Refused: 'The Shape Of Punk To Come' Oral History from Breaking Up the Band to Defining Their Career

[@altpress]

What's YOUR favorite track on 'The Shape Of Punk To Come?' Tell us! And don't forget to subscribe to APTV and turn on all notifications so you never miss a video!

[@Badmazza1]

Summer holidays vs punk routine spoke to me the loudest. It was like a hardcore look at Peter Schiller's Major Tom coming home.

[@richardhayter3919]

New Noise !

[@candideggplant1575]

@Gabriel Malette Definitely "The Deadly Rhythm". The drumming is absolutely insane and the way the arranged the whole song is so incredibly forward thinking, they were doing progressive stuff without the whole awkward, hamfisted time changes

[@stephencooley5523]

Worms Of The Senses / Faculties Of The Worms Of Skull

[@M8WhoSk8s]

So many great ones it’s like I have 4 I think are 10/10 at least. Shape of punk to come, new noise, refused party program, refused are fucking dead. Man what a great record

[@rodchavoya]

the album initially only sold approximately 30,000 copies, everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band.

[@sydneykamer3434]

sunday morning...

[@fuckcensorship69]

Its true

[@axsent801]

"

[@DavidSGrop]

Unfortunately all those bands suck

[@mtr801]

@@DavidSGrop True

[@MrNerdyBrit]

I'm so thankful for this album, for a long time I didn't fully grasp it, but since I've become much more class conscious and just more aware of the world it's like a shot of adrenaline. This will always be one of my favorite albums.

[@TheTm9090]

Solidarity forever

[@chaunche81]

I came home really drink one late night and heard them for the first time on mtv2 of all places. I remembered that I was blown away by them. So much so that I luckily wrote their name down that night. I woke up the next day and saw that little scrap of paper and drove down to the local record store (yes, I actually had to go to an actual store. It was that long ago). I got the shape of punk to come and haven't stopped listening to that record to this day.

[@55tranquility]

Great album - I loved ‘Summerholidays vs punkroutine’ - the lines ‘So sick of not trying/ Scared that we might fail/ We'll accomplish nothing’ - it’s great I still use it when I’m looking for motivation to do something new or different - you have to take risks, be uncomfortable, yes you might fail but so what that’s what life is all about. Living is about doing things, it’s the joy of trying - if you stay the same because it’s safe and you think you may fail that’s not living

[@jsanabria]

"Not even failure..."

[@kevichiking3563]

I came home on LSD age 17 (1998) put on MTV 120 Minutes and recorded the video for "New Noise" on VHS. That was pretty much the moment I wanted to play hardcore.

[@RK-eo8gl]

I'm much older (1968), I became a fan of Punk/Alternative Rock soon after I saw the B-movie, RepoMan which was played off from a VHS tape back in the 80s. RepoMan was greatly entertaining flick, what was even better was its soundtrack which included Suicidal Tendencies, Blag Flag, Circle Jerks, FEAR, Iggy Pop along with others. I have been hooked on Punk ever since and now have a huge collection of recordings. Also, I'm not a huge fan of Refused but their version of Refused Is Fucking Dead from the compilation Punk O Roma kicks arse. It sounds even better when played back using headphones.

[@bufordteejustice1119]

I saw them in 2012 at the fillmore in Silver Spring Maryland. I ran into Dennis before the show and he was really nice. The guy that was with him asked me how old I was and then asked if I wanted to get in the pit with him. I was 35 at the time and hadn't been in a "pit" for a long time. I said "sure" and they walked away. Halfway through Refused set,the guy appears out of nowhere and says " let's go. " so I did. I was a great moment . Dennis gave me a shout out from the stage and it was an experience I won't forget. Refused are a band that should be more well known. Thanks Dennis.

[@Mike-ge7pe]

“Refused are fucking dead” is one of my favorite tracks by any band, period. Had it as my ringtone for years. The whole album is a masterpiece and severely under appreciated

[@Folk661]

This is One of my favourite records. I was really inspired by this record again at the time I was reading about the development and pre release press of cyberpunk. I was listening to this on my record player and at the gym and getting really influenced. I had a bunch of music written that I thought would be fitting for the character Johnny Silverhand. I talked to my spouse about how I should send my music in and see if the developers like it. Then, something like a week later they announce that Refused would be the band for this game, I was just dumbfounded. It’s like the record just suddenly had an aesthetic and cultural significance that connected me to this wavelength. Also took some of the wind out of my sails, but I do still plan on releasing the music.

[@edgecrush3r]

"The Shape of Punk to Come" is a masterpiece and i still listen to it this day. It has a message which is a perfect echo of the past and times to come.

[@SakuyaKira24]

Shape of punk to come is actually my favorite album.

[@triggerbunny]

Proud to say I purchased this album around the time it came out & have always kept it in rotation to some degree. Truly unique album & will always stay in my collection.

