My concert ticket purchase for Refused in 2012, was borne out of a youthful
discovery of New Noise during one early 2000's late-night Rage indulgence.
I'd
be exaggerating to say that the music video was an immediate
awakening to their ethic, out-spokenness, their moral commentary.
It
was a very cool music video and a musical style I could identify with
immediately. It was disheartening that the Rage intro to this video,
with Jade Puget, spoke of the band having broken up, and this video
being one of the burning beacons of brilliance from the Scandinavian
act in their time together.
A
few years later, on treating myself to a tax-return fuelled shopping
spree, the Refused are Fucking Dead DVD joined the Shape of
Punk to Come in my collection and I was a firm, and melancholic
convert to their anti-establishment, pro-critical-thought approach to
their art and their lives. I began to discover that these guys were
akin to Rage Against The Machine, with the moral and social message
interwoven in their legacy, and with their own unique execution.
The
band made it incredibly clear however, that they would never do their
art nor each-other, the disservice of revisionism. The band went so
far as to say “...we therefore demand that every newspaper burn all
of their photos of Refused so that we will no longer be tortured with
memories of a time gone by...”
Despite
this apparent certainty, I easily and eagerly accepted the band
overturning some of this conviction, when news of their reformation
crammed its way through to my media-insulated existence. I was excited.
And when they announced Australian tour dates... I was in no doubt
that being a responsible capitalist, and saving all of my cash for a
rainy day was never going to outweigh the burning need to see these
guys play live.
It's
funny. It wasn't until after the show last night, that I realised
that it was appropriate to think about Refused in the same terms as
Henry Rollins, Bill Hicks, Hunter S Thompson, Sam Harris and a few
other intensely well spoken, social critics.
I've
left many a Rollins spoken word gig, and put down many articles
written by Harris and Hitchens, and thought:
“Holy
shit. If only I could express myself half as well as these guys.
I
feel intensely motivated.
I
feel incredibly wasteful and inadequate to have been doing so little
with my life so far.
I
shouldn't suck “the man's” dick for a moment longer, when doing
so is to the exclusion of activities that I'll look back at in my old
age and think “are you really proud of those years?” or “did
you actually do anything of any worth in that time”
The
difficulty, is figuring out what the forward plan is.
If
I borrow from Refused in being concerned
that we “...overthrow
the capitalist structure that alienates us from every aspect of life
and living...”, what on earth am I going to contribute to society
if my goal is to propel us toward a post-scarcity existence? Will my
imminent podcasting go any way toward this goal, or will talking
philosophically with family, friends, professional acquaintances
simply fill in time in a 'productive' manner? How can I give such
activities direction and purpose?
The
problem is that I don't have the answers right now, however - thanks
to Refused - I see that there is another artist in my life, who speaks to my
soul.
This
artist has created another big punctuation mark in my life by
provoking thought.
By
making me question what I am doing, and to examine whether I – as
someone who already thinks on homo sapiens' future beyond my own
life-span – am doing everything that I can to seize my quickly
ebbing lifeforce. To critically plan to do something - as prominent
as I can manage - which aligns with my convictions.
So
thank you Refused.
You've
made me tearful.
You've
provoked thought.
You
have filled my atheist soul with something greater than I can imagine
any religious fulfilment could afford me.
“Our
old friend Patti Smith said music is meant to liberate, and I think
we did that tonight. Don't let anyone tell you how to live your life.
This is the only chance we get. Do it 100 per cent. If you're gonna
say something, say it fucking loud, alright? Always remember to stay
curious. Always stay fucking wild. Always stay fucking hungry.
I
know one thing:
With
friends like you...
Boredom
won't get me tonight!”
--
Dennis Lyxzén
(Eaton's
Hill QLD Australia, 11 November 2012)
