Refused

The E.P. Comp CD (Epitaph)
by Tim Den

Is it me, or are Refused fans getting a rotten bargain here? The E.P. Comp CD promises to include all sorts of unreleased and ancient goodies, but all it does is repackage previously available material. The New Noise Theology E.P. + Rather Be Dead E.P. + Everlasting = completely unnecessary reissue. At least the European version had the first two demos – Pump the Breaks and This is the New Deal – and a fuckload of bonus songs (including covers of AC/DC, Beastie Boys, and Mötley Crüe).

The EPs are what you’d expect: Earth Crisis-style metalcore during the earlier years (Everlasting), staccato post-hardcore during the middle (Rather be Dead E.P.), and DCore/neo-garage at the end. Sure, having a random track such as “Jag Äter Inte Mina Vänner” is nice, but does it go further than just “Wow, a song that sounds like Rush… in Swedish”? Not really.

Those with extra cash to burn, order the European version from Burning Heart. The rest of y’all can skip this one.
(www.epitaph.com)