Customer Reviews

Deftones

5 star:		(250)
4 star:		(113)
3 star:		(44)
2 star:		(36)
1 star:		(28)

 

 

It's been said many times here, but I'll say it again...this album is not "White Pony 2" or "Son of White Pony". With that being said, can we please stop pouting and move on?

This album is, arguably, the Deftones best album. No band on the planet marries such ambient and lush textures with such brutal power like these guys do, and that would make this their Sistine Chapel. Songs like "Hexagram" and "When Girls Telephone Boys" bludgeon you over the head to get your attention as opposed to tapping you on the shoulder, and "Good Morning Beautiful" and "Bloody Cape" have hooks that are so sugary-sweet your teeth will hurt listening to them. The crowning achievement here though, in my humble opinion, is the blistering "Needles and Pins", whose siren-like guitar work creates a sense of urgency and anxiety. I'm on the edge of my seat every time I hear it.

I think if "Around The Fur" and "White Pony" had a child, this album would be it. And I would spoil the hell out of it.

I just picked up the cd today. First off there's 11 songs on it, Minerva and Bloody Cape seemed to have been left off the list on Amazon. I had only heard Lucky You from the Matrix Reloaded soundtrack and was quite suprised by the rest of the album. Unlike the ethereal White Pony, Deftones is much darker. Chino gives a very emotional and brooding preformance, personal favourite are "Needles and Pins", "Deathblow" and "Minerva". "When Girls Telephone Boys" is alot like old Deftones, but the rest of the cd is a progression from White Pony. The guitar is very catchy and Carpenter has come up with some of his best work yet; Delgados is incredible especially on "Lucky You"; Cheng provides a great atmosphere; and Cunningham creates great beats and drumming very enjoyable to pick apart. The track that really suprised me was "Anniversary of an Uninteresting Event" though, I'm not sure what to say about it. It's different from other Deftones songs and sounds very New Age, yet distinctly Deftones. This cd is better than White Pony and like all their albums is a progression from the last one.

"White Pony" should stand as one of the best recordings made at the onset of the 21st century. Combining heavy metal guitars and futuristic electronica touches with the alternately delicate and larynx-rending singing style of Chino Moreno, "White Pony" would make the perfect soundtrack to some cyberpunk film noir that was never made: as sharp in its execution as a chrome shuriken and a tone and feel as blurry as the glow of neon in the rain.

It's hard to fault the Deftones for making a worse record than "White Pony," but we'll manage.

Where their magnum opus shoveled sludge at the listener in an octave more easily processed by the human ear, guitarist Stephen Carpenter seemingly sinks lower and lower into the quagmire of modern metal's fascination with ridiculously low guitar tunings. The result is guitar that sounds like someone threw Carpenter's amp stack into a lake, then tossed a blanket on top. Murky and characterless.

They're a band at their best when seamlessly integrating their influences; Moreno's Cure fixation at odds with heavy metal and DJ Frank Delgado's beatmaking skills all in the same roaring, dysfunctional lullaby. When the 'Tones draw lines instead of using a blender, they're in trouble. "Lucky You" and "Anniversary of An Uninteresting Event," while both interesting and able to stand on their own, smack of awkwardness in the song cycle of an otherwise heavy (and muffled) recording.

If there's something good to say, it's that the band's passions are still running high. In "Hexagram," Moreno's vocals are stretched almost to the point of breaking, making for a howling bridge piece that's the aural equivalent of trying to tie a rubber band around the trunk of a redwood tree. Other standouts include the single "Minerva," with its churning waves of blissful guitar fuzz, and the similarly constructed but downtempo tune, "Battle-Axe."

Overall the album is simply too formulaic for a band that proved themselves capable of writing a record like "White Pony." Yet, even with most of the songs sounding so similar, the flow of the album seems disjointed and fragmented -- where "White Pony" was an album, "Deftones" is merely a collection of songs.

Deftones' self titled release "Deftones" can probably be seen as a stepping stone by a band that is continually on an upward accent to what will surely become rock musical greatness.

As a fan of the band since "Around the Fur" was released it is plainly obvious that each album they release is better than the one prior to it, which means "Deftones" is probably thier best album yet, but thier next release will probably be even better.
They seem to be very much like 'Faith no more' in that aspect.

Not only have the band improved thier songwriting on this album, they have also developed a keen set of ears for audio production too.The album sounds amazing and has a higher quality than thier previous albums, the songs are more simple and heavy, yet more complicated musically.

