Deftones - White Pony

Seeing this album upped at Staring at the Apocalypse and remembering my sadness that Deftones' bassist Chi Cheng remains in a coma (which is less morbidly but still disappointingly delaying the upcoming album Eros), has incited me to post White Pony, one of my favorite albums of all time. Like all good albums, this album has meant different things to me at different periods of my life. When it first came out, I was an 8th grader who mostly listened to music as some kind of angst outlet, which made heavy and angry tracks like "Elite" and "Korea" really move me. As I grew out of that phase and delved into learning how to play guitar, the instrumental performances popped out at me. Carpenter's guitar is typically simple, but he uses distinctive and interesting chord voicings and when he and Chi lockstep with Abe's ornamented fills, Deftones really rock. As I learned more about singing and songwriting, Chino's characteristic approach to texture and his expansive range blew me away. Even now, as I learn more about music production, Frank Delgado's soundscapes pop out at me and give new revelations about White Pony's depth and mysteries. This album truly transcends genre and its best moments are the ones that diverge most from Deftones' metal lineage. This album comes highly recommended, even to (or rather, especially to) those who have already made their mind up about what metal or the Deftones are about.

White Pony [2000] - Download - Review