Ok this is exciting. Refused dissolved in 1998 – long before I actively listened to music. I encountered their music as one of those long-dead bands, that had not only broken up, but also resulted in new, successful projects like the international noise conspiracy. And their breakup was probably the coolest possible. They peaked, gained mainstream success – and quit. Their first video on MTV (New Noise) would also be their last.
Oh, I loved Dennis Lyxzén’s voice, the noisy guitars, the tongue-in-cheek style mixes and political messages. Their visual and musical style was ahead of their time in many ways; I can think of few artists I liked in the 2000s that did not, in one way or another, remind me of Refused. In the bubble of Alternative/Indie/Rock/Punk/Hardcore music, they were influential, and doesn’t “Hipster culture” look a lot like Refused in 96? Oh well.
Imagine my nerdgasm when I heard Elektra a couple weeks ago. Energetic just like the old songs, angry at the world. And not only that – there would be an album?!? Released in the summer? Wow, just wow. That album then would feature fresher songs, that still sound a lot like Refused – Francaphrique for example, which sounds like TINC started a song, and in between, Dennis Lyxzén remembered his hardcore roots. And now they are touring? Oh no…