Chino Moreno's vocals are more high pitched and vocally intense than on any previous albums, and Abe Cunningham's drums are somewhat less busy, yet harder hitting than before.
As for the guitars, i think Stef Carpenters sludgy,crunchy 7 string assault is more like Messugah and Fear Factory,than "White Pony" and Chi Chengs bass is just massive and and explosive.DJ Frank also gets his rightfull place performing and entire track of his own musical taste.

Clearly a very Heavy ,bitter ,poisonous and intense album, some fans might not like it, but a lot more will love it.

This is my favorite Deftones album, even including their latest release Saturday Night Wrist. With white pony, it was clear that Chino took the reins & steered the band in a new direction with great results. What we have here is Stephen taking the reins back & putting his stamp on the new direction, adding more blistering guitars & earth shattering riffs to the layered sounds of the rest of the band. This is the heaviest Deftones album (Around the Fur is a close 2nd) & I think it turned off some fans. There is not one bad song on this & there is a very eclectic mix of songs here, more so than White Pony. If you are a Deftones fan, this album is essential.

One of my favorite bands for the main reason that they are unique in themselves and will not conform, The Deftones have once again pushed the boundaries of modern rock/metal and delivered another brilliant escape from the norm. On their fourth (self titled) disc Chino and the boys dig deep and hand us 11 tracks all different, all spectacular. I will admit that when I first heard the single 'Minerva' I was less than impressed, but even that track has grown on me since purchasing the album.

'Hexagram' opens the album with ferocity and brutality that lets you know to expect a true to form Deftones album. 'Needles and Pins' though is what really kicks this album off. Mix Chino's haunting vocals and brilliant lyrics with Carpenter's crushing guitars and Delgado's soundscapes and added textures and you have a perfect song. The follow this brilliant direction in 'Bloody Cape' as well, delivering brutal force and seductive elegance all at the same time. And I want to make mention that 'When Girls Telephone Boys' is one of the most brutal tracks Deftones have ever put out...Chino is god, I swear.

They turn a softer leaf with tracks like 'Good Morning Beautiful' and the closer 'Moana', songs that have more of a 'White Pony' feel to them. 'Deathblow' and even 'Battle Ax' carry this same feel, not much screaming, more like yelling over some heavy yet not brutal riffs. The later two though hold my attention better than the former.

It's the haunting beauty of 'Lucky You' though that stands out as the most inspired track here. It appeared on the Matrix Reloaded soundtrack, and it fit...but here, in the element that is Deftones it holds much more presence beings the only of it's kind. The chorus is just so calming and soothing...it's one of my favorite songs ever penned. This beauty is also worked into 'Anniversary of an Uninteresting Event', which if it had been up to me would have been swapped with 'Moana' for it serves as the better closing track, winding things down and leaving you serene.

Chino's vocals are top notch here, and the musicianship is top of the game as well, the whole package being one of the best albums to be released in a long time. Deftones will always be one of the most inspired and original acts in rock/metal music and I'm sure with each release they will hone and perfect their craft.

I'll try to do my best on this review - it's very important to do this after DEFTONES - their selfnamed album.
It's like a line finalizing their 8 years of playing on the world scene... playing alone, their individual style with a very few followers who failed to reach that level of quality...
It's not as Art-Chaotic as "Adrenaline", not as Agressivly-Beautiful as "Around The Fur", not as Experimentally-Awsome as "White Pony" - it's all the Experience and Heaviness of the band put in one small CDbox. From album to album Deftones improve their style of music fully changing the sound of their songs... You know what's the trouble with all new nu-metal bands? Their second albums are the same and not as fresh as their debuts - no fantasy, no hard-working, no experience - only ambitions... That's why i respect Deftones - no filler songs, all the albums are complete pieces of Art, with their own style and meaning.
Back to the album, i'd say, the first time i heard it i was more than just dissapointed as always happenes when you hear their new stuff - no more old Deftones - everything moves forward, nothing stays... Album is heavier than ever - all the hardest songs are here, my boys - there's my overview on them:

HEXAGRAM (10/10) - A very very solid song - IMHO one of the best Deftones have ever created. Awsome guitars, very strong vocal (Chino screams like he had lost something, his voice is really stressful)

NEEDLES AND PINS (8/10) - Very heavy, solid and mostly similar to their old songs... Nothing special, just Deftones.

MINERVA (7,5/10) - Single, nothing to say, IMHO far not their best work...

GOOD MORNING BEAUTIFUL (10/10) - Do you remember KOREA with its' boring beginning and then totally knocking rush from 1:47 until end? So that's the song with same surprise - until 1:47 you don't get the point of song when after the timetick you become amazed with the combination of very strong guitars and vocal...

