rat scabies

Seance - Professor and The Madman (Fullertone Records) 

Old punks don’t die. They just learn how to play their instruments and make concept albums. Stop right there. Don’t run screaming from the room. Professor and The Madman’s “Seance” is an album completely bereft of excess fat and self indulgence. 

This trans-Atlantic band is American singer-guitarists Alfie Agnew (Adolescents, DI) and Sean Elliott (DI, Mind Over Four) joined by Brits Paul Gray (bass) and Rat Scabies, who respectively are current and former members of The Damned. While that's a punk pedigree worth bottline, “Seance” is one diverse pop trip. 

What do you get when you mix two veterans of the SoCal punk rawk scene with a couple of its UK equivalent’s most storied names? This here disc, guv’nor, and a fine slice of rockin’ psych-tinged pop it is. 

Sometimes worlds collide in the best way possible and here’s a prime I’ll-have-one-thin-and-crispy-with-the-lot-and-don’t-forget-the-anchovies example. Genres are less a restrictive tag than a challenge for these guys. 

Alfie Agnew (a real-life maths professor) and Sean Elliott (he’d be the madman) are the US-based principals in Professor and The Madman. The pair played together in D.I., a long-running off-shoot of the Adolescents and Social Distortion, the former being from where Agnew came. 

Rat Scabies, of the (stillborn but legendary) London SS, The Mutants and of course The Damned, was co-opted as a recording member after guest-playing “Smash It Up” with Agnew and Elliott at a US show. The hook-up with Paul Gray - surely the best bassist The Damned ever had (and he’s back with them now), whose prior form includes Eddie & The Hotrods and UFO - came via Facebook. 

Sonny Vincent’s address book is fuller than a well-hung pornstar’s underpants so it’s no surprise to see him working with another star-studded gang on his latest album.

With his band drawn from the ranks of the Sex Pistols, the Stooges and The Damned, “Spiteful” is a gold-plated punk rock blast from go to whoa.

The Damned are the unassailable living gods of Punk Rock; and for the have assembled the absolute classic line-up of the band for their farewell Australian tour in 2024.

Drummer Rat Scabies has rebuilt bridges and will rejoin the ranks, which these days comprises vocalist Dave Vanian, guitarist Captain Sensible and bassist Paul Gray.

The word from the Rat: “It seemed like the right time. We wanted to do this while we are all still upright, breathing and capable of doing it at a high level and challenge ourselves and each other for the fans. 

“We will play the best of ‘Machine Gun Etiquette’, ‘The Black Album’ and ‘Strawberries’ albums and chuck in all the other classics. Paul’s playing great (just did the Professor and the Madmen album thing with him), as is Captain and Dave’s singing great too so it’s going to be amazing to be back."

You know the history: “New Rose” is recognised as the first single by a punk band, coming out five weeks before the Sex Pistols’“Anarchy In the UK”… the first British punk band to tour the United States…pathfinders for Goth Rock. 

The Damned havce been regular Australian tourists but the band is billing this as their last tour here. They'll be doing it on the back of a 2023 album, "Darkadelic" that comes 46 year after their debut LP.

Pre-sale tickets are on sale here at from December 5 

The Damned Australian Tour
2024
MAR
20 - The Tivoli, Brisbane
21 - Enmore Theatre, Sydney
22 - Northcote Theatre, Melbourne
24 - Hindley St Music Hall, Adelaide
26 - Astor Theatre, Perth

Ribspreader
Written, directed and produced by Dick Dale
Starring Tommy Darwin
Adelaide Nova Cinemas
Saturday, October 22, 2022

Would you go to see a slash 'n' splatter flick made in ‘Straya's Murder Capital of Adelaide with guest appearances by Chad Morgan, Chantal Contouri, Fred Negro, Spencer P. Jones, and Rat Scabies?

Do bears shit on the Pope?

Do excuse me, it's the morning after the night before and I'm mangling my metaphors. Anyway, last night I went to see one of the films at the Adelaide Film Festival. The world premiere of “Ribspreader”.

About a week-and-a-half prior, I'd tried booking online; after selecting two tickets, I was asked my email... and then, nothing happened. Maybe it didn't work. I tried again, found that their system now had me down for four tickets, asked me for my email and again, nothing happened. No email. After the second day of no email from the AFF I figured, I'll have to use “other sources”.