Whether you’re one of several thousand fans watching Deftones headline their own damn Dia de los Deftones festival, or catching the alt-metal trailblazers play an intimate surprise club gig for a select few, there’s no question that Chino Moreno and Co. are going to bring it in-concert.
For 30 years, now, Deftones have been one of the heavy-music world’s most consistently captivating and well-rounded forces — the kind of band that will drop into the darkest, dirge-like groove just ahead of cranking into a shoegazing, heart-on-your-sleeve pseudo-ballad. That versatility has won them legions of devoted fans determined to catch them every tour cycle.
But what is the No. 1 song Deftones devotees need to see when the group hit the stage? We asked Revolver readers this exact question, and these were the top five vote-getters.
“My Own Summer (Shove It)”
There are Deftones hits, and then there is “My Own Summer (Shove It).”
The Around the Fur opener sports arguably the riff of the entire Deftones catalog: a depraved, dangerous and dark-spiraled descension that only intensifies as the song goes on. Chino Moreno delivers both shushed-but-dread-inducing moans and a fully-enraged vocal meltdown. The iconic opening snare hit is a Pavlovian trigger to multiple generations of metalheads.
It’s the song they’ve played the most in-concert (more than 1,300 and counting, per Setlist.fm), and it absolutely crushes every damn time.
“Engine No. 9”
Over the years, Deftones’ career arc has vaulted them through gorgeous textural hazes that reveal a deep love of dark-melodied alt-rock, gossamer shoegaze and more. “Engine No. 9” is not one of those numbers.
There’s a bluntly efficient, chromatic rap-metal heaviness ramming through the bulk of the Adrenaline number that speaks to the more bombastically groove-dominated side of Deftones’ aesthetic. They are indeed a band of many flavors, and with “Engine No. 9,” its corrosive taste is key.
“7 Words”
“I’ve only ever seen a brawl break out when ‘7 Words’ was playing.”
This is the rationale one Revolver reader had for voting in this early, Adrenaline-era standout. While we’re not vouching for the song to be the soundtrack to violence, we can also admit that “7 Words” sets off something primal in our cavefolk brains, and as soon as Deftones lean into that twitchy funk-metal groove in a live scenario, you’d better believe the rest of the joint is going to pop off hard.
As the first single from their debut album, “7 Words” no doubt occupies a special place in Deftones’ hearts, and that’s reason enough to regularly charge through the tune in-concert after nearly 30 years.
“Headup”
There’s no sidestepping this one: “Headup” is one of Deftones most stunningly heavy showcases. Bolstered by a cement-cracking bounce and a tandem scream fest from Moreno and Max Cavalera (the former going full porpoise-screech, the latter in classic death mode), the cut goes for the throat — at least until its moody, jazzy, jam-out finale.
The song originated as a cathartic celebration of the band’s friend and Cavalera’s stepson Dana Wells, who’d tragically died young in a car accident in 1994. For fans, it might stand as an in-concert moment to rally together and scream along — a way to hold your heads up high while reflecting on the challenges life throws your way.
Extra points to the song for giving Cavalera’s post-Sepultura band Soulfly its name.
“Korea”
Nocturnal, louche, and nasty, “Korea” was the first song the band wrote for their White Pony — which seems fitting, considering the lyrics likewise tap into the album title’s equine drug slang.
It’s one of the darkest tracks of the album, immediately banging into a grotesque run of post-hardcore grooves, disquietingly noisy guitar chords from Carpenter and teeth-gnashing aggression from Moreno. Despite some of their dreamier tendencies, Deftones carved an uncomfortable niche with this classic.
While the song is more of a setlist rarity these days, whenever they bust out this pony, you know it’s going to be a wild ride.