Refused, OFF! played the Congress Theater (pics/setlist/video)

photos by Carmelo Espanola

Refused @ the Congress Theater on 7/26/2012

On Thursday night (7/26) Refused visited Chicago's Congress Theater to play their first area show since 1996 (at the very tiny Fireside Bowl). The Swedish quintet played most of their 1998 album The Shape of Punk to Come: A Chimerical Bombination in 12 Bursts and also touched on their sophomore effort Songs to Fan the Flames of Discontent. OFF! joined the group for a string of North American dates earlier this month, which included last week's Chicago show. After playing their opening set, OFF! frontman Keith Morris took the stage with Refused to partake in a pair of Black Flag covers -- "Police Story" and "Nervous Breakdown." Though both bands played top-notch sets, I couldn't help but to wonder what the show would have sounded like elsewhere. The sound seemed to lack the necessary bass frequencies, which left both groups sounding slightly flat in the lofty venue.

More pictures from the Congress Theater show continue below, along with Refused's setlist and some videos.