There are some bands and musicians that defy easy categorization. Ones that are able to change (hah) in subtle ways from record to record, yet maintain a distinct songwriting ethos that endears them to their fanbase, while also continuing to gain new ones. Paired with an overall sound that has a wide-ranging appeal, and you have a formula for success.
Few bands fit that description more than Deftones, whose nine full-length albums since 1995’s Adrenaline have all had a distinct identity. Yet there are common threads woven between all of them as well, and it’s not just their music, which is rooted in alternative, rock, metal, dream pop, shoegaze, and a plethora of other influences.
It’s a willingness to experiment and toy with new influences and sounds, seemingly winning at every turn. Their success is due to a large number of factors, but few bands or musicians have been able to combine their longevity and quality of music. Since their 2000 album White Pony broke them into the mainstream, every album they’ve released since then has debuted at or peaked at least #11 on the Billboard 200. They’ve also been nominated for three Grammy awards over the years, winning one in 2001 with their song “Elite”. With 3 RIAA Platinum albums and one RIAA Gold album (for their first four albums, respectively), these are the kinds of accolades that few others can match.
There’s also the fact that their longevity is able to be measured in other ways. Even relatively newer bands like Loathe, Silent Planet, Moodring, Softcult, Fleshwater, Slow Degrade, Cohen_noise, and a host of others have been influenced by Deftones in some way. Vocalist Chino Moreno’s versatility is a big draw as well, for both rising young bands and new fans.
If the fact that their 2025 headlining tour is seeing Deftones headline arenas surprises you, there’s another important factor to note here. They’re extremely popular with a much younger demographic now. Part of this is due to the fact that many millennial and Generation X parents have raised their children on similar music, but also because a younger demographic is discovering the band on TikTok and other social media. This has even sent certain songs from the band through the stratosphere, particularly songs like “Cherry Waves” and “Sextape”. Amazingly, both of these songs were never released as singles, but they’ve taken on a life of their own. And they are simply MASSIVE on Spotify, where they’re closing in on 12 million monthly listeners. Imagine what’ll happen with even a new single? The numbers are hard to ignore.
Nu-metal’s resurgence has also helped with this, of course. Even though they’re a band that’s always resisted the label, Deftones are inevitably one that overlaps with fans of the biggest bands of the genre. Particularly Korn, Slipknot, Limp Bizkit, System Of A Down, and Linkin Park. It won’t shock you to learn their recent show with SOAD in San Francisco drew a whole lot of people, to say the least. And a landslide of that group was Gen Z,
However they’ve managed to do it, Deftones have captured the voice and attention of the youth. While it’ll certainly make tickets for their upcoming headlining tour more difficult to grab, the fact is that any band that has the attention of a more youthful audience has more of a chance of longevity. The numbers bear witness to all of this.
