IN REVIEW: Deftones - "Ohms"

 

Once a band reaches a quarter century of existence, it's usually safe to say that they've amassed themselves quite a career; so as to say, it's rare for a band to survive that long without exhibiting a willingness to grow and challenge themselves. Inevitably, you'll lose some of your core fans along the way, but hopefully you're able to strike curiosity in the hearts of a new generation of fans to balance the books, as it were.

With respect to the AC/DCs of the world, a long career rinsing and repeating the same thing may keep your core audience happy, but it doesn't exactly do wonders when it comes to retaining relevance. Deftones' first eight records are a testament to this, rising up on the cusp of the crushing wave of nu-metal only to break off from the crowd by incorporating alternative and gothic elements into their core sound while maintaining the edge that longtime fans have always loved them for.

Occasionally, Deftones have been accused of straying too far from that core sound, as they were on 2016's Gore; guitarist Stephen Carpenter's contributions were lessened, resulting in an album that was certainly interesting but criticized by some for a lack of bite (despite the album hosting a couple of absolute crushers). Perhaps in response, Ohms finds Deftones in a much heavier mindset; Carpenter's monstrous nine-stringed riffs are all over these ten songs, and the unmistakable voice of Chino Moreno is fiery as it's been in quite some time.

At first blush, Ohms is yet another masterpiece, a wondrous noise made by artists operating at peak efficiency. It's just the album Deftones fans have hoped for; in addition to piling on the heaviness, Ohms sees Deftones reunited with producer Terry Date, who famously helmed the band's true breakthrough, 2000's White Pony. This is not White Pony, of course, nor should it be; Deftones have learned too many tricks over the course of their career to simply rehash their greatest hits. Still, with repeated listens Ohms starts to feel like a partial case of fan service, albeit not a particularly egregious one.

This isn't to say that Ohms becomes a lesser album when examined in the context of their past glories, just that it's admittedly not as forward thinking as most of their past decade's albums have been. That said, there's certainly murkier waters to tread in, and Deftones do about as bang-up a job as anybody could at referencing their best work. Plus, when they do stray outside the lines (as on the majestic, soaring title track), they prove that there's still plenty of uncharted territory for the band to level to rubble with those pulverizing riffs and grooves.

September 25, 2020 • Reprise

Highlights Genesis • Pompeji • Ohms