Music Review: 'Nemesis' - Professor Elemental

Review by Steve J. Ray

It came... it finally came! It's hard to believe that it's been three years since the wonderful "School Of Whimsy", and while we've had the wonderful albums "Professor Elemental And His Amazing Friends: Part 2", and "The Good Dad Club" since then, but the cliffhanger at the end of "Whimsy" left me, and countless other Professor Elemental fans on tenterhooks.

Now, at last, the wait is over! With "Nemesis" we finally find out what happened to the Prof and Jeffers after being captured by Mr. Swan, Gideon, and an unnamed, though utterly terrifying, new enemy. The best part? The wait has proven to be well worth it!

The album begins with a pumping intro that shows the terrific atmosphere of one of the Prof's live shows, but by the second track, we start to realize that something's not right, thanks to the way the song ends. These tracks lull the listener into a false sense of security, before the world, and the album, go completely bonkers.

From the third entry onwards, the rest of the album becomes the fantasy/comedy/chap-hop/steampunk/sci-fi sequel we've all been craving since 2018.
We're introduced to the "Nemesis" of the title and learn why he hates The Prof so, and meet a bunch of amazing characters who are either enemies, allies, or both to our hero and his butler as the adventure progresses.

What follows is a trek through a time-locked Elemental Manor; a basement-dwelling, wall-crawling, bath-swimming, attic re-visiting, rap-battling masterpiece. It's a hilarious, thrilling, heartwarming, and heartbreaking romp for the lug-holes. "Nemesis" is easily the best Profesor Elemental Album since the last one.

Conclusion

If I have one tiny gripe about "Nemesis" is that, while I adore all the amazing guests that make an appearance, I do think that there's less Professor Elemental on the album than I would've liked. While on Previous releases The Prof at least duets or collaborates, there are tracks on "Nemesis" that are completely Prof Free. I know that he's been banished out of time and space, but "Prexit" is something I'd never sign up for.

Saying that what we do get is a sentient food, tin-soldier, time-travel, alternate reality slice of wonder that's well worth spending your hard-earned pennies on. In fact, if there's a vinyl release on the horizon, then I'll be buying a second copy!

"Nemesis" and the comic-book companion that comes with it, are absolute winners and highly recommended.

Art by Pete Woods (YES... THAT Pete Woods). Video and Music Courtesy of Professor Elemental, Tom Caruana, and Tea Sea Records

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thought Bubble 2024 convention & festival dates announced

Image
Article by Steve J. Ray Thought Bubble  is, without a doubt, the UK’s best entirely comic-based convention and art festival. I’ve been fortunate enough to attend the show for the last three years, and have been anxious to see what’s in store this year. Well, the wait is over, as the team behind the event has announced the Thought Bubble 2024 convention & festival dates. THOUGHT BUBBLE ANNOUNCES 2024 COMIC CONVENTION & FESTIVAL DATES ACCLAIMED COMIC ART CONVENTION AND FESTIVAL TO TAKE PLACE ACROSS YORKSHIRE THIS NOVEMBER THOUGHT BUBBLE FESTIVAL LEEDS & ACROSS YORKSHIRE 11 -17 NOVEMBER 2024 THOUGHT BUBBLE COMIC CONVENTION HARROGATE CONVENTION CENTRE 16 & 17 NOVEMBER 2024   https://www.thoughtbubblefestival.com “Thought Bubble is the place to be. This is the show where everyone feels and is treated like family” –  Dark Knight News “Thought Bubble is the most important comic convention around” –  Popverse Returning to the Harrogate Convention Centre,...
Read more

Mystic Muses: A D&D Podcast

Image
Article by Philip Clark An all queer cast. An all femme ensemble. A non-binary Dungeon Master. Throw in some quality story-telling and role playing too, this sounds like a whole lot of fun! If any of the previously mentioned things has piqued your interests, then I implore you to check out Mystic Muses. You can find this wonderfully crafted podcast where you can find all your other favourites including Spotify. There are currently four episodes out. Episode 0 is the prologue and character introductions, and I have to say it is very well put together! The intro to each episode is cleverly crafted, with the players and DM each sounding off a sentence to bring us into the game space. Speaking of bringing us into the game space, Adam, the talented DM sets the scene for the story very nicely. A descriptive, yet concise introduction to the environment gives both the players and audience a vibe of what we're in for. Then come the delicious character introductions that give vivid descripti...
Read more

Fantastic Universes Interview: Madison, Matthew and Macsen Lintz From 'The Walking Dead'

Image
Interview panel led by Steve J. Ray, with a gathering of Comic/TV Media Journalists. I've spoken to some amazing people over the last couple of years; writers, artists, costume designers, and actors from some of my favorite TV shows. It's no secret that I'm a huge comic-book fan, and one of the TV series that's based on and inspired by a comics title - but has gone on to be so much more - is The Walking Dead . At a recent Comic-Con in London, I had the great opportunity of leading a panel where some fellow journalists and I spoke with Madison, Matthew and Macsen Lintz, three siblings who played Sophia and both iterations of Henry on the show. The eldest, Madison Lintz (born 1999) played Sophia Peletier - Carol's daughter - in the first two seasons. She's also well known for playing Maddie Bosch in the Amazon series Bosch . She started acting at the age of six, filming commercials and voice-overs. Matthew (born 2001) took over the role of Henry from ...
Read more