DEFTONES, PRIVATE MUSIC

Arriving 30 years after their debut, Deftones’ tenth album Private Music feels like a reflection on a band deep into its history while still intent on exploring new ground. Lead singer Chino Moreno points to “Infinite Source” as the song that most openly reflects on their nearly forty years together, a nod to the long road behind them and their continued devotion to making music. That perspective runs throughout the record, with the most meaningful ideas coming from the electricity of being in a room together, building songs brick by brick as each member gravitated toward a moment.

The result is a set of songs that are more concise than I am accustomed to hearing from the band, but never lose their adventurous edge. Most hover in the three to four minute range, packed with shifting tones and layered textures. “Ecdysis” opens with arpeggiated synths that lean toward Depeche Mode before crashing into heavier riffs. “My Mind Is a Mountain” shows the band’s sharp focus, trimmed of excess but still open to experimentation. Moreno has also stepped into this chapter with a new clarity and energy, having given up drinking, and both are imprinted into the album’s music. It’s a record that feels purposeful and distilled, every sound chosen to heighten its impact.

There are not many bands still making new music after almost forty years, let alone fresh and thrilling music, but here is Private Music standing as one of Deftones’ best.