[@mysticsoul7284]

I love Cyberpunk 2077 and of course loved the music from Samurai and then wanted MORE music from them so, was lucky to find a mod that had some Refused songs in it. Listened to those and then was like, I need MORE again! I definitely agree with Denis about his recommendations for those that are wanting to hear more of their songs. I listened to all their older stuff but it's not my type of music. But I LOVED Born on the Outs, Damaged III, Economy of Death, Servants of Death, Electra and Blood Red. Now I added more of their songs to my daily listening and I'm really happy they changed their music style years ago. They're my current favorite band in 2024! All started for me, with the game. I hope the game brings Refused LOTS of fans! :)

[@amberdean1263]

Amazing, more content like this please! Love Refused

[@adamlawson5021]

They tell me that the classics never go out of style, but they do... Someday baby, I never thought, but we do too.

[@cicolasnage5684]

I GOTTA BONE TO PICK WITH CAPITALISM!!!

[@historynerd85]

I first heard "New Noise", then I my record store was playing more. I had to have it, I got the CD first but then the Vinyl. It was the first vinyl I bought myself, I was so proud. This album really changed my life

[@joeybasstard8133]

Legendary. The shape of punk to come is my fav record ever made. Ahead of its time at the time of its release.

[@robbgnarly]

one of the most under rated bands of all time Summerholidays vs Punkroutine is the jam

[@peterogrodnick5693]

It’s a bit of a cliche statement but it was an album that was WAY ahead of its time. When a coworker played it for me when I was 17 I didn’t get it. Once I got older i gave it another go and that’s when I truly understood and fell in love with this band. I will be seeing them in Toronto on their final tour and I honestly can’t wait. It will the first and final time I will see them headline.

[@PutSumStank]

Did anybody else get their hands on a copy the DVD that they released called the refused are fucking dead??

[@richardhayter3919]

Yep, I did 👍🏼

[@eduardolopez7670]

Yeah. I might’ve even had two, tho now I think my sister has two.

[@bufordteejustice1119]

I have it. It's a great look into the band.

[@louisleon4419]

I recently made a list of my favorite 10 hardcore/metal records of all time and number one was the shape of punk to come. Second was the Dillinger Escape Plan's Calculating Infinity and third was Deftones' Diamond Eyes

[@theaspiration]

Excellent picks. I'm a huge DEP fan as well and Deftones are one of those forever, iconic bands that broke new ground and continued to hold that ground.

[@louisleon4419]

@@theaspiration Awesome man. U should make a list like that too!

[@brandonisweird7000]

I loved how I decided to dive deeper into who Dennis is and of course he recommends all the songs on my playlist. Elektra is really good.

[@abcdefghijkl5408]

One of my top 5 albums of all time....such a journey listening front to back

[@neilfrombaldivis4243]

Phenomenal record. Arguably the greatest release of all time in terms of punk rock, hardcore music…

[@peaceray1384]

Incredible band they deserved so much more credibility and accolades than they had. A very influential band. I know it's not about the accolades but they were a big deal to a lot of people and I feel should have been rewarded as such.

[@semaymediaID]

One of the most successful bands in the hardcore-punk music scene 20 years after this album was released, and even disbanded. How rare!

[@kvk1]

This is a seminal record for everybody I know. Refused Are Fucking Dead is one of the greatest songs ever written.

[@M8WhoSk8s]

The shape of punk to come is easily one of the greatest hardcore records of all time that’ll always be a gem because of its sporadic and polarising release and how it turned into something that really influenced a lot of hardcore coming out in the 2000s

[@neilsoncoombs4319]

Found them through victory style 2 , songs to fan the flames.. and a few videos on a burning heart vhs. Later my friends were planning to see them tour the new album (shape of..) and i bailed last minute. It became a huge regret. I made up for it by catching the reunion tour 20 something years later.

[@Insanabiliter_In_Linea]

Just discovered this band recently, didn't realize I had already listened to them in Cyberpunk 2077 lol, so I felt like I had just found a band that sounds a _lot_ like Samurai before I realized who they actually are. They're a killer punk band, one of the best ones I've found in ages, I don't know how I've never listened to them before, love the creativity and experimentation they express while still retaining their punk roots. New Noise is especially a wildly good song but the whole album is a masterpiece. The fact that the record wasn't popular when it first released is downright tragic and frankly kinda stupid, even though it's pretty experimental it's still blatantly a hardcore punk album at its core, it's so antithetical to see punks discouraging creative freedom tbh.

[@nicp2039]

Thank u for this album, changed totally the way i see music. I will always be in your debt Love the nick cave poster, RIP to his son

[@nicp2039]

Who was your fav bands to play alongside with?

[@yotaiji012]

One of my favorite albums, truly ahead of it’s time.

[@allworries]

Only 833 views? Jeez wake up alt press subscribers

[@brunov.7411]

Unfortunately most AP subscribers probably never even heard of Refused. They are missing out.

