Nearly thirty years on from adrenaline, Deftones are still here, still exploring. Once lumped in with nu-metal, they’ve long since carved their own space, somewhere between heavy riffing and shoegaze atmosphere. Their tenth record, private music, arrives after the acclaimed ohms (2020) and shows a band that is both comfortable in their skin and still keen to stretch at the edges.
The line-up remains familiar: Stephen Carpenter’s guitars, Abe Cunningham’s drumming, Frank Delgado’s atmospherics, Fred Sablan holding down bass, and Chino Moreno shifting between clean singing and grunts. With Nick Raskulinecz back in the producer’s chair for the first time since diamond eyes, the record sounds sharp and confident, even when the songs lean softer.
Opener my mind is a mountain was the first single, a straight-forward mid-tempo track with a great chorus. It’s catchy enough, but perhaps a bit too safe as an introduction. locked club hits harder, with flashes of old-school Deftones heaviness and another memorable chorus.
ecdysis slows things down, a riff-heavy and more complicated song that shows the band’s alternative leanings. infinite source is gentler again, built on cleans and restraint rather than aggression — a clear example of their more modern sound. souvenir tries for a slow, weighty atmosphere but never really takes off.
The real spark comes with cxz. Easily the most progressive track here, it rattles forward with restless energy, full of clever turns and tension. In contrast, i think about you all the time plays the role of the album’s ballad. It’s airy and slow, carried by Moreno’s softer side, and works well as a breather.
The standout is milk of the madonna. Everything about it clicks: the riffs, the chords, the soaring chorus, and Chino’s delivery. It’s one of the best Deftones songs in years. cut hands then drags things back to the heavier side, a sharper, more metallic cut that recalls their earlier fire.
metal dream is surprisingly restrained despite its title, a solid mid-tempo track that keeps momentum without drawing too much attention. Closer departing the body brings everything to a slow fade, one of the catchiest Deftones songs in recent memory and a fitting way to end.
private music is less immediate than ohms. At times it feels like the band are treading ground they’ve already covered. Yet there are still moments of brilliance — cxz, milk of the madonna, and departing the body stand tall, proof that Deftones can still deliver when it matters. The sequencing asks you to take the album as a whole rather than picking out singles, and while not every song hits, the atmosphere carries through.
They may no longer surprise with every move, but Deftones remain a rare band from the 1990s still making relevant records today. They balance heaviness and beauty in a way no one else does, and private music reinforces that fact.
Releasedate: 22-08-2025 | Label: Reprise Records | Official website
Tracklist:
01. my mind is a mountain
02. locked club
03. ecdysis
04. infinite source
05. souvenir
06. cxz
07. i think about you all the time
08. milk of the madonna
09. cut hands
10. metal dream
11. departing the body
