Refused released The Malignant Fire on November 20, 2020. The five-song EP extended the work behind 2019’s War Music, pairing that album’s “Malfire” with four new tracks. Across 15 minutes, it made room for unfinished Refused songs and an unexpected choice of cover: Swedish House Mafia’s “Greyhound.”
“Malfire” opened the record, giving vocalist Dennis Lyxzén’s favorite song from War Music another outing. In a 2019 interview with RockUrLife, Lyxzén explained that it addressed refugees forced from their homes by war, only to encounter hostility when they reached Europe. The wolves in the song represented both the violence driving people out and the treatment awaiting them elsewhere. He connected that experience to the rise of fascism and Nazism across Europe. Lyxzén also valued what the song allowed him to do as a singer, describing how he used his voice differently between its verses and chorus. He contrasted that flexibility with his early uncertainty about singing, when he felt his main contribution was energy. The EP moved the song from its position partway through War Music to the opening slot.
The album behind it had taken two years to make, Lyxzén told RockUrLife, and some material still needed attention. Drummer David Sandström told Absolute Underground that three songs missed War Music because “we hadn't quite figured them out yet.” Refused decided to finish them later for an EP, giving those ideas time to develop beyond the album’s release.
“Born On The Outs” came from a different direction. Guitarist Kristofer Steen had long been interested in the riff from Swedish House Mafia’s instrumental “Greyhound.” In the EP announcement, Lyxzén explained that he and Sandström supplied new lyrics about people who declined to take a side against fascism. That changed what the track could communicate: an instrumental composition became the basis for an explicitly political vocal. Sandström connected the choice to Refused’s interest in dance music, describing UK big beat as an influence on their 1990s work and EDM as an influence on their later output. He was particularly interested in its simplicity and efficiency. Sandström and Steen also produced the EP, alongside their contributions on drums and guitar.
The release had originally been intended to precede a tour. Lyxzén said in the announcement that the tour hadn’t happened. Sandström explained that the pandemic interrupted plans to keep touring War Music through October 2020, before other commitments took over. The EP nevertheless reached vinyl and streaming services, completing the three songs Refused had set aside.
