Umea, Sweden in the 90's

In the mid 90's, Umea Sweden became a hotbed for straight edge hardcore. They just started pumping out bands let and right...and the amazing thing was: most of them were really good. The first 2 as far as I know to gain some sort of recognition were Abhinanda and Refused. Both of these bands (especially Refused) left a big impression on the world of hardcore at the time as the floodgates opened causing new bands to emerge. Umea Sweden became THE spot in Europe for hardcore and everyone wanted to play there. Desperate Fight Records was the prime exporter of Swedish Hardcore and they had a great catalog of bands. They released a series of compilations called "Straight Edge As Fuck" which showcased the heavy hitters as well as the newer, younger bands that were just starting out. Eventually Victory picked up on Umea and signed a couple of their bands as well as distributed Desperate Fight in the US. The label eventually folded (I think) but most of their releases are still available through Amazon. In this feature, we take a look at some of the bands that were big players in the Umea scene in the 90s.

Refused
Refused were the biggest thing in Europe in the 90s. I remember hearing they won a Swedish Grammy and were even on national television numerous times. If you were sit and listen to their discography in order, you could hear the progression musically. "This Just Might Be..." has that 90s chug sound but "Songs to Fan the Flames of Discontent" had a much more technical sound as did "The Shape of Punk to Come". Also the band was known for their style of dress as they went from baggy pants and hoodies to a much more clean cut button up and hair combed to the side style. Many were confused at first but later so many kids adopted this style as well. I still love their records and "Songs to Fan the Flames..." is my favorite, still worth checking out 13 years after it was released. The band eventually broke up and Dennis went on to International Noise Conspiracy.

Abhinanda
Man Abhinanda was good. Another band that progressed musically as they grew as a band, I still rage to "Senseless". I LOVED their track (All Of Us) on the Straight Edge As Fuck comp which I still listen to pretty regularly. They were the first release on Desperate Fight Records (I think one of the guys in the band ran the label) and released all of their material on the label. The singer would occasionally sing in Spanish and even recorded a cover of "Disengage" by Youth of Today all in Spanish. The band eventually ran its course and broke up. I really have no clue what they went onto after if anything but most of their material, if not all, is still available and still worth checking out.





Doughnuts
This is the one I get the most shit for liking. I love the Doughnuts, bottom line. The band was labeled as "the first all girl straight edge band" when they came to America in 94 (95?) with Snapcase. I didnt make it to the show but I heard loads of dudes that went were asking them to marry them during their set. They were the first Umea band to sign to Victory and released 2 records with them as well as 1 with Desperate Fight. As far as I know they never made it back to the US to support "Feel Me Bleed" which bums me out because I really would have liked to see them. The music was pretty technical but the complaint I would hear (and still do) is that they couldn't get into the vocals. The style was definitely different from what everyone else was doing but I dig it. Not sure what caused them to break up but one of them went on to International Noise Conspiracy. Oh, quick tidbit, the name Doughnuts actually means "monks" in Swedish.

Final Exit
I don't know a lot about Final Exit because the band was always shrouded in mystery. They were billed as the "Project X of Sweden" and featured members of Refused including Dennis. According to the Desperate Fight Records site, this is what they had to say about them:
"The members of Final Exit and Final Exit as a band where known for their uncompromising lifestyle (straight edge) and their hard, fast music. They where around since 87, from the beginning of the Umeå Hardcore scene. They released Teg, their first album in 94. 15 tracks of raw, brutal, hard, fast straight in your face hardcore classics. Their second and last album, entitled Umeå came in early 97 and it was backed up by the bands Final tour. The band had already realized that there was no place in today's hardcore scene for a band like Final Exit. They where TOO real and didn´t want to take part of todays fake scene..."

Shield
Shield were only around for a short while and released an amazing full length as well as a 7 inch. Their track on the "Straight Edge as Fuck" compilation is probably the first thing most people heard from them and what a way to start off. The song "Kaleidoscope" is so damn technical and all over the place. Their full length "Vampire Songs" is along the same lines and still worth checking out all these years later. The band broke up for reasons I do not know but try and find their records, totally worth it.


There were more bands but I felt that these mentioned were the ones that really defined the Umea sound best. If you dig this, check out Purusam, Saidiwas, Step Forward, and Separation.