Deftones have never been easy to pin down.
Emerging in the mid-90s, they were too heavy for alt-rock and grunge but not exactly nu-metal either, even if their mix of brutal, down-tuned riffs and rap-rock flirtations anticipated that genre’s crystallisation.
Their willingness to thread outside influences — shoegaze, trip hop, textural atmosphere — into their aggressive sound resulted in the masterpiece White Pony, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. It saw critics hailing them with the misguided tag: ‘the Radiohead of metal’.
However, decades later, that same sonic inscrutability has helped make the Sacramento group hugely popular with a whole new generation.
In the half-decade since 2020’s Ohms (their longest gap between records) Deftones became huge on Tiktok, enshrining them as a cultural touchstone to shoegaze-loving Zoomers.
That’s all made their tenth album, Private Music, arguably the most anticipated in the career of a pioneering band who is arguably more popular than ever.
Loading
‘my mind is a mountain’ comes roaring out the gate first — a no-frills headbanger that’s refreshingly direct. It’s swiftly backed by ‘locked club’ whose grunting, syncopated verses blossom into a melodic panorama that’d be unexpected if it wasn’t precisely the kind of shift Deftones have long mastered.
In fact, all the sonic hallmarks of Deftones’ distinctive push-and-pull are here. Frontman Chino Moreno’s malleable voice — morphing from screaming like he’s picking a fight to a dark, intimate croon on ‘Cut Hands’ — contrasting beautifully with Stephen Carpenter’s hefty, hacksaw riffs that are as cutting and mosh-ready as ever.
Abe Cunningham’s hip hop leaning drums still hit like a sledgehammer, alongside the guttural bass of touring member Fred Sablan (stepping in after Sergio Vega split in 2021). Meanwhile, Frank Delgado’s inky soundscapes occupy the spaces between the monolithic grooves.
It’s a tried-and-true formula that Private Music continues to stretch into compelling shapes.
Loading
The chugging ‘ecdysis’ and savage ‘cXz’ dare you to stomp the accelerator on an open road or push you through an intense gym session. But the power of Deftones isn’t just about the muscle, it’s about mood — the gothic, artsy edge that’s long separated them from the Ozzfest pack.
‘milk of the madonna’ is all pummelling hooks, Moreno wailing ‘Holy spirit! I’m on fiiiiiiiiire’. But it also makes time for a moody breakdown of haunting vocals and waterlogged guitar and synths.
Melodic highlight ‘infinite source’ is one for the lovers. ‘A love we chased and found / The last ride we’re gonna take / a final wave and bow,’ Moreno serenades over a serrated, juggernaut backing.
Similarly, ‘I think about you all the time’ is a romantic stand-out — a shoegaze-y moment that takes flight from tender to triumphantly heavy. It’s liable to become a lighters(or is that smartphones)-aloft centrepiece of the band’s arena shows for years to come.
Loading
Reuniting with Nick Raskulinecz — the same producer behind the widely-loved Diamond Eyes (2010) and Koi No Yokan (2012) — Private Music manages to satisfy both older fans wanting to open up the pit, but also a younger audience drawn to the band’s contemplative, angsty, and yes – sexy, side.
Deftones’ lasting influence is seemingly everywhere, trickling into the genre-defying likes of Sleep Token and Bad Omens as much as the multitude of young Zoomergaze bands, like Wisp and Loathe. But you simply can’t beat the original article.
Private Music arrives amid a Deftones renaissance. But rather than merely capitalising on renewed interest it simply proves that, nearly 40 years into their career, Deftones are as remarkably consistent and winningly nebulous as ever.
Posted Sun 24 Aug 2025 at 8:00pmSunday 24 Aug 2025 at 8:00pmSun 24 Aug 2025 at 8:00pm