In case you missed it in yesterday's Coachella line-up announcement, Swedish hardcore greats Refused are getting back together to play some shows. That's right, Refused aren't fucking dead! And if the unveiled concert poster had you unconvinced, the Umeå outfit have delivered an official statement confirming their comeback.
The announcement starts off with a brief history of the band, explaining how they started up, how they broke up on a U.S. tour in 1998, and how they grew apart. It seems, however, that after all these years focusing on other projects -- guitarist Kristofer Steen got a degree from the Swedish Opera Academy, guitarist Jon Brännström was in medical school, and vocalist Dennis Lyxzén and drummer David Sandström kept playing in a bunch of bands (including AC4) -- they eventually ended up jamming again. And that's when Coachella started calling.
"There were a couple of phone-calls, lots of skepticism, some hesitant enthusiasm before one of us basically said: '-- This is ridiculous. There are friends of ours who would murder close relatives just to go see bands there. Let's just do it, one last time,'" the group wrote. "And with that, socialist fag-loving pc scumbags were on the road again."
First up for the group are the previously mentioned Coachella dates (April 13, 20), and they've also announced they'll be playing Gothenburg, Sweden's Way Out West Festival in August.
One reason for the redo is to give due respect to their highly regarded 1998 platter The Shape of Punk to Come. Considering the squabbling and immediate fall-apart the band experienced shortly after delivering the disc, Refused are pleased to have the opportunity to play the tunes in a clearer state of mind.
"We never did The Shape of Punk to Come justice back when it came out, too tangled up in petty internal bickering to really focus on the job. And suddenly there's this possibility to do it like it was intended," they said. "We wanna do it over, do it right. For the people who've kept the music alive through the years, but also for our own sakes. We feel that you deserve it and we hope the feeling is mutual."
It remains to be seen whether the reunion will be covered in frontman Lyxzén's impending autobiography.
The announcement starts off with a brief history of the band, explaining how they started up, how they broke up on a U.S. tour in 1998, and how they grew apart. It seems, however, that after all these years focusing on other projects -- guitarist Kristofer Steen got a degree from the Swedish Opera Academy, guitarist Jon Brännström was in medical school, and vocalist Dennis Lyxzén and drummer David Sandström kept playing in a bunch of bands (including AC4) -- they eventually ended up jamming again. And that's when Coachella started calling.
"There were a couple of phone-calls, lots of skepticism, some hesitant enthusiasm before one of us basically said: '-- This is ridiculous. There are friends of ours who would murder close relatives just to go see bands there. Let's just do it, one last time,'" the group wrote. "And with that, socialist fag-loving pc scumbags were on the road again."
First up for the group are the previously mentioned Coachella dates (April 13, 20), and they've also announced they'll be playing Gothenburg, Sweden's Way Out West Festival in August.
One reason for the redo is to give due respect to their highly regarded 1998 platter The Shape of Punk to Come. Considering the squabbling and immediate fall-apart the band experienced shortly after delivering the disc, Refused are pleased to have the opportunity to play the tunes in a clearer state of mind.
"We never did The Shape of Punk to Come justice back when it came out, too tangled up in petty internal bickering to really focus on the job. And suddenly there's this possibility to do it like it was intended," they said. "We wanna do it over, do it right. For the people who've kept the music alive through the years, but also for our own sakes. We feel that you deserve it and we hope the feeling is mutual."
It remains to be seen whether the reunion will be covered in frontman Lyxzén's impending autobiography.
