SWEDEN’S LONG, COLD winter is no joke. But Refused’s Kristofer Steen is literally laughing when he answers Guitar World’s call on a late November afternoon. “The darkness has descended on Stockholm!” he gleefully exclaims. The guitarist’s surprisingly cheery disposition makes a bit more sense when you consider that Steen’s post-hardcore outfit has entered the grim season on a serious high note. Refused’s fifth album, War Music, was released just a month ago and it’s a rager — packed with 10 politically charged, swaggering anthems of genre-bending punk. The new record has also elicited comparisons to Refused’s 1998 game-changer, The Shape of Punk to Come, on which the band weaved electronic, ambient and jazz elements into their adventurous hardcore sound.
Refused guitarist Kristofer Steen in the studio with a Gibson Les Paul Custom
UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP
“War Music was about finding our way back to our essence,” says Steen, “focusing on the aggression and intensity of the music. And just making it fun.”