Diamond Eyes | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 4, 2010 | |||
Recorded | 2009 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | ||||
Length | 41:22 | |||
Label | Reprise | |||
Producer | Nick Raskulinecz | |||
Deftones chronology | ||||
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Singles from Diamond Eyes | ||||
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Diamond Eyes is the sixth studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on May 4, 2010, by Reprise Records. It was the first album to feature bassist Sergio Vega, who replaced original bassist Chi Cheng. An album tentatively titled Eros was originally intended to be the band's sixth full-length release following Saturday Night Wrist (2006), but was not finished due to Cheng entering a coma after a serious car accident that occurred in November 2008, eventually resulting in his death in 2013. The band continued on with Vega as his replacement, and the release of Eros was put on hold in favor of Diamond Eyes in June 2009.
Diamond Eyes was a critical and commercial success, peaking within the top ten of the US Billboard 200 and several other international charts; it was the band's highest charting album on the Billboard 200 since their 2003 eponymous fourth album. Four singles were released from Diamond Eyes: the title track, "Rocket Skates", "Sextape", and "You've Seen the Butcher".
Deftones started writing material for the successor to 2006's Saturday Night Wrist in early 2007. The band was dissatisfied with the lengthy writing and recording process of Saturday Night Wrist, and wanted to release a quick follow-up record in the same manner as earlier albums such as 1995's Adrenaline and 1997's Around the Fur , which were recorded without the digital audio program Pro Tools. Instead, those albums were recorded as just a band "in the room with just our instruments, no other distractions", according to frontman Chino Moreno. [2]
The band recorded and completed their Terry Date-produced album, tentatively titled Eros, in 2008, and it was expected to be released in early 2009. [3] However, bassist Chi Cheng