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Believe it, punks: Refused's Coachella reunion is happening. The Swedish hardcore punk band were only together seven years (from 1991 to 1998), but released three full-length albums before calling it quits. Their album--cult favorite The Shape of Punk to Come--is considered one of the best punk albums ever. But even two years ago lead singer Dennis Lyxzén was telling Excite in an interview:

"To be in that band is one of those things that half the time I'm sympathetic and understanding towards why people would do it. The other half, it's just such a useless maneuver. It's a defeatist attitude but if your objective is to play music with your friends and have a good time, there's no harm in reuniting your band for a couple of shows. For us, there have always been so many other aspects of what we did, that it always felt like a complete no-no. You can't do that shit. Minor Threat never got back together. That's kind of our take on it. With some things, the legend is better than the actual thing."

And now? Here's the reasoning behind the reunion on their homepage.

We never did "The shape of punk to come" justice back when it came out, too tangled up in petty internal bickering to really focus on the job. And suddenly there's this possibility to do it like it was intended. We wanna do it over, do it right. For the people who've kept the music alive through the years, but also for our own sakes.

Check out the whole statement after the jump.
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John Gilhooley/ OC Weekly

Descendents

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• For more photos, check out our slideshow here!

Descendents, Black Flag and more at GV30
Santa Monica Civic Center
Dec. 19, 2011

Punk isn't dead, it's just really fucking old. And by that, I mean, it's at least 30 because that's how long concert promotion company Goldenvoice has been around. Anyone who knows anything about punk knows that 30 in punk years is the equivalent of 75 in regular years, so last night's show featuring a bunch of classic bands from Southern California punk's halcyon days was more like the high school reunion you wanted to go to instead of the one you actually went to.

Headlining the show was the Descendents, who have been playing one-off shows for about the past year. The foursome -- singer Milo Aukerman, drummer Bill Stevenson, guitarist Stephen Egerton and bassist Karl Alvarez -- have played three shows in Southern California this year, which ain't half bad considering Aukerman lives in Delaware, Egerton in Oklahoma and Stevenson and Alvarez in Colorado.


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​Legendary Madchester rockers The Stone Roses announced during a press conference in London earlier today their reunion after a 15-year split. Front man Ian Brown declared to fans, "This is a live resurrection, and you're invited, so you better be there," referencing their track "I Am the Resurrection" off their self-titled 1989 debut album. More >>

WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT.

​If there was one good cause to reunite for--that is, other than the fans, of course--it's Yo Gabba Gabba!. Rocket From the Crypt singer John Reis posted this awesome photo on his official Facebook account Friday, along with this caption:

AP-ROCKET FROM THE CRYPT REUNITE! apparently no one got the email invites to witness the sole reunion performance of the defunct San Diego rock n roll band Rocket From The Crypt. The band played a surprisingly tight and choreographed show on the set of Nickelodeon's children show Yo Gabba Gabba. The unfortunately small audience (about five to ten 3 year olds) did not hamper the bands energy as they played favorites from their first 4 LP's. One attendee was overheard saying " I'm thirsty". When asked about future Rocket performances the band answered, " No. We are only interested in playing to audiences of 5 to 10 people between the ages of 3 to 6. Although we were surprisingly tight and choreographed , we will most likely never play as a band ever again.

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"We felt that we left in a premature way," says bassist Moises Baqueiro aka Vira Lata. "We made the decision on a Friday, two days before Tarfest." Many fans came to the free outdoor show on October 7th, 2007 with a mixture of disbelief, wondering if their favorite band was really calling it quits.More >>

Caifanes2011.org

Festival Vive Latino Soundcheck

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Before getting into the meat of this post, a couple things need to be clarified. First, this is not a piece on Montreal art rock band Braids. Rather, it's about Urbana, Ill. emo band Braid (read: no "s".) Secondly, it's important to announce the overwhelming bias I have for this Midwestern musical outfit who was  the soundtrack of my life for more than a decade. After breaking up in 1998 the band's label, Polyvinyl Records has announced the band is in the process of pressing an EP, their first effort since 1998's epic Frame and Canvas.
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North Carolina's 1990s noise rockers Archers of Loaf are touring, marking the band's first tour since 1998. The band saw significant airplay on alternative radio, and was perhaps best known in indie circles for their 1993 debut album Icky Mettle, which featured fuzzy, guitar-driven rock with squalls of melodic distortion. In 1995, the band supported Weezer following the release of their eponymous blue album.
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Chad Sengstock/OC Weekly

​The lineup for the eighth annual FYF festival in downtown Los Angeles was announced today and if bloggers mean anything, it sounds like lots of people are excited. Bands such as Death From Above 1979, Explosions in the Sky, the Dead Milkmen, Guided By Voices, Broken Social Scene, the Weakerthans, No Age, Avi Buffalo, OFF!, Cold War Kids and Pink Mountaintops are just a few of the groups scheduled to perform.

That bill alone would attract plenty of attention, but fuck all those bands because the Descendents are playing!

I interviewed singer Milo Aukerman a few months ago regarding his group's show at the Long Beach Arena with Rise Against and Bad Religion. After the jump,  a few notable quotes that didn't make my story.

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Call them Los Disbanded no more! Lady P, Don Verde, Vira Lata, and Dulce will reunite as Los Abandoned for a special one-time only concert at the Echoplex. It will mark the first time the Los Angeles-based Latin Alternative band has taken the stage since their farewell performance at the Tar Fest in 2007.
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