All The Lonely Souls Reprise. To be fair, PATM have used reprised musical pieces before, such as Special from Elixir Vol 2: Election. A prog rock instrumental, All The Lonely Souls Reprise has a definite ‘70s Floyd influence. It also gives the listener a few moments to catch breath and absorb what has taken place thus far.
Just in time for the conclusion courtesy of Greeting From The Other Side and New World. Both pieces feature vocal from Sean. Fantastic stuff. No spoilers - have a listen for yourself.
⃰
A band containing the talent and experience, not to mention the intelligence and wit, of Professor And The Madmen, should be capable of producing a good concept album. And boy, they have.
The joy of Séance is not just in its swoops, songs, dynamics, variety of styles, performance and storyline. It is in the fact that the concept album is delivered in a succinct manner. It gets to the point and doesn’t hang around. Many a concept album in the past has been guilty of too much self-indulgence, waffle and unnecessary length. Séance not only has avoided all of that but is vibrant, fun and unique.
You need to contact it on November 13th, 2020. The date of its release.
