Review 9 of 16

defyet77 writes:

4of 5 Stars

Calm & collective. New Deftones album is just that. An organized brand of melodic beauty. I don't claim to be on the Def's bandwagon from the get-go, but rather picked up White Pony and haven't looked back. Each track on the new album flows with certainty. Crafted beautifully, with just the proper amount of angst and aggression. Not as hard as the skull and crossbones album of years past, but packs more punch for it's stray from the mainstream. Deftones' Saturday Night Wrist is a keeper.

Nov 6, 2006 22:06:27

Review 10 of 16

likewise writes:

5of 5 Stars

In a year with new releases from the likes of Pearl Jam, Thom Yorke, Mars Volta, and Tool, I think this may be my favorite album of the year. Although a 5 star rating does look pretty fanboy-ish, SNW truly is everything I was hoping for. The Deftones show so much range on this record! Where as the last album started with a bang and then settled into a solid (if somewhat disappointing) groove, this one shows the true abilities of a determined and dynamic group of musicians. I guess you could say that they sound a little like Tool/Radiohead, but its more because some of the songs are complicated/atmoshpheric than any sort of deliberate stylizing(?) on their part. However, I will admit that when I first heard "Hole..." it struck me as a sort of Deftones version of "Subterranean Homesick Alien". Not that I have any problem with that.
AND ONE MORE TIME, FOR THE RECORD: Just because the two bands came up at the same time and both play heavy music does not mean that the Deftones owe anything to or were influenced by Korn. Korn is a 1 trick pony that never got past "I hate Mom/Dad/Girl/You/Myself." Could someone please take that page out of the Rock Journalism book, set it on fire, and spread the ashes over Fred Durst? Thank You.

Nov 5, 2006 20:31:20

Review 11 of 16

nextraphyte writes:

Not Rated

This album represents Deftones still doing what they do best. It's not a five star album. Perhaps no Deftones album is a five star ablum, but they have good albums. This comment is arguable by LosBastardos who gave this, and I'm sure White Pony and Around the Fur five stars. He is, however a considerably large fan of the band,evident in his comments almost suggesting that it is his favorite. I agree with him that the album should be left alone of comparisons to Tool and Korn, although the former is arguable.
Personally I dislike most Tool and somehow retain fondness towards Deftones. But let this be a practice of aesthetics.

Deftones influnces probably have more breadth than just Tool and Radiohead. Their scope of sound is, however my dear LosBastardos, much narrower than Radiohead's. It is not narrower than Tool or Korn, it is arguably similar to Tool's and engulfs Korn's, as Radiohead's engulfs Deftones'. Of course, that is as subjective as I accused you and as you sort of accused Rolling Stone. But aesthetics is the critique of judgement, so what can you do.

I don't know if it is the variety of staff members who rate albums (e.g. a rap reviewer, rock reviewer, etc.) or if it is a general succumbing to the forces of marketing and corporate networking. But LosBastardos, you are right as is whoever you acknowledged: Rolling Stone seems to have made a formula for their critique of judgement, their ex officio aesthetics. To give Brittany Spears anything above a star is bad journalism, and terrible aesthetics.

Nov 5, 2006 16:27:37

Review 12 of 16

losbastardos writes:

