All About Deftones (Blog 40)

Another few days have passed where little has happened. (Although I did carry out some expert marketing, and once gained two followers in a day). So what to write about? Deftones! It's about time; I mean my site is called deftonesaresuper, isn’t it? To be fair though, that’s only because that’s what my email address is, and I had no choice. So, what are my favourite and least favourite albums of theirs? In an effort to build tension, I’ll save the best till last. Okey-dokey…

9th: Diamond Eyes

Last place; sounds bad, doesn’t it? I actually like this album. I don’t like it THAT much as it’s their poppiest and least adventurous album, as far as I’m concerned. I’m not saying this album is bland, but it’s easy to get tired of it. Am I going to make jokes about this album or be harsh? Hell no! This is Deftones we’re talking about! 8/10

8th: Saturday Night Wrist

What the fuck is ‘Pink Cellphone’ about? I hate to say this, but it’s a load of shite. It barely qualifies as music. How it made the album is a complete mystery. On the whole, I believe this album is considered their weakest, and evidently I ALMOST agree. In part, because I’ve never really liked Deftones’s shouty numbers and a couple of such are on this LP. (Usually they only put one on a release). Some are non-shouty but still dull. However, most songs here have that classic combination of eeriness and superness. Yes, Deftones really are super. 8.5/10

7th: Koi No Yokan

Kind of like Around the Fur, but not as good. Even so, if you check out Wikipedia, this album got 5 stars from Kerrang! Pretty good for 7th place, isn’t it? Ever wondered what KNY means? Apparently its definition is ‘the sense one can have upon first meeting a person that the two of you are going to fall in love’. Is that meaning appropriate for this album? Not really. More like ‘falling in like’, if there is such a phrase. If there isn’t, there is now. Even though this is more of a friendship release, eeriness and superness are almost constant in it. 8.5/10

6th: Deftones

Kind of like White Pony, but not as good. However, there are some real classics on this one. ’Needles and Pins’, ‘Minerva’, ‘Good Morning Beautiful’, etc. Holy moly. Excellent stuff. We’re entering into great territory, here. However, songs like ‘Anniversary of an Uninteresting Event’ are too fittingly uninteresting. A bit of a mixed bag, this one. Not my favourite ‘Tones album, but paradoxically it’s the one that gets some of the most listens. Sometimes you want to listen to other, sometimes better music only on special occasions, right? 9/10

5th: Adrenaline

Deftones’s debut and darkest album. It is also probably the LP that has the most range of dynamics and instrumentation. Furthermore, it was released in arguably the best period of the band’s career when it comes to live vocal quality. Chino Moreno unsurprisingly fucked his voice up from too much shouting, making later performances very hit and miss. Check them out on Youtube and you have a good chance of being disappointed. Anyway, Adrenaline is filled with great vocal melodies and such, which take your mind away from any thoughts of the singer’s recklessness. 9/10

4th: Around the Fur

Almost all songs on this one are very strong. Again, apart from the screamo one. It goes ‘I think too much, I feed too much, I’m gone too much, I skate too much…’ etc., etc., etc. Alright get over it, Jesus. Annoyingly, this is one of those albums that has a hidden track on. Only it’s not hidden, because your stereo will say your CD lasts about two hours long. (Even though it only has a few songs on that last 3 to 4 minutes or whatever). Be Quiet and Drive and MX are my faves. They take us into legendary territory. 9/10

3rd: B Sides and Rarities

This release is often neglected. So much so, that Wikipedia doesn’t list it in Deftones’s discography. Ok, most of the songs on it are covers, but they are altered quite a lot. All of such rehasings are brilliant, except for Wax and Wane which is SO annoying. The rest of the songs are different versions of other ‘Tones songs, but made worse. Yep, and this album comes 3rd. That shows how great the reworkings are, right? 9/10

2nd: Gore

The Def’s latest album. Yes, after KNY, DE and SNW, they have made a glorious comeback! The band apparently took a risk with this album, and rightly so. What kind of person wants to hear the same album twice or more? (That’s a question for modern Metallica, who have quite frankly been wasting their time, recently). Once again, the record’s screamfest is dull, but almost all the other tunes are right corkers. Apparently the song, Phantom Bride has been praised for its ‘Iron Maiden-esque’ guitar playing. I don’t know what that’s about, but a compliment is a compliment, I guess. 9/10

1st: White Pony

So this is it; musical perfection. My favourite record since I was 18 years old, and I have over 600 of them. Here is a list of words to describe this masterpiece: Amazing, astonishing, awe-inspiring, breathtaking, etc. Even the album’s now very expected shout fiesta is almost worth listening to. ‘Teenager’ is a bit boring, so that’s two weak-ish songs, but that leaves 9 gems! 10/10! But hang on, how can I give a solid 10, if there are some minor fluffs? Come on… 9 gems? Isn’t that enough? Don’t be greedy. Just to be clear… Yes… 10/10.

Alright, that’s it from me for the day. I hope you’ve learnt a thing or two about the world’s best supergroup. Just to be clear, if you are new to the ensemble, DON’T start your musical journey with Pink Cellphone. First impressions count, remember. Don’t go around hating this band for all the wrong reasons, and thinking they’re a bunch of talentless freaks. Once again…. Byeeeeeeeeeeee!