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private music marks the tenth studio album from Deftones, their first since 2020’s Ohms. The rollout was led by two singles, my mind is a mountain and milk of the madonna, both inspired choices that perfectly showcased the record’s spirit and set the stage for what would come. And what a record it is.
Whether the band leans closer to their nu-metal roots or their dreamier shoegaze tendencies these days is still up for debate, but ultimately it doesn’t matter. What matters is the music itself, and it speaks louder than any label could. Deftones remain a band who rose out of the nineties, matured without losing their edge, and continue to craft work that pushes boundaries while proving their staying power.
The sheen of private music’s production strips away excess, letting its core intensity glow. It’s lean, it’s sharp, and it leaves an immediate impression. Beneath the lush soundscapes lies masterful musicianship, anchored by Chino Moreno’s lyrical explorations of mental health, inner battles and survival. The result is an album that cuts deep as an intentional and honest work.
This is a record that doesn’t just play but commands attention.
There’s tension here, yes, but also beauty. There is aggression, and also intimacy. Many of the textures echo Moreno’s work with ††† (Crosses), though quite heavier.
Tracks like infinite source embody everything fans have come to love about Deftones, like the towering riffs, sweeping guitars, thundering percussion, and Moreno’s trademark romanticism. The song is arguably one of the band’s finest late-era moments.
locked club drifts into shimmering dreampop, while cut hands is jagged, synth-driven, and sharp. Songs like ~metal dream and cXz lean into hazier atmospheres, while slower cuts, I think you all the time, departing the body, and the droning souvenir, find the band wading deep into shoegaze territory again, with mesmeric results.
It may be too soon to crown private music a career-defining favorite, but it certainly feels like an album that will shape how we remember this era, together with Deftones' amazing path.
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Deftones
Band photography by Jimmy Fontaine
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