5of 5 Stars

Okay, first of all, I want to re-iterate what was written by another user that I wholeheartedly agree with. Paris Hilton gets 3 stars? Evanescence with a 3 1/2?! And then to cap it off, you cite Tool and Korn as key reference points?! Tool, I can marginally understand....I guess, although I hear no Tool in Deftones. I hear DEFTONES. Korn?!!! They haven't released anything remotely original since their first record (?!) C'mon, guys..wake up!
Enough of that. Now, I realize that I gave SNW 5 stars.....it deserves a 4 1/2 but I couldn't give it any half points so I rounded up. Make no mistake, this is a triumphant return to form for the Sacto boys. Right from the get-go, "Hole in the Earth" takes off like a shot, albeit a kinda radio-friendly one. Great melody, great riff. "Rapture" hits like a punch to the throat harkening back to the "Adrenaline" days. This brings us to "Beware", one of the strongest on the record. What starts out as a dark, floaty ride ends with one of the most head-bob inducing doom riffs in recent memory. "Cherry Waves", again one of the highlights, is pure Pony-esque pleasure. It gets better after every listen. "Mein", chugs along with the help of Stef and Abe who click at every moment of this record, bolstered by an understated but effective vocal cameo from Serj of SOAD. Soild stuff. The center piece of SNW is an instrumental named after the famed Konami video game code and is also a very effective (especially for D-Tones) track that splits the record in two. "Rats!Rats!Rats!" Comes back swinging as the heaviest track on SNW. The last 1:30 of the song includes a breakdown that may cause cranial bleeding. The only weak point of the whole affair is next, and the reason that I feel it loses half a star. "Pink Cellphone" is mostly just filler....with a guest vocal by Annie Hardy that becomes annoying fast. The last 3 tracks finish things off on a high note. Combat is a personal favorite, with a weird radio transmission intro that kicks into high gear with a great riff and Chino screaming/asking "whose side are you on". Whose indeed? "The Earth" is probably the most "straight ahead" of all of the tracks but still very listenable. SNW is capped of with "Riviere".....an absolutely perfect way to tie things up. One of the best on the record, in fact. "She haunts the road, she waits for a new face" is the last thing you hear....let's just hope it isn't another 3 years before we hear more. Sure, it's not Around the Fur or White Pony exactly, but we've got those records, and there is no doubt that this is Deftones hitting their stride (again), like so few bands are able to do, 11 years in.

Nov 3, 2006 14:02:05

Review 13 of 16

sm938 writes:

5of 5 Stars

I would have opted to give this album a 4-1/2 instead of a 5 if I could, not because it isn't deserving of a 5, but because the Deftones are so talented I would expect them to continue to grow creatively in future releases setting the benchmark even higher. Having said that, I am very excited about this new album having listened to it non-stop for the last few days. I still have more disecting to do, but everything indicates to me that this is their best release yet, which is saying a lot considering their previous works. One thing the Deftones are not is "easy to listen to" for those who don't understand and appreciate the layers and complexity of their sound. You listen once or twice and on many of the songs you think "hmmm, sounds good but I can't quite figure out the sound they're going for (or the beat/rhythm)". Also, unlike 99% of artists today, Chino rarely writes lyrics that rhyme, further complicating the issue. Then, like a christmas present slowly unwrapping itself, you figure out what it is, what's going on. This is the best way to describe the Deftones at their best, and this is that album for sure. I'll tell you that any album that is catchy and easy to figure out on the first listen, as much as I may like it initially, is the first album I'll get sick of. This is not that album. Even the slower songs and the experimental synth-sound based songs are deeper and more complex than those the Deftones have done in the past, making the appreciation I have for the album that much more. If you're a Deftones fan, this album is everything you'd hoped for. If you're not necessarily a Deftones fan, with a little patience, Saturday Night Wrist will will grow on you too and open up your mind to the most unique and complete sound metal has to offer.

Nov 3, 2006 10:37:42

Review 14 of 16

KurtsGun writes:

4of 5 Stars

I don't know what to say about this band other than the fact that with little fanfare they have put out another solid effort. The Deftones' fifth album, Saturday Night Wrist, is different from it's predecessors, much like each album was prior to it.

"Hole in the Earth" is their standard radio-friendly single, but the the album becomes dark in a hurry with the eerie, "Beware", "Mein (feat. Serj Tankian) and the grossly-dark voiceovers of "Pink Cellphone" remind me of a girl losing her grip.

Even if you're not a Deftones fan, every song offers something for the lost soul, paranoid, sicko, maniac and defeated lover in all of us.

Nov 2, 2006 13:33:10

Review 15 of 16

cobra8518 writes:

4of 5 Stars

The Deftones by far are one of my favorite bands. The new album Saturday Night Wrist is great work. the deftones are always changing, and their music is always excellent.

Nov 2, 2006 06:40:07

Review 16 of 16

Ladygoodman8 writes:

4of 5 Stars

I think it's lame that you guys give people like Paris Hilton three stars for a crap record and you give Metallica's latest four stars, but when it comes to an evolving band that isn't The Mars Volta or T.V. on the Radio, you don't give any credit. Saturday Night Wrist is one hell of a record, it's another step that no bands are making as of late. Since Deftones first cd, the next four have been completley different. Sure at the end of the day, they all coincide in a way, but they are all new and upgraded from the previous. You guys never give credit when it's due. If Metallica had made this record or The Rolling Stones, you guys would be prasing it, but the fact that some other band did, it's as if you guys didn't even notice it!!!

Nov 2, 2006 05:27:16