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Professor and the Madman (band)

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See also: The Professor and the Madman (film)

Professor and the Madman
OriginFullerton, California, U.S.
Genres
Years active2016–present
Labels
  • Fullertone Records
Members
Websiteprofessorandthemadman.com

Professor and the Madman is a four-piece American rock band featuring co-frontmen/songwriters Alfie Agnew and Sean Elliott, drummer Rat Scabies and bassist Paul Gray. Agnew had been in the punk bands Adolescents and D.I. and Elliott had played guitar in D.I.[1] Scabies and Gray were the rhythm section of The Damned, and they appeared together on a pair of The Damned's studio albums: The Black Album (1980) and Strawberries (1982).[2] Gray also played in Eddie and the Hot Rods and UFO.[3]

After playing in punk bands as an adolescent, Agnew left the scene for college at 18, and got out of music in the early '90s while going to graduate school. He is currently a math professor at CSU Fullerton.[4] In 2015, his ex-bandmate, Sean Elliott, got in touch with him about playing music together again.[5] Having reunited, they began collaborating on original music as Professor and the Madman.[6] The band's name is a nod to Agnew's professorial career, while also a reference to the book The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester.[7]

In 2015, Elliott contacted Agnew to play a reunion show with The Critens for a private Christmas party in Costa Mesa, California. At this gig, they met Scabies, who sat in with them for an encore of The Damned song "Smash It Up" – both Agnew and Elliott were fans of The Damned's The Black Album. They quickly invited Scabies back to Agnew's home studio to collaborate on an early Professor and the Madman song.[8][9] Pleased with the results, they invited him to be a permanent addition to the band and Scabies has played on all five Professor and the Madman albums. As a trio, they recorded the first two albums, 2016's Elixir 1: Good Evening, Sir! and Elixir 2: Election.[10]

After that, they brought Gray into the project.[11] In December 2016, Elliott reached out to him on Facebook, sent him some music, and Gray joined the band.[12]

Co-produced by the band and David M. Allen (The Cure, The Damned, The Sisters of Mercy), the Disintegrate Me album was released February 23, 2018 on the band's own Fullertone Records.[13] Agnew and Elliott wrote the music and lyrics and took turns singing lead.[14]

The video for the track "Space Walrus" premiered on Alternative Press on January 17, 2018.[15]

Agnew, Elliott, Gray and Scabies made their live concert debut as Professor and the Madman at London's 100 Club on August 10, 2018. This resulted in the live album, Live at the 100 Club, released by Fullertone Records on January 29, 2019.[16] Due to the fact that Agnew and Elliott reside in Southern California, and Gray and Scabies in the UK, scheduling concerts for the recording quartet has proved challenging. As a result, Agnew and Elliott have occasionally performed in the Los Angeles area with guest musicians Frank Agnew (Adolescents, T.S.O.L., 45 Grave), Mark Tolbert (Doggy Style, Crash Kills Four), and local drummer Nick Scalzo.[17]

The band's fifth album, Séance, released on November 13, 2020 on Fullertone Records, is a concept album revolving around a group of friends who hold a séance to say goodbye to their loved ones.[18] As with Disintegrate Me, the album was recorded remotely with Agnew and Elliott sending sound files from California to Scabies and Gray in the U.K. to record the drums and bass.[19]

Discography

[edit]

Studio albums

[edit]
Title Release date
Elixir 1: Good Evening, Sir! 
2016
Elixir 2: Election 
2016
Disintegrate Me 
February 23, 2018
Séance 
November 13, 2020

Live albums

[edit]
Title Release date
Live at the 100 Club 
January 29, 2019

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Wallis, Matt (September 12, 2020). "A Séance with Rat Scabies". Punktuation Magazine. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  2. ^ Wallis, Matt (September 12, 2020). "A Séance with Rat Scabies". Punktuation Magazine. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  3. ^ Popoff, Martin (June 17, 2018). "10 Albums That Changed My Life: Paul Gray". Goldmine. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  4. ^ Callwood, Brett (February 21, 2018). "SCHOOL'S IN SESSION WITH PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN". LA Weekly. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  5. ^ Brungardt, Leah (March 5, 2018). "An Interview With The Rock Group PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN!". All Access Music. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  6. ^ Callwood, Brett (February 21, 2018). "SCHOOL'S IN SESSION WITH PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN". LA Weekly. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  7. ^ Jones, Janelle (February 23, 2018). "Professor And The Madman Mesmerize On New LP". New Noise Magazine. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  8. ^ Burgess, Mick (September 4, 2020). "RAT SCABIES (PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN/THE DAMNED): "The direction is menacing and quite unnerving at times"". Metal Express Radio. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  9. ^ "PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN ARE SET TO EXPAND BEYOND THE CONFINES OF THEIR PUNK ROCK LEGACIES". 13 Stitches. December 14, 2017. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  10. ^ Gausten, Joel (February 23, 2018). "From Punk to Ph.D. and Back Again: A Chat with Alfie Agnew of Professor and the Madman". JoelGausten.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  11. ^ Burgess, Mick (September 4, 2020). "RAT SCABIES (PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN/THE DAMNED): "The direction is menacing and quite unnerving at times"". Metal Express Radio. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  12. ^ Gausten, Joel (February 23, 2018). "From Punk to Ph.D. and Back Again: A Chat with Alfie Agnew of Professor and the Madman". JoelGausten.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  13. ^ Callwood, Brett (February 21, 2018). "SCHOOL'S IN SESSION WITH PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN". LA Weekly. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  14. ^ "PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN ARE SET TO EXPAND BEYOND THE CONFINES OF THEIR PUNK ROCK LEGACIES". 13 Stitches. December 14, 2017. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  15. ^ Pettigrew, Jason (January 17, 2018). "INTRODUCING THE OLD-SCHOOL US/UK PUNK AXIS OF PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN". Alternative Press. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  16. ^ Astrocreep, DJ (October 20, 2018). "The BIG Über Rock Interview – Sean Elliott (Professor And The Madman)". Uber Rock. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  17. ^ Brungardt, Leah (March 5, 2018). "An Interview With The Rock Group PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN!". All Access Music. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  18. ^ Crandle, Tom (June 24, 2020). "News: Rat Scabies and Paul Gray Return with Professor and the Madman". New Noise Magazine. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  19. ^ Burgess, Mick (September 4, 2020). "RAT SCABIES (PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN/THE DAMNED): "The direction is menacing and quite unnerving at times"". Metal Express Radio. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
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