Culture Greyhound

Last month, Epitaph reissued The Shape of Punk to Come, the seminal hardcore album from the now-defunct Swedish band Refused.  In celebration, Pitchfork hosted the documentary Refused Are Fucking Dead for one week on Pitchfork.tv.  After viewing the film, I blew the dust off my old copy of the group’s third and final album for another listen.

What can I say that hasn’t been said before?  Even today, one cannot deny the influence and importance of this appropriately-titled record, and the world has taken notice.  The disc is one of the most acclaimed of the punk genre in recent memory. Incorporating drum machines and electronic noises, Refused strayed away from the purely traditional sounds of their previous releases in order to provide what they felt was an appropriate backdrop for their anti-establishment, left-wing lyrics.  New rhetoric, new approach.  Politics aside, the sounds of The Shape are revolutionary – inevitably more than the group’s message turned out to be.

Refused – New Noise

Refused – Liberation Frequency

Refused – Worms of the Senses/Faculties of the Skull