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

October 3, 2026

HL: "Refused Are Fuckin' Dead", "New Noise", "Tannhäuser/Derivè"

I probably think there's more screamy punk on this list then there actually is; nonetheless, when the first track got going and the screaming started my reaction was "not this fucking shit again"

It's a real monkey's paw situation when I find a bonafide radical socialist band, because they seemingly only exist in hardcore punk, which is near the bottom of my favourite genres.

THERE ARE OTHER WAYS TO EXPRESS ANGER!
ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ ᴀʀᴇ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴡᴀʏs ᴛᴏ ᴇxᴘʀᴇss ᴀɴɢᴇʀ.

The thing is, though, especially in the second half, they go to too many interesting places for me to write off the album as a whole, like when they slow it down and get CrUnChY in "Refused Are Fuckin' Dead", or the folky bits that the album ends on. I can definitely see where this could fit in the original 1001, alongside albums like Follow the Leader by Korn and Roots by Sepultura- evidence of why 2000s rock & metal sounded the way it did, regardless of whether troglodytes like me appreciate it or not.

Closer to a 3 than a 2, if I'm being honest

The birth of Screamo, and I don't think it's gotten any better since then. Fantastic.

Pretty brave to make reference to one of the most influential jazz albums via Coleman's album of a nearly identical name. Just swap out punk with jazz and you got yourself something that really changed just for the 1960s. This album, however? The claim is a bit more dubious. Post-Hardcore and Metalcore both existed prior to this album's release, and while maybe those releases weren't as... bombastic(?) it wasn't this album that flipped hardcore punk on its head in the 2000s, at least not solely. However, that doesn't mean the album is poor. A bit full of itself, maybe, but the energy is top notch and there is certainly some things that feel unique, such as the blend of Electronica, or the strings on Tannhäuser / Derivè. Is it an album that's perfect? Nah, somw of it feels like it's a precursor to cheesy Mall Screamo, but there's enough here to be something worth crediting. The 90s and 00s Post-Hardcore scene already feels underrepresented on the main list, so this being added is a pleasant addition, even if plenty of other bands are still needing their chance in the limelight.

Can see the influence it had on others, but it never really took off like I expected. 3/5

Favorite songs: New Noise, Worms of the Senses/Faculties of the Skull, Tannhauser/Derive

Least favorite songs: Liberation Frequency, Bruitist Pome #5

3/5

What an incredible submission. If we’re talking about albums that belong on the 1001 Albums list, this one should be non-negotiable. Love it or hate it, it’s a landmark and hugely influential to bands across genre's, from At the Drive-In, Glassjaw, Thursday to Rise Against, Enter Shikari and even Muse.

At first pass it sounds like a hardcore record, but at following listens you really get listening to the jazz breakdowns, drum & bass glitches, spoken-word manifestos, strings, and sheer chaos stitched into hardcore punk’s backbone. Refused deliberately set out to reinvent what punk and hardcore could be.

Of course still with that political bite that more than 25 years later doesn’t sound dated. You can hear the blueprint for modern punk and post-hardcore, metalcore, experimental punk, even electronic-heavy bands that came after.

Groundbreaking, deeply influential, and still an absolute thrill.

Sounds very American, right up until they start talking Swedish! A wonderful album, from a band who I only knew in passing, and a great suggestion.

Proggy punk has come across this thing before, but these guys actually got the goods.

Strong offering, although it does show off a little bit that punk was not spared from the album-too-long-disease that was plaguing metal during the CD era

Absolutely classic punk album should have been on the list and still sounds so good today, can’t believe I’m actually going to rate this higher than the shape of Jazz to come, but think that’s purely down to personal taste, and influence on my current music.