“I basically didn’t sing about myself on this record,” Deftones frontman Chino Moreno told AP during their 2000 cover story, reflecting on their groundbreaking third album, White Pony. “I made up a lot of storylines and some dialogue, even. I took myself completely out of it and wrote about other things. Once I did that, I was able to sing about anything I wanted to.” Upon going Super Saiyan with the release, they’ve continued to keep up the pace, inspiring countless bands, headlining festivals, and earning a whole new generation of fans through TikTok virality. With their latest album, private music, the band once again come out on top, returning with a high-fidelity collection that owns their lush aggression with grace and maturity. Given its release last week and recent summer tour kickoff, we decided to poll our readers on the best Deftones songs. Find the top fan picks ranked below.
Read more: “People like listening to me being horribly in pain”: the oral history of Korn
5. “Passenger”
White Pony was a feat, and its beloved back-half cut, “Passenger,” features a duet between two of metal’s finest. Bringing together Tool’s Maynard James Keenan and Moreno, their contrasting styles make for an alluring performance, with Moreno’s breathy delivery running up against Maynard’s powerhouse tone. The result is sensual yet completely menacing, though it has allowed for some excellent live collabs over the years, including Paramore’s Hayley Williams, the Dillinger Escape Plan’s Greg Puciato, and Periphery’s Spencer Sotelo. Twenty-five years later, “Passenger” remains a reader’s favorite, containing all the elements that make Deftones singular.
4. “Cherry Waves”
Released on Halloween in 2006, Saturday Night Wrist was a pretty bold departure in sound, offering up heavier ambient, psychedelic, and art-rock textures. “Cherry Waves,” like the best Deftones songs, is drenched in groove, layered with distorted and daydreamy guitar tones alongside Moreno’s passionate cries. Deftones have always been adept at setting a mood, and “Cherry Waves” turns from a soothing ache to a darker intensity. Whether or not you’re a fan of the rest of the album, it’s hard not to fall under the track’s building, sensual spell.
3. “Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away_”
1997’s Around the Fur defied the sophomore slump in myriad ways, helping to crystallize Deftones’ hard-hitting beauty. “Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)” is its defining statement in the eyes of our readers. Drifty and aggressive, the single is a considerable step forward, its atmosphere coming closer to dream pop following a debut album that was hell-bent on hard-hitting noise. “Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)” captures a more thoughtful side to the band, letting out Moreno’s heartache and frustration about wanting to leave everything behind.
2. “Digital Bath”
It’s hard to believe that such a gorgeous track unravels a fantasy about killing a woman in the bath by electrocution. Deftones, however, are a band of extremes, flitting between loud and soft, beauty and rage, always with dialed control. White Pony’s “Digital Bath” represents their introspective side, providing a wash of instrumentals before the powerful chorus breaks through the haze. Its lyrics remain jarring, a reminder that there’s still a lot of menace behind those elegant moments.
1. “Change (In the House of Flies)”
You can’t be too shocked at this result. As the first single off White Pony, “Change (In the House of Flies)” set the tone for everything to come. In a sense, its title reads extremely literally, clueing the rest of the world in about their quantum leap from a scrappy skate-metal group into a to-be legacy act with grand ambition. The album proved that their flirtations with lighter, sensual beauty weren’t happy accidents but instead extremely intentional, striking a balance they always wanted. “Change (In the House of Flies)” is the band at their best, serving up some of Moreno’s most intoxicating harmonies.