Deftones: Ohms – album review

Deftones

Ohms

Reprise, Warner Bros

All formats

Out 25 September

Deftones release their first album since 2016’s Gore, but has the wait been worth it? Paul Grace finds out.

Rising from the pandemic like a phoenix from the smouldering ashes, Deftones drop their first album in four years and all of a sudden 2020 isn’t such a bad year. OK, it’s still a shit year but, you know, a bit better now…

The record that vocalist Chino Moreno says had the band ‘firing on all cylinders’, is their ninth studio album spanning their 32-year career.

A moody Pink Floyd-esque intro teases as opening track, Genesis, unfolds. Like the apocalypse, Stephen Carpenter’s razor riffs explode across Frank Delgado’s fizzling pads, while Abe Cunningham and Sergio Vega’s driving bass/percussion combo underpins the colossal soundscape. Frontman Moreno’s vocals shift from frenzied-banshee to smooth-crooner in a breath, and it’s that trademark bitter/sweet juxtapose, which Deftones are masters of, that is ever-present on Ohms. Each track is a journey to the polar extremes of our very existence; we’re catapulted from heaven to hell, as the songs sweep majestically between armageddon heavy to achingly sweet. And in a curious parallel with the current global landscape, the heavier sections paint a picture of impending doom while the softer elements offer a glimmer of hope.

Twisting like a snake, Genesis reaches its giddy peak as Moreno offers, “We’re everywhere, No need to return, I’ll show the way…”. We’re only 5 minutes in and we already feel immersed, exhausted…elated.

In Ceremony, woven between saturated riffs and banging dub-inspired drums, Moreno cryptically shares with us that “It’s all an illusion”, and with its beautiful chord change, the vocal is particularly dreamy.

Urantia shows a more playful side to Deftones. Following a biting guitar intro, the song builds in near lullaby-structure but we’re never too far from another crushing dark blast, while a middle eight of hip-hop breakbeats adds extra dimension.

With its earworm chorus, and channelling Nine Inch Nails vibes, Error is probably the most commercial/poppy track on the album. The Spell of Mathematics takes us on a downwards spiral acid trip and back to much darker territories; brimming with tension, the song is laden with effects, huge sci-fi pads and plucky strings.

Pompeji features poison-poem delivery punctuated with a brutally heavy chorus. The sounds of waves breaking and seagulls crying close the track before a Bladerunner-style synth leads us into a frantic The Link Is Broke. Here, like a man possessed, Moreno’s vocal sounds even more unhinged; he screams, “’Cause I’m filled up with true hatred, And I relate to no one – it’s a useless game, I’m slowly closing down”.

Paranoid and jittery, Radiant City has a huge chorus that will sound amazing live (whenever that may be!). Headless slows things down a touch before we head into last track, Ohms. Bringing the incredible journey to a close, Moreno commands, “Time won’t change this, We shall remain”.

Production by Terry Date is stellar throughout – the whole album is incredibly polished but the passion, anger and bite never once feel compromised.

In Ohms, Deftones have delivered a futuristic masterclass in heavy alt-metal; brutal, gentle, cinematic and beautiful. Most importantly, Deftones’ ninth record is one that will keep the old fans very happy and will, no doubt, earn them a mass of new followers.

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All words and photos © Paul Grace. For more of Paul’s writing and photos go to his archive. Paul is on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and his websites are www.paulgrace-eventphotos.co.uk & www.pgrace.co.uk