The Shape of Punk to Come

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The Shape of Punk to Come: A Chimerical Bombination in 12 Bursts

Studio album by Refused

Released

October 27, 1998

Recorded

1997

Genre

Hardcore punk
Post-hardcore
Experimental rock

Length

55:11

Label

Burning Heart Records

Producer

Eskil Lövström, Andreas Nilsson, Pelle Henricsson, Refused

Professional reviews

Refused chronology

The Demo Compilation
(1997)

The Shape of Punk to Come: A Chimerical Bombation in 12 Bursts
(1998)

The Shape of Punk to Come: A Chimerical Bombation in 12 Bursts was the final album released by Swedish hardcore punk band Refused before they split up. It was released in October 1998 (see 1998 in music) through Burning Heart Records. The title of the album is a reference to Ornette Coleman's 1959 album The Shape of Jazz to Come (see 1959 in music). British band Million Dead took their name from a line in the final song "The Apollo Programme Was a Hoax". Manchester band Sonic Boom Six have also parodied the album name with their song "The Rape of Punk to Come" from the album Sounds to Consume, and Adequate Seven's first track on the album Songs of Innocence and Experience is called The Shape of Funk to Come. Don Devore (of Ink & Dagger fame) played bass on Refused's final tour dates in America, and has stated that Refused were unaware of Ornette Coleman's album until he mentioned it to the band^{[citation needed]}. It should also be noted that the song "Refused are Fuckin' Dead" is a reference to the Born Against song "Born Against are Fuckin' Dead". Refused may have been influenced by both Born Against and Nation of Ulysses in terms of approach, dress, and ideology, although the sound and songwriting similarities have frequently been greatly emphasized.

[edit] Overview

This album marked a sharp and conscious departure from Refused's earlier work. The philosophy of the album, expounded in the ample liner notes and encapsulated in the song "New Noise", was that punk and hardcore music could not be anti-establishment by continuing to package revolutionary lyrics in sounds which had been increasingly co-opted into the mainstream. The sound of the record presented a challenge to existing punk sensibilities; its sounds were 'punk' at a fundamental level, but worlds apart from pop punk bands such as Green Day and Blink-182, and more political punk rock bands such as Bad Religion and Pennywise.

The album also took on the idea of "political interludes" between songs, reminiscent of the DC band The Nation of Ulysses. The use of more technological sounds or drum and bass music, particularly on the "New Noise" single/EP which followed the album, is a tactic that various members of Refused have credited to the influence of Philadelphia punk band Ink & Dagger.

[edit] DVD-Audio version

In 2004, a DVD-Audio version of the album was released, remixed in 5.1-channel Surround Sound. Surprisingly, many of the songs have been compositionally altered, some significantly. "Bruitist Pome #5," for example, has been thoroughly reworked, while a seven-minute version of "Refused Are Fuckin' Dead" jarringly transitions into a new second half, which incorporates elements of the Bombe Je Remix of the song. Other songs have received new intros or outros.