Swedish hardcore heroes Refused will release their fifth studio album, War Music, this fall. It’s out officially on October 18th and marks their first release under a new record deal with Spinefarm and Search & Destroy.
Lead single “Blood Red” will be unleashed in full on August 2nd, but a 30-second teaser can be heard below. Update: Listen to “Blood Red” in full here.
Refused have already been performing “Blood Red” in concert, including playing it for the first time in the United States at a show in Philadelphia in May (watch below). The band released the following statement about the song:
“In the present moment, we who believe in the equal distribution of wealth in an egalitarian, ecological direct democracy, we who use gender-neutral pronouns and words like solidarity, moral responsibility, intersectionality and class warfare, we who believe in the Marxist dictum, ‘from each according to ability, to each according to need’ are on our back foot, on our backs, backed up against the wall, surrounded by enemies, our movement curtailed, our rights violated. It’s been clear for some time: the sun is setting on our beliefs.
But we still believe that capitalism is cancer
and we still believe it can be cured.
We still believe that the patriarchy is cancer
and we still believe it too can be cured.
We still believe in the power of art to transform and expand the mind.
And last but by no means least:
We still believe in the total violent obliteration of the one percent.
Blood red until we’re f**king dead.
Let’s go.”
Refused recently released another new song called “Chippin’ In” as part of the in-game soundtrack to the upcoming Cyberpunk 2077 video game, but it’s not yet known whether that track will appear on their upcoming War Music album.
(Review: Refused and Distillers Play Club Show After Weather Nixes Sonic Temple Sets)
We caught Refused and The Distillers at an impromptu tiny club show in Columbus, Ohio, in May, after their sets at Sonic Temple Festival were canceled due to weather. Refused played “Blood Red” at that gig, as well, along with favorites from their classic 1998 album, The Shape of Punk to Come.
