Deftones albums ranked
Much like Saturday Night Wrist released exactly ten years prior, Gоre was another album marred by internal tensions between band members (though mainly between singer Chino and guitarist Stef). And also like Saturday Night Wrist, the result was an album that's not as strong as it could have been. While I do enjoy the album, it just couldn’t get into it as much as their other albums. It certainly has its share of highlights: "Acid Hologram", "Hearts/Wires", "Geometric Headdress" and "Phantom Bride". But none of them are able to save it from it being the band’s weakest record.
The least popular and most divisive record from Deftones. Saturday Night Wrist was made when relations between the band members were strained more than ever and when other personal issues were going on as well. Time and time again it's been shown that whenever a great band is going through a troubled period, whatever music they're making during that time is almost always substandard. That being said, I don't think it's that bad. A few songs in particular are quite great like "Cherry Waves", "Mein", and "Xerces". It’s not their strongest album, but it’s not their weakest either. It’s an alright album at best.
The debut album by Deftones. Adrenaline serves as the foundation for the band's early heavy sound and having been released a year after Korn's debut, it's also one of the records that kicked off the style of music that would become known as nu-metal. Even at their roots, Deftones stood out from the majority of the other groups who would adopt their sound. It has the usual nu-metal characteristics - explosive riffs and Chino rapping and roaring - but it also has traces of the melodic sensitivity that would dominate the band's later albums. While it may be a landmark album, it's not the strongest debut. The first half of Adrenaline is a bit ho-hum. It doesn't really start getting one's attention until the second half with the more furious numbers like "7 Words, "Engine No. 9" and "Fireal". It's a decent start to Deftones' career, but it's not one of their better albums.
After the definitive statement that was White Pony, Deftones followed it up with another challenging statement that is this - their self-titled fourth album. It features the band evolving their sound even further with more musical experimentation and as their self-titled album, they made it clear that this new direction of theirs is who they are now. The band takes the atmospheric meditations from White Pony and makes them the basis for this album, incorporating a greater use of trip-hop and shoegaze influence. Elegant tracks like "Minerva", "Good Morning Beautiful" and "Lucky You" are great examples of this. But some of their earlier heaviness also resurfaces on this album as it has some of the group's heaviest songs like "Hexagram" and "Bloody Cape". Deftones may not be a classic that lives up to its predecessor, but it really wasn't intended to be. It was meant to be another step forward artistically for the band and on that front, it certainly delivers.
The last album to feature the group's original bassist Chi Cheng before he was involved in a car wreck that landed him in a coma and would lead to his tragic demise years after. Eros was in production during this time and after Cheng was in a coma, it was shelved with the band tentative to release it, their reason being Eros was a dark album and they wanted to do a more optimistic album to cope with Cheng's situation (the result of that being Diamond Eyes). Eros does have a more melancholic sound, but it's also fairly energetic. Songs like "Smile" and "Dallas" provide an excellent feel for the album, giving a contrast of vintage Deftones gloominess but also providing strong dance vibes! I respect the band's reasons for having gone so long without releasing it, but it's also a real shame. Some great quality material has been tucked away for too long.
The most recent album from Deftones which sees them reunite with longtime producer Terry Date for the first time since Eros. Here, the band addressed the issue from some of their fans who lamented that the band aren't as heavy as they used to be. Doing so by making one of the heaviest albums they've done in a long time. In an uncannily similar fashion to Diamond Eyes being a triumphant comeback from the tension-filled Saturday Night Wrist, Ohms proves to be another major step up after Gоre, another album that was made while tensions were high. Deftones don't really cover any new ground with Ohms. Instead, they reflect on their career by bringing a bit of almost everything they've done and packing it together in a beautiful, yet aggressive package. Indeed, Ohms is a testament to how far the band have come, how they've evolved and how they can still dish out an amazing album after all these years. If you haven't listened to it yet, please do! Even if you don't agree it being among their top albums, I'm sure you won't regret listening to it.
I was disappointed to learn that many fans consider this one of the Deftones' weaker efforts. First, let it be said that Koi No Yokan is not a very heavy album. Probably the band's least heaviest. There's not even much experimentation going on here. In that aspect, it's a more laid-back record. I guess I can see why fans would be put off by that, but this fans says its one of their finest. Why? Because it's easily one of their more dynamic albums and also their most gorgeous. It certainly lives up to its title, which is Japanese for "premonition of love". There's no shortage of beautiful, harmonic moments, even in the louder songs. Not to mention it has some of the band's best songs like "Leathers", "Poltergeist" "Swerve City", "Tempest" and the best track "Entombed" which nearly rivals "Sextape" as their most passionate romance song. It may not be on par with its predecessor Diamond Eyes, but Koi No Yokan is a worthy follow-up that deserves much, much more respect that it gets.
Many fans consider this one the record that reinvigorated Deftones after the tragedy and turmoil that preceded them. It's also their first to feature Sergio Vega replacing the late Chi Cheng. Diamond Eyes sees Deftones gaining a second wind and making an album that's considerably lighter in tone than their previous albums. But as mentioned before with Eros, the band needed to do something more optimistic to cope with what happened to Cheng. Indeed, what we ended up with was an album that's as uplifting as it is excellent. Diamond Eyes has some of the best material the band had made in years. It retains some of the atmospheric notions from Eros but is less melancholic and more dreamy. Highlights include the title track, "Beauty School", "Rocket Skates", "CMND/CTRL", "976-EVIL" and my personal favorite Deftones song "Ѕextape". Diamond Eyes is easily one of Deftones' greatest. It's a superb record that sees the band exploring new territory while also retaining some of their classic heaviness to keep old school fans satisfied.
Arguably the band's heaviest album and just as arguably their most straightforward nu-metal effort. Around the Fur also marks Deftones' commercial breakthrough, producing their first two singles "My Own Summer (Shove It)" and "Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)". It's loaded with seething angst and aggression from start to finish. It cranks up the intensity from Adrenaline so much, it makes it seem this album should've been named such. But it also adds a bit more diversity as well, incorporating new wave and shoegaze elements, further opening the doors to their later experimental works. Overall, Around the Fur is a substantial improvement over their debut and a marvelous step forward that truly put Deftones on the map. Chino Moreno has cited it as his favorite Deftones album, which isn't a bad choice. After all, it's one of their very best!
About the closest thing to a masterpiece Deftones have ever done, though White Pony is still a masterpiece in its own right. Not every band can say their most progressive and creative effort is also their most commercially successful. While at the top of the nu-metal scene - which was quickly becoming oversaturated at the time - Deftones proved once again that they stand out from their peers by discarding most of the hip-hop elements in favor of artistic experimentation. White Pony serves as an act of defiance. When Deftones were one of the definitive nu-metal bands and under pressure from their label to become their Limp Bizkit, they produced a record that transcended nu-metal by adding even more layers of musical influences. Art rock, ambience, shoegaze, post-rock, progressive rock and probably more I missed. All making for an album of sheer creative genius! They could have made a generic nu-metal album and made millions upon release, but most other nu-metal bands that were more successful in the short-term were just that: short-term. Deftones were thinking long-term when making White Pony and entered a league of their own. The end result speaks for itself! The band are still going strong to this day and it's largely thanks to their shift in musical direction that started with this album - the one that made Deftones legendary.
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