White Pony Review

omg guys it's rarity!

Date of Release: June 20, 2000

Deftones are an American Alternative metal/Nu-Metal band that formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. Band members consist of: (White Pony lineup)

• Chino Moreno (Rhythm guitar, Lead Vocals)
• Stephen Carpenter (Lead guitarist)
• Abe Cunningham (Drums)
• Chi Cheng (Bass)
• Frank Delgado (Keyboard, Turntable)

On occasion being called "The Radiohead of Metal", Deftones are known for being very experimental with their songs. As well as their whispered singing and aggressive screams.

I was first made aware of this band after listening to their hit song Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away) on a music playlist. It was a little off-putting upon my first listen but quickly grew to love this sound. I then listened to their album Around the Fur which I really liked.

They've got this horror tone surrounding them that I just can't get enough of. It's horrifying but at the same time can be absolutely beautiful, shit that makes you levitate.

So naturally after Around the Fur I went on to check out their next album White Pony. What followed was one of the most unique albums I've ever heard. A nice mix between experimental soft songs as well as heavy, aggressive tracks. As well as 2 features, Maynard James Keenan (Lead singer of Tool) and Scott Weiland (Lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots).

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Songs
Back to School (Mini Maggit)
The starting song off the album and a good introduction song at that. Despite being forced and disliked from the band themselves I actually really like it. An aggressive Nu-Metal track. Chino's vocals constantly shift from beautiful and melodic to aggressive and angry. The guitars make this wall of noise that compliments the vocals surprisingly well.

Feiticeria
This song is about a Sorceress, this album is when Chino Moreno stopped singing from personal experiences and started following a story format. This tracks opens with some nice sounding guitar riffs before the snare drums come in full throttle. Overall a nice track.

Digital Bath
My God where do I even begin with this one? Digital Bath is a very melodic, brooding song that absolutely makes your soul leave your body. It's depressing and dark, yet it's beautiful in it's own twisted way. The reason I say that is because this song is literally about electrocuting a girl in a bathtub, Fucking. Brutal. This song sounds like a mix of heaven and hell, Chino's vocals on this track shine. The guitar pedal being used in this song is perfect for the mood they went for.

Elite
Diving back into the aggressive fast paced tempo. Elite features that infamous inhuman screams Deftones are known. The guitar riff being played slaps harder than my dad's belt. Drumming is on point as well. This song is incredibly groovy and makes you want to thrash around and pick a fight. Such a great song.

Rx Queen
This song features grunge legend Scott Weiland from Stone Temple Pilots on backing vocals. Lyrically this song is about a man so in love with a girl he doesn't care what she does to herself or him. Which explains why this track is moody and dark. Abe's drumming is awesome on here. This track sounds like it's trying to be aggressive as all hell but is restraining itself, which is done on purpose to tie in with the lyrics.

Street Carp
I like the beginning of this song a lot. The guitar riffs being played sound like their coming out of a shitty radio. Well before Chino's vocals shut it down and the song explodes into much better audio quality. This song is short and sweet. I especially like the ending when Chino repeatedly keeps singing, "Now did you get it? Get it so write it down".

Teenager
Probably the most unique track off the album. This song only features an acoustic guitar and drums. It's melodic, soft, and Chino's vocals are beautiful. Yet while all this is going down you have a horror sound effect straight out of a John Carpenter film being played in the background constantly. Frank Delgado's mixing here works wonders.

Knife Prty
I adore the beginning of this song a lot. It has that signature 90's alternative rock vibe to it, something that the Smashing Pumpkins could've written. Stephen's guitar playing shines on here. The chorus is extremely catchy as well. Later on in the song a woman's screaming vocals are added which start off normal but quickly grow distorted and don't sound human at all, which sounds pretty cool not gonna lie.

Korea
The opening riff played at the beginning of the song is heavy as all hell. I especially love how vicious Chino's vocals are at the chorus. Lyrically this song is about strippers and drugs. Yeah, no philosophical crap or anything like that. Just raw strippers and drugs lmao. It almost seems like this song was designed to be played at concerts.

Passenger
When I first heard this song I was like, "dude lmao why does Chino sound like the singer from Tool". That's because Maynard James Keenan is featured on this track, singing alongside Chino. This was a combo I never knew I needed, their singing styles mix perfectly. The drumming is at it's absolute best on here, so is Stephen's guitar work. A song excellent for a night time drive. Overall a banger.

Change (In The House Of Flies)
This song was responsible for giving Deftones mainstream attention. Chino's transition from verse to chorus is just magical. Compared to the other songs on this Album this may not be all that special but damn do I love this song. The bass on here is especially awesome. Lyrically this song is about watching someone you love slowly changing for the worse, which is really heartbreaking.

Pink Maggit
The last song off the album. This track perfectly captures every element of all the songs on the album. This song ends it all off in a calm, peaceful way. I especially love how the chorus is exactly the same as Back to School (Mini Maggit) making this whole album feel like it's coming full circle. It makes you think about everything you just listened to, an end of a journey. All in all this was a perfect song to close on.

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Final Thoughts
In conclusion this album is one big journey from beginning to end. I can honestly say I've never heard anything like it before. Deftones do things how they see fit and I respect that. Generally this album has a very calm mood, I can definitely see myself coming back to this album.

That being said I know Deftones isn't for everybody, it's an acquired taste even for fans of Rock and Metal. Most notably their vocals could be really off-putting to some people, and not everybody is into experimental music.
However if you ever want to step out of your musical comfort zone and branch out. Rock/Metal fans or not, I'd recommend giving this album and Deftones a shot. There's truly nobody like them out there.

If I had to rate it out of 10: 10/10

Favorite Songs

• Back to School (Mini Maggit)
• Digital Bath
• Elite
• Rx Queen
• Street Carp
• Teenager
• Knife Prty
• Korea
• Passenger
• Change (In The House Of Flies)
• Pink Maggit

For those who want to check it out here's a preview song: