Deftones unlocked some of their latest Private Music in Vancouver, satisfying the sold out crowd at Rogers Arena Friday (8/22) with a 20-song set pulled fairly evenly from eight different albums.
Inside the Canadian arena formerly known as General Motors Place, the 18,000-seat venue roared as Chino Moreno (vocals), Stephen Carpenter (guitar), Abe Cunningham (drums), Frank Delgado (keyboards and samples), and touring bassist Fred Sablan delivered a trio of live debuts, and some older tunes reminding the kids that the Deftones are still very much a force in heavy music after rocking out for 37 years.
The set opened with the one-two punch of “Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)” and “My Own Summer (Shove It),” which set the tone in Vancity.
Then came the surprise fans may have been waiting for: “my mind is a mountain,” the lead single from Private Music, made its live debut highlighting Chino’s soaring vocals and Carpenter’s mighty riffs.
If you're not going to slot your live debut at the top of the set, the #3 position isn't bad as it gives the fans a chance to sit down and take it all in.
“Infinite Source” and “Milk of the Madonna,” also from Private Music, followed later in the night for their own live debuts and complimented the Sacramento group's collection of nu metal bangers.
But maybe one should pause before defining the Deftones, as they explained earlier this month with the New York Times.
“We’ve always tried to stray away from boxing ourselves into any one certain sound,” Moreno told the paper.
“We made music for us, based on all the influences we like. And those influences really vary.”
An unexpected tender moment came when Moreno introduced “Entombed,” a song that hadn't been in the group's set since 2017.
The occasion? The band wanted to give love to Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds, who died earlier in the week.
Deftones and Mastodon opened for Alice in Chains in 2010 during the Blackdiamondskye tour.
Old school fans know Blackdiamondskye was named after the three bands' most recent albums at the time: Alice in Chains' Black Gives Way to Blue (2009), Deftones' Diamond Eyes (2010) and Mastodon's Crack the Skye (2009).
Hinds' death was a shocker and the end to a tumultuous year for the founding member and former lead guitarist of Mastodon.
The 51-year-old quit his Grammy-winning band earlier this year and died in a motorcycle collision in Atlanta, Georgia on August 20.
Deftones are just getting warmed up on this tour. This weekend they head to the midwest. Next week they complete their Rogers Trifecta of having played at Rogers Arena in BC on Friday, Rogers Place in Edmonton on Sunday and Rogers Stadium in TO on 9/5.
It all comes to a head November 1 at Petco Park home of the Padres when they host the 6th annual Dia de los Deftones blowout that will also feature Clipse, Rico Nasty and others.
Get your tix on the Deftones website.
Deftones Private Music North American Tour 2025
Friday, August 29 — Minneapolis — Target Center
Saturday, August 30 — Milwaukee — Fiserv Forum
Monday, September 1 — Buffalo — KeyBank Center
Wednesday, September 3 — Toronto — Rogers Stadium
Friday, September 5 — Toronto — Rogers Stadium
Sunday, September 7 — Québec City — Centre Videotron
Monday, September 8 — Montréal — Centre Bell
Wednesday, September 10 — Cleveland — Rocket Arena
Thursday, September 11 — Baltimore — CFG Bank Arena
Saturday, September 13 — St. Louis — Enterprise Center
Monday, September 15 — Denver — Ball Arena
Wednesday, September 17 — Kansas City — T-Mobile Center
September 19–21 — Louder Than Life — Highland Festival Grounds
September 19–21 — Shaky Knees — Piedmont Park
October 2–5 — Aftershock Festival — Discovery Park
Saturday, November 1 — San Diego — Petco Park (Dia de los Deftones)