DEATHBLOW (9/10) - More disturbing than depressive, it opens with a smooth and light guitar tabs continuing with flowing from smooth vocals to guitars and back...

WHEN GIRLS TELEPHONE BOYS (10/10) - Probably the hardest work of Deftones... It rushes from the beginning when Chino is trying to overscream the background music... The song is fully built on this emotional combo of Chinos' and guitars' screams. Firstly you just hear it like some noise distortion, then you dig in and get away with the agression. I repeat - there's no harder song from Deftones ever released than this one

BATTLE-AXE (9/10) - Nothing special about singing - i gave it 9 for some very serious riffs made by their guitarist - it's something you need to hear at least once. Though it gets annoying with time

LUCKY YOU (9,5/10) - Very strange, not-typical for Deftones kind of song, feels like vocals are stretching the song as it's possible, giving somekind of a great effect while listening...

BLOODY CAPE (8/10) - Fast guitars, agressive style of song makes it just another good piece of Deftones - it's good but not as good as the others...

ANNIVERSARY OF AN UNINTERESTING EVENT (10/10) - Very depressive, beautiful song filled with rare for Chino calm vocals...

MOANA (7/10) - Just a hard piece, always reminds me DAMONE somehow (another final track from their second album)

Overall, the sound of group has changed - now it's harder than ever rushing through your head like an explosion, offering you as many emotions as never before... Lyrics consist of impressions - you won't find deep meanings, don't even give a try, you won't find them, just enjoy this Deftomenal Rush of experience...

Wow, deftones have really done it again .This album is awesome from start to finish.I just dont get the people on here bashing this album as if they have any earthly idea what they're talking about, listen to the album with an open mind you lunatic.I do admit this album has to grow on you. It is different than previous deftones albums but then again, all thier albums are.
Although not as good as White Pony, I definitely think it's better than Adrenaline or ATF.Heres aquick review of each song.

1.HEXAGRAM:BRILLIANT, one of the best and one of the most dynamic, awesome songs ever written. 5/5
2.NEEDLES AND PINS:a really good song, not one of my favorites though.3/5
3.MINERVA:great song, it has this certain epic feel to it thats hard to explain.great work. 4.5/5
4.GOOD MORNING BEAUTIFUL:i dont like it as much as other songs on this cd, but still real good. 3/5
5.DEATHBLOW:great song.slow at the beginning. very different deftones.4/5
6.WHEN GIRLS TELEPHONE BOYS:i didnt like this song when I first bought this cd but like i said before this cd has to grow on you and good lord this song grew on me like wildfire.second best on the album.5/5
7.BATTLE AXE:I love this song from beginning to end. its soft in the beginning with clean guitar and then just explodes into one of the best deftones songs ever.third fav. 5/5
8.LUCKY YOU:very different stuff, but i love it. the techno stuff is just great. cryptic verses and haunting chorus make this a great song.3.5/5
9.BLOODY CAPE:I love this song. One of the heaviest on the album and also my fourth favorite tied with "minerva". I love when Chino screams "GOD HELP ME" over and over again at the end. 4.5/5
10.AOAUE:I have to admit I love this song. VERY different for Deftones. alot of people dont like it but that's just because they wont give it a chance because it is different and original, but thats what Deftones music is all about, you know. 3.5/5
MOANA:this is a great song and a great closer to a great album.
love the verse. 4/5

Well overall this album has a very dark tone to it. It's different, it's original, it's colorful ,and dynamic, and that's just their style.

The album crashes open with the screaming Hexagram. Its been three years between White Pony and Deftones and with the eleven tracks its been worth the wait. The first single the god blessing Minerva does not reflect the rest of the album as well as other tracks do. One of the stand out tracks and a definite single is Deathblow. The song like the album has its hard and soft parts to it.The heaviest song on the album When Girls Telephone Boys is a true testement that Chino Moreno the vocalist is in no way getting soft.

I feel this album is a thorough metal album, and instead of continuing to make albums with no real transition in there music like Linkin Park or Godsmack the Deftones truly have yet changed there sound once more. After hearing this album more than once you will definitely be a fan. I would recomend this album to any true metal fan.

"Deftones" is a huge step forward for the band. I think the album has been unfairly compared to their older work, however it stands well on its own. Chino's vocals are consistently strong on all of the songs. Carpenter's guitar work is excellent as well, the seven-string comes through really well. I can easily see why this album would alienate fans of their earlier work, nonetheless I believe they deserve much respect for successfully dodging the nu-metal label. "Deftones" is a progressive, powerful and emotional compelling album that I would highly recommend to most anyone.