Deftones - Private Music

Deftones have always revelled in moments of transcendence, and on ‘Private Music’, that feeling lingers, stretches and ultimately envelops.

From the snake in the artwork and the track titled ‘ecdysis’ (the term for shedding skin), you might expect a band in transition. But instead of reinventing themselves, the Sacramento legends double down on what they do best: blistering intensity threaded with pockets of ethereal beauty and a continued sonic odyssey.

The album blooms from a familiar starting point with producer Nick Raskulinecz’s fingerprints from ‘Koi No Yokan’ and ‘Diamond Eyes’ visible. Around ‘ecdysis’, though, their sound begins to unfurl. ‘Infinite Source’ is bright and glossy while ‘i think about you all the time’ captures the album’s dreamlike pull; reflective, existential and unmoored.

For longtime fans, ‘cut hands’ comes with the swagger that reaches all the way back to the band’s roots. It’s a reminder of how much ground they’ve covered in the last 30 years and how much they still command.

For their tenth album, Deftones sound colossal. Even in its most delicate passages, ‘Private Music’ feels vast, immersive and wholly intentional. It’s not an album just to hear but one to surrender to. If past records mapped their ascent, this one marks the summit.