Deftones – "Private Music"

Rumor has it, they were gonna call it "Whitesnake"...

Deftones are one big, living proof of at least three things:

1. That the accursed category of nu-metal, just like many other musical genre categories indeed, is sometimes not sufficient or descriptive rather than misleading and limited.
2. That it's possible to create not only uniquely original, but even also captivatingly beautiful music even though you got pigeonholed into that aforementioned category with wimps, whiners, and wiggers alike (say, respectively, Linkin Park, Papa Roach, and Limp Bizkit).
3. That you can be in a band for decades and deal with horrible problems without still releasing one even remotely mediocre album, ever.

Like many another Deftones cut, album-opener and first single "My Mind is a Mountain" leads with those big, extended chords, the extensions of which give them those signature Deftones-esque colors of unexplored worlds – worlds of nature as well as of mind. The verse is just as big – slow, scrumptious, and atmospheric. Although it is hard to describe exactly what kind of atmosphere we're dealing with. Because at the same time, the group's music, as always, manages to be huge, dramatic, intricate, and abrasive on the ears. And then, a minor stroke of genius from Abe Cunningham – a minor genius of a drummer in and by himself – as he subtly and almost unnoticeably lifts the whole thing into a waltz.

This element of cultivating contrasts has always been prevalent with this band, and their 10th studio album is no exception to this. "Locked Club", for example, is based on a small, simplistic bend riff, but it emits a perfectly stratospheric sound. The unmistakable voice of one-of-a-kind vocalist Chino Moreno have a declarative, almost commanding expression – contrasting a velvety-floating chorus melody. While Deftones do this quite a bit, it's worth noticing that their melodies are never those calculating, pandering or skanky boy band refrains as heard with way too many other groups under that nu-metal banner, but downright ravishing, wistful, and etherial.

"Ecdysis", with its chugging riff and Chino's interchanging between manic shouting and tender, clean vocals, sounds like it could have been on "White Pony" (2000). – An album which many would call their magnum opus. But this band has created so many other good albums that it almost doesn't make sense to talk about just one being superior. And this one track is another fine example of that same mechanism – not a future classic, but does everything that a Deftones song should, combining the tight, hard and heavy with the buoyant, celestial, and alluring.

Deftones are so much their own that no matter what they do, it's impossible for them not to hit somewhere at least close to level 'brilliance'.

Indeed, this contrast between gritty and pretty is so idiosyncratic for these guys, it would've almost been a bit funny if the whole thing wasn't so suspenseful and fascinating. And the two opposite poles even flow together: Under these circumstances, the raging crash cymbals and thick guitar distortion, which would normally be considered rough and aggressive, morph into something ambient – almost liquid. And conversely, the airy, melodic passages are often equally dark and unsettling. No wonder that fans of Deftones also tend to be heavily into Tool.

"Souvenir", as well, is based upon an almost minimalistic guitar figure that sounds like the greater forces of nature itself. This is one among several minor strokes of genius from guitarist Stephen Carpenter – along, perhaps, with producer Nick Raskulinecz (Ghost, Foo Fighters, Marilyn Manson, Danzig, Skid Row, Death Angel, and many others). And this, by the way, is where the album peaks: The song bubbles and builds up patiently and meticulously, and as the chorus hits, it's pure triumph:

"Keep warm here beside me
Holding you tightly
We gaze at the night
We own it
It's divine
We ride…"

And as Chino's luscious voice – almost more luscious than ever – single-handedly carries everything back into the main riff, I am officially overpowered. I get goosebumps, and my eyes start watering. Granted, I have been under some stress lately, but I still cannot comprehend or fully embrace how gigantic and delicious this is. Or, for that matter, how that man can still sing like that. What is he, 50-something? Fuck.

Even though we have peaked here, that doesn't mean "Private Music", like all other Deftones albums, doesn't keep on giving till the end. "I Think About You All the Time" clearly echoes this little ditty, name of "Change (In the House of Flies)", and it's another fine example of a fragile little piece of 2-chord simplicity that unfolds and unwinds like rivers and clouds. And even when things are simple, you don't necessarily notice that they are – which is another testament to the fact that Deftones are so much their own that no matter what they do, it's impossible for them not to hit somewhere at least close to level 'brilliance'.

The hardest-hitting track this time around is second single "Milk of the Madonna", its grating guitar sound and fast, jagged tempo framing a dramatically oppressive verse. The far more tangible, but equally drastic two-chord drive of the chorus forms another contrast to this, as Chino lamentingly exclaims "I'm on fire" – in a manner worlds apart from how it sounded when Springsteen announced the same thing 43 years ago.

This band has created so many other good albums that it almost doesn't make sense to talk about just one being superior.

Perhaps the biggest standout is the few initial seconds in closer "Departing the Body" during which Chino briefly abandons his otherwise so distinct tenor in favor of an almost Knopfler-esque lower-end baritone, supremely illustrating a maturation on par with a mahogany-casked Islay single malt. (Wait, is that a thing, though?). Anyone who's familiar with the band will inadvertently be shaken back to reality here – that is, from floating around in a unique aural universe that is always worth a visit.

If anyone had any doubt as to how to create nu-metal that's both innovative and melodic without pandering for anything, this is exactly how to cut it. Except that Deftones, as initially stated, is so much more than the whiny, wimpy, wiggery dregs of nu-metal – and, indeed, more than contemporary metal in the first place. Like they always were.

In fact, apart from the initially mentioned three things of which this band is a prime example, Deftones is also a prime example of a fourth, namely that many of the better music groups in this world are often so creative and original that they naturally transcend genres.

If Tool, then, might be considered the Pink Floyd of metal, Deftones, then, might be considered metal's equivalent of The Doors. And coming from this signature, that is nothing but one big, fat compliment.

Rating: 5 out of 6

Genre: Indie-metal / alternative metal
Release date: 22/8/2025
Label: Reprise / Warner
Producer: Deftones / Nick Raskulinecz