Deftones came from Sacramento (California) to bring a new gospel
of angry heavy metal to the masses of alienated kids.
Adrenaline (Maverick, 1995) wears its Black Sabbath and
Metallica influences (Bored) but also vents visceral anger in
Engine No 9 (their 1984 debut single) and delves into
the harrowing psychodramas of Fist and Birthmark.
While mostly the album remains
in the shadow of Korn and Nirvana (One Weak, 7 Words), the band
shows a sharper edge and a more mature take on the issues.
Around The Fur (Maverick, 1997)
stretches the range of their songwriting and performance with songs like
My Own Summer, Rickets and
Be Quiet and Drive that mold anger into real music.
The result is not too different from what
Smashing Pumpkins have been doing, although the
Deftones sound rawer and unpolished.
Moreno is the real reason to listen to the album: his vocal style has become
more and more acrobatic and versatile (Lhabia).
Adrenaline and Around The Fur
were instant hits for a generation that consumes and burns melodic grunge
like cocacola, but hardly left a mark on the genre.
With White Pony (Maverick, 2000) Deftones
achieved a sound that is both classical and subversive.
Drummer Abe Cunningham and bassist Chi Cheng make up a forceful and
subtle rhythm section. Guitarist Stephen Carpenter and dj Frank Delgado
add color to vocalist Chino Moreno's passionate outbursts.
The sinister, sick, deformed howl of Felticeira,
mixed with waves of guitar distortions,
the titanic cry of Passenger, immersed in the sound of
bomber-like guitars,
not to mention psychodramas like Rx Queen and especially Change,
carefully balance dynamics and violence, hypnotic beats and atmospheric guitars,
neurotic noises and mellow vocals.
The grindcore spasm of Elite and the punk-rock vehemence of
Street Carp and the crashing grunge of Korea attest the underlying
desperation.
The closing Pink Maggit sounds like a kid alone in his bedroom,
daydreaming and sobbing in the dark.
The catchy brutality of the music is matched by
profound and erudite lyrics that deal with alienation and the meaning of life.
Where Korn and Tool are fundamentally teenager music, Deftones are adult
philosophers.
By those standards, the quiet, eerie Digital Bath, sung like in a dream,
is a ballad, the intensely emotional Back To School is a church hymn,
and the whispered, relaxed, futuristic lullaby
Teenager is the
track of another band, perhaps a prelude to Moreno's solo future.
Moreno's side project was called Team Sleep,
a trio of two guitars and a turntable,
and initially played guitar-based ambient music.
Carpenter's side-project was called Kush and played just the opposite: super-heavy
funk-industrial-metal. It includes Fear Factory's rhythm section and a rapper.
On Deftones (Maverick, 2003)
the Deftones can still balance on a thin wire between heavy-metal machoism
(When Girls)
and folkish tenderness (Battle Axe), but also veer towards
poppish triviality (Bloody Cape).
Increased melodic prowess (Minerva and Lucky You) and
increased electronic and digital sophistication by Delgado transform teenage
angst into adult philosophizing (Death Blow).
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(Translation by/ Tradotto da Ottavio Donadoni)
I Deftones vennero da Sacramento (California) per consegnare un nuovo
credo
di furioso heavy metal alle masse di ragazzini alienati.
Adrenaline (Maverick, 1995) mostra l'influenza dei Black Sabbath e
dei Metallica (Bored) ma sfoga anche rabbia viscerale in
Engine No 9 (loro singolo di debutto del '94).Anche se, per la
maggior parte, il disco rimane
all'ombra di Korn e Nirvana (One Weak, 7 Words), il gruppo
esibisce un taglio
più acuto e una presa più matura sui temi trattati.
Around The Fur (Maverick, 1997)
allarga il campo delle loro composizioni ed esecuzioni con canzoni come
My Own Summer (reminiscent of Dream Theater's A Change of Season),
Rickets e
Be Quiet and Drive che plasmano collera in musica reale.
Il risultato non è molto dissimile da ciò che stavano facendo gli
Smashing Pumpkins , sebbene i
Deftones suonino più crudi e grezzi.
Adrenaline e Around The Fur
divennero successi immediati per una generazione che consumava grunge
melodico
come cocacola, ma difficilmente lasciavano traccia all'interno del
genere.
Con White Pony (Maverick, 2000) i Deftones hanno fatto il disco che
Tool e Korn volevano fare.
I ragazzi di Sacramento hanno conseguito un sound contemporaneamente
classico e sovversivo.
Il batterista Abe Cunningham e il bassista Chi Cheng costruiscono una
sezione ritmica
potente e indefinibile.Il chitarrista Stephen Carpenter e il dj Frank
Delgado
colorano le veementi esplosioni del cantante Chino Moreno.
L' orecchiabile brutalità di canzoni complesse quali
Fletcheira, Digital Bath,
Passenger si misura con testi profondi ed eruditi che indagano
l'alienazione e
il significato della vita.
Là dove Korn e Tool si rivelano, fondamentalmente, musica per adolescenti,
i Deftones sono
filosofi adulti.
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