Northern California hard rockers the Deftones kick off a tour in support of their self-titled fourth album October 24th in Seattle. The outing is now confirmed to run through a December 11th homecoming stop in Sacramento. Poison the Well, Hoobastank, Thursday and Thrice will be among the opening acts.

During the band's stint on the Summer Sanitarium tour with Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit and Metallica, tracks like "Hexagram" and "Battle-axe" mutated, stretched and grew into their own.

"It's just a comfort thing," says Deftones drummer Abe Cunningham. "We wrote a lot of stuff in the studio and never had a chance to jam it out. We started playing them live and you see the reactions and you get in a groove. Even some of the older songs like 'Nosebleed' that we've played forever, certain sections are twice as long. We've been playing some of these songs for over ten years, and after all that time we can extend a part and catch people off-guard. It keeps it exciting for ourselves and also for other people."

Last month, the Deftones shot the video for "Hexagram" in Southern California with director Darren Doane. "We've done a number of enormously expensive videos in the past," Cunningham says. "This one is super cheap and fun. It's basically a performance video -- it's us and real fans rocking out. We released the video of the address where we shot at on the Internet, so we could have as many people as possible at this location. No smoke and mirrors, just sweat and smiles."

Deftones tour dates:

With Poison the Well and Clutch

10/24: Seattle, Paramount Theater
10/26: San Jose, CA, San Jose Events Center
10/27-28: Los Angeles, CA, The Wiltern

With Poison the Well and Hoobastank

10/30: Las Vegas, The Joint
10/31: San Diego, Soma
11/1: Phoenix, Celebrity Theater
11/3: TBA
11/5: Houston, Verizon Amphitheater
11/6: Austin, TX, Austin Music Hall
11/7: Dallas, Next Stage
11/8: New Orleans, State Theater
11/10: Orlando, Hard Rock Live
11/11: Pompano Beach, FL, Pompano Beach Amphitheater
11/13: Atlanta, Tabernacle Theater
11/14: Norfolk, VA, Norva
11/15: Washington, D.C., Bender
11/17: Worcester, MA, The Palladium
11/19: Philadelphia, Electric Factory
11/20-21: New York, Hammerstein Ballroom

With Thursday and Thrice

11/24: Burlington, VT, Memorial Auditorium
11/25: Montreal, Verdun
11/27: Toronto, Arrow Hall
11/28: Detroit, State Theater
11/29: Cleveland, TBA
11/30: Chicago, Aragon
12/2: Minneapolis, Roy Wilkins
12/3: Milwaukee, Eagles Ballroom
12/5: St. Louis, Pageant
12/6: Kansas City, Memorial Auditorium
12/8: Denver, Fillmore
12/9: Salt Lake City, Salt Air
12/11: Sacramento, TBA

COLIN DEVENISH
(September 9, 2003)