Deftones' Alt-Metal Renaissance: Fresh Sound Captivates New Generation
Floating above the melee, Chino Moreno of Deftones commands the stage at BP Pulse Live in Birmingham, a testament to the band's remarkable resurgence. Thirty-eight years into their career, the alt-metal veterans sound exceptionally fresh, drawing a heaving crowd of 15,000 fans. Their brawny, pit-inciting riffs come laced with blurry waves of distortion, creating music that is oddly reflective and melancholy, defying the typical boundaries of early 2000s metal.
TikTok Virality Fuels Commercial Surge
Early 2000s metal is enjoying a revival, but that alone cannot explain Deftones' dramatic surge in commercial fortunes. From two million monthly listeners on Spotify in 2020 to 17 million today, their popularity has skyrocketed. Frontman Chino Moreno notes they are "literally bigger than we've ever been." The reason, with a certain inevitability, is TikTok virality. Their setlist is liberally peppered with tracks ubiquitous on the social media app, from opener Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away) to encore Cherry Waves.
Fan forums speculate on why TikTok users have alighted on Deftones, with opinions ranging from practical explanations—younger listeners discovered the band after emo rappers sampled their music—to more earthy discussions of a phenomenon called "hornycore," where Moreno's "sexual tones" and "fox/daddy" persona fit. This viral attention is evident in the Birmingham crowd, where grizzled metalheads and longtime fans rub shoulders with tweenage goths, often accompanied by their parents.
Musical Innovation and Emotional Depth
As Deftones perform in front of a giant screen filled with trippy clips from Jodorowsky's avant-garde classic Holy Mountain, their renaissance feels like a just reward. Tagged as nu-metal 25 years ago due to brawny riffs and hip-hop-influenced rhythms, they have always possessed a wider musical bandwidth and different emotional temperature. Tracks like Change (In the House of Flies) showcase flanged basslines and effects-laden guitar, revealing familiarity with 80s icons like Siouxsie and the Banshees and the Cure.
On songs such as 2006's Cherry Waves and last year's Infinite Source, guitars arrive in blurry waves of distortion, reflecting the band's deep engagement with My Bloody Valentine's Loveless. This influence seems prescient, as hazy-sounding music across genres today traces back to My Bloody Valentine's innovations. In a sense, Deftones were shoegaze revivalists before the revival, blending genres to create a unique sound.
Enduring Appeal and Timeless Quality
The overall mood of Deftones' music is reflective and melancholy, with Moreno's voice floating above the melee on tracks like Hole in the Earth or Locked Club, evoking wistfulness rather than sexual tones. This effect has been maintained over decades, with no noticeable dip in musical quality when shifting from beloved old songs to new material from Private Music. The audience's ardour remains undiminished, highlighting the band's consistency.
Moreover, Deftones' music never feels vintage or nostalgic. With "est 1988" on their merch, they sound as relevant as ever, suggesting that if a new band emerged with similar innovation and songwriting quality, they would thrive. Ultimately, Deftones' renaissance may stem from younger fans embracing something that sounds like the present, not a myth of the past. Their UK tour continues, proving that alt-metal can evolve and captivate across generations.
