Swedish posthardcore greats Refused play Chicago one last time

Refused formed in Umeå, Sweden, in 1991 and spent the better part of a decade making ferocious, politically charged punk and hardcore. Though notoriously resolute in their leftist values, their aesthetic approach became increasingly fluid—they experimented with jazz, electronic music, metal, and more. When Refused played off the title of Ornette Coleman’s seminal 1959 avant-garde jazz album, The Shape of Jazz to Come, for their third record, 1998’s The Shape of Punk to Come, they were making a sincere artistic statement and delivering a tongue-in-cheek middle finger to purists and haters. “We did [it], in many ways, as a protest against what we felt was the conservative idea of what punk and hardcore should be,” front man Dennis Lyxzén said in a 2020 oral history for Alternative Press. “[The title] was kind of a piss-take—it could have been called Fuck You.” 

By the time the record arrived, though, relationships between the bandmates had frayed, and midway through a frustrating and tumultuous U.S. tour, Refused broke up in Atlanta (though they played one more show, truncated by the police, in Harrisonburg, Virginia). They later posted an open letter on their label’s website titled “Refused Are Fucking Dead,” bemoaning the capitalist commodification of art and culture and vowing to never play together again. But in their absence, the shape of punk did change, and so did the band. When Refused announced their reunion in 2012, some fans felt the band had betrayed their own values (writing for Indy Weekly in 2015, Gary Suarez described it as “self-imposed hypocrisy”), while others welcomed it as a posthardcore second coming—but starting conversations was part of the point. “Nowadays I’m not so confident that music will change the world, but it could definitely change our world, the world that you’re a part of,” Lyxzén told Rolling Stone in 2013. 

The world of which Refused were a part had evolved tremendously by the time of their return, due in part to their influence on new generations of bands. The Shape of Punk to Come proved particularly ahead of its time, and its track “New Noise” has appeared in a slew of films and TV shows, including The Bear. (Ironically, Refused were all vegans when they wrote the song that’s now “go time” music in a show about a Chicago Italian beef stand.) After their reunion, Refused released two more albums of righteous battle-ready music, 2015’s Freedom and 2019’s War Music, and last year they announced what was to be their final festival performance in Sweden. But the day before, Lyxzén suffered a massive heart attack. As he recovered, the band made plans for a proper farewell tour, which includes this Salt Shed show. Refused have always been a galvanizing force onstage, and they can be counted on to rise to this ugly political moment—as can openers Quicksand and Racetraitor, their comrades in hardcore’s good fight.

Refused Quicksand and Racetraitor open. Tue 3/25, 7:30 PM, Salt Shed, 1357 N. Elston, $55–$187.50, 17+