Adrenaline was a great debut album; lots of energy was captured by Terry Date. Around the Fur is their best album; it’s practically perfect except for the annoying empty air before the hidden track “Damone”; and sometimes I think “Dai the Flu” and “Mascara” should be switched in the tracking order. Somehow, White Pony was an incredible follow up that will remain timeless (except for the version of the album that has “Back to School”; that remix/reworking of Pink Maggit is best left as an unremarkable b-side). The self titled that should be titled Lovers seemed less brilliant than White Pony , but it has aged very well; I come back to it far more often than I thought I would; it has outgrown what I considered a post-White Pony slump; however, “Lucky You” still doesn’t work and the b-side “Lovers” deserves its place on the album; Battle-Axe is my favorite moment on the Lovers album. Saturday Night Wrist misses the mark; it’s uneven, the heavy songs don’t groove and the rolling riffs don’t function as they should, the long intro to “Combat” is pointless; “Mein” is overwrought, overrated and over produced; the konami code track has the best title, but is the least remarkable; the more melodic tracks are absolutely incredible and they save the album from being a throwaway; “Cherry Waves”, “Beware”, “Xerces” and “Riviere” are great, but in the end the album suffers from the loss of Terry Date’s production; “Combat” without the intro should have opened the album and “Xerces” should have closed the record. Diamond Eyes is a re-focused return to form; at first it feels similar to Lovers (the self-titled) but it’s more refined and overall the work definitely feels like a whole album, a cohesive work, a trait that the Deftones haven’t had since White Pony; I downloaded Diamond Eyes when it leaked and I bought a physical copy the day it came out and I digitally purchased the accompanying cover songs from the deluxe version; thus having time for the album to sink in the only weak link on the album is “Royal” which has some cool moments, but I consider it the only weak track; the only thing missing from Diamond Eyes is a 7 to 8 minute epic song filled with beautiful passages and multiple crescendos, such a track is something I have been lusting for the Deftones to do again ever since “Pink Maggit”, hopefully such a track exists on Eros. My dream cover songs for the Deftones would be “Dine Alone” and “Landmine Spring ” by Quicksand (a former band of Sergio Vega’s), I would love it if the Deftones deconstructed those songs and made them into works that are even more epic in length and scope, a rearragment with one of the original performers. Sigh. Please do this. For us. For Chi.

buttcrackguy, I feel Royal wears out its welcome so early in record, I think the song has less confidence. It’s still a great track (I want every track that the Deftones record) but it feels misplaced. Perhaps if it’s placed later in the album it will contribute and be more cohesive. It’s sorta weird to focus on song order with such an incredible band, but it’s a way for us fans to make something we love work better for our own preferences. I can’t wait to hear Eros, everything we heard about the recording of that album sounded as though the band had gotten over their personal egos and that the Deftones were a cohesive unit again; that cohesiveness and clarity made Diamond Eyes a great album.