Often dubbed the Radiohead of metal, Deftones have always flirted with the more experimental side of things. Raised on a steady diet of art-rock, shoegaze and hip-hop, they’ve exhibited – via shifting time signatures – unorthodox song structures and a fascination with the obscure; a derring-do far beyond their alt metal peers.
Diamond Eyes, their sixth album, was crafted in strange times. A different record to be named Eros was meant to succeed 2006’s Saturday Night Wrist, written while lead vocalist Chino Moreno battled drug addiction and divorce. They’d even begun studio work with producer Terry Date (Dream Theater, Soundgarden) in 2008. But when bassist Chi Cheng fell into a coma in a car accident, the band shelved the record. Cheng died in 2013, and Eros never saw the light of day.
