Refused - Freedom

Refused
Freedom
2015

If that holiday hangover has you a little sleepy this morning Refused is ready to wake you up with some intensity on their new record Freedom. 1997 was the last time Refused released anything new and after reuniting for a few shows and a festival tour in 2012 the reunion was the spark for this new album. On Freedom the Swedish group is super tight without falling into normal punk rock behavior of loud for louds sake. Their musical attack is aggressive yet has a refined quality to it, the mark of a band that does not settle for mediocre or stagnation on any level. With an almost two decade hiatus many would have been content with more of the same from Refused, but they've grown and the honed their sound to a razor sharp level allowing Freedom to explore different musical elements including electronic sounds. However one thing has stayed the same, absolutely stellar Bass and Drum pieces. The Bass is deep and dark but it rumbles through this album giving the four piece a great grounded sound and the drums room to either drive or get splashy.

Freedom sounds like what a grown up punk band should be. They haven't forgotten the message of saying "Fuck You" to the man, but they aren't going to do it in 4/4 every single time. It can occasionally become a bit repetitive on the later tracks of the album because Refused are giving you 10 really high energy tracks that do tend to blend together. "Servants of Death" in particular seems to repeat over and over the same few cords, but as the song goes on it becomes a bit more funky and interesting but you really have to patient to get to the goodness. In the end Freedom is a solid new release after the amount of time they took off. Only time will tell when or if we get more from Refused, but for now enjoy Freedom.

7.3 out of 10