[@allworries]

@@brunov.7411 Sad but true. Their version of screamo never would've existed without Dennis although obviously they're much more important than that. I did see Dennis's other band play to almost no one in Boston a couple years ago though he was reasonably upset about that.

[@qi_kayon]

I always heard the lyric “I took the first bus” as “Ill take the first punch”

[@robek2623]

Didnt like it when it came out since songs to the fan.. was so good snd wanted a follow up on that. But this album has grown. A classic beyond punkrock. Beyond just music.

[@candydormizzi2500]

Legends !

[@nogrecords]

Dennis Lyxzén is among the greatest screamers AND singers of all time. In my opinion, he and Chester Bennington are the GOATS of screaming on a record

[@taprootlp36]

GET ICE CREAM!

[@Vatolicious]

New noise literally shaped music for the next decade or more. Kids heard refused on thps sound track and started bands like underoath

[@OhanaFilms]

Great record

[@MagnumDB]

13:07 - A bit of Youth Code, Race Traitor and Refused from the show I attended: kzbin.info/www/bejne/sGabl61sfbljZrM

[@duhmynameisbill]

Who did you tour with in the 90s. Need to hear stories.

[@gunsofsalbert]

Saw them at a small club in Louisville, KY around Summer of '96 (I believe) that was way over capacity. They were touring with Snapcase and played just before them on a four or five band bill. The show was so packed and so hot that pretty much everyone was drenched in sweat like we were doing Bikram yoga. And at least one or two people passed out from heat exhaustion and had to be carried outside.

[@yoli5779]

@@gunsofsalbert why did they play house basements towards the end??

[@ubamahitsquad]

Your band has influenced me.

[@Badmazza1]

I picked up that record along with Plays Pretty For Baby by NoU while working at a distro in 98. I listened to it three times in a row. Hardcore kids at that time were morons.

[@shipwreckedonapopulatedisland]

Just because you like it doesn't make others morons, there were bands at the time like Snapcase that were doing "different" hardcore. So if someone didn't like them I can refer to them as a moron?

[@loud_laughter]

I’m so confused. I love this record, but it didn’t define or redefine anything. There were already bands like this. Maybe coming from a hardcore perspective it seems new. But coming from indie rock, backwards to a hardcore band that is now playing indie rock, it just sounds like a band. And really good band.

[@cicolasnage5684]

It did shape what the next few years of harder edged music would sound like. This album came out in 98. There weren’t a lot of bands that really sounded like the stuff that came off of shape of punk to come and if there were they hadn’t made it big yet. As far as the indie argument goes that doesn’t hold water, it’s not called the shape of indie to come it’s called the shape of punk to come which is appropriate being punk and hardcore would have a major shift in sound come the millennium I’d never heard anything like it at the time and I was 13 years old so I was tuned in pretty good to music.

[@loud_laughter]

@@cicolasnage5684 i’m not totally sure what you were listening to in 98, but at the drive-in had already put out 2 records. Fireside seemed “old” band by 98. They were also from Sweden. I think they had 3 major label releases by that time. (Btw, Bin Juice 2022 is EXCELLENT) Yes, Refused had more of a hardcore background and influenced a lot of bands, but refuse also only made one good record. Their previous stuff was really horrible hard-core, and the stuff they tried to do after was derivative of an image they created. it was almost like they were a cover band of themselves. It was awful. So yes, the shapeof punk to come was a great record. And yes, it seemed to influence others, but it wasn’t new or fresh in my mind. I think your best argument for them would be that they mastered a balance on this record. A balance between genres that many other bands try to replicate. Like Vaux, (Recover), Far, Trans Megetti, etc.

[@loud_laughter]

@@cicolasnage5684 I should say that I’m not totally disagreeing with you. Maybe I’m just getting into the details. I’m reading between the lines too much.

[@ChristopherSchmier]

That's a bit of an interesting take. Not even Radiohead were mixing Rock with Electronica back in 1998 - a thing they usually get a lot of credit for as pioneers - so i'd be quite interested if you could recommend me a band that brought together Jazz, Techno, Electronica, Classical and Indie Rock (as a substitute for Refused's Post-Hardcore).

[@loud_laughter]

@@ChristopherSchmier yeah, I don’t know. I’m one of those guys that took at least a decade to accept Radiohead desertion of rock ‘n’ roll. I was hoping they would save it.

[@FutureMemories1983]

Why is everyone’s benchmark always “people aren’t gay enough?” Lol you ever heard of the preservation of the species

[@tzasin7122]

Yo fake names is the shit too go dennis

[@glenbellefonte9620]

A lot of cute ideas about socialism that hardly work in larger nations similar to the US. If it weren't for capitalism, no one would be listening to this now.

[@trefwoordpunk2225]

Get a life

[@Demention94]

A lot of cute ideas about Capatlism too. Sure we would be, people are capable of conversation right?

[@aske___4533]

simping hard I see

[@fuckcensorship69]

I think it is any fan's duty to steal refused's equipment bc wealth distribution

[@glenbellefonte9620]

@@Demention94 some are.