Punk legends Refused announce War Music album and Blood Red single

Refused
(Image credit: Tim Tronckoe)

Swedish punk legends Refused have announced the release of a new album, War Music. The follow-up to 2015's Freedom, it'll be released on October 18.

The band have also released a teaser video for Blood Red, the first single for the album, which is out on August 2.

Refused have also released a statement that reads: "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 fucking dead.

"Let's go."

Refused have also announced a Scandinavian tour for December. This is in addition to the band's already announced UK dates in late October and early November. Tickets are on sale now

Refused tour dates
Oct 26: Birmingham Academy, UK
Oct 27: Glasgow Barrowlands, UK
Oct 29: Bristol Academy, UK
Oct 30: London Brixton Academy, UK
Oct 31: Manchester Academy, UK
Nov 01: Nottingham Rock City, UK
Nov 03: Amsterdam Melkweg, NL
Nov 04: Cologne Carlswerk, DE
Nov 05: Hamburg Grosse Freheit, DE
Nov 07: Brussels Ancienne Belgique, BE
Nov 08: Paris Elysee Montmatre, FR
Nov 10: Milan Alcatraz, IT
Nov 11: Munich Tonhalle, DE
Nov 12: Berlin Huxleys Neue Welt, DE
Dec 11: Copenhagen Vega, DK
Dec 12: Lund Mejeriet, SE
Dec 13: Gothenburg Pustervik, SE
Dec 14: Stockholm Berns, SE
Dec 15: Oslo Vulkan, NO
Dec 17: Helsinki Circis, FI

Rufused tour poster

(Image credit: Refused)
Fraser Lewry

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 38 years in music industry, online for 25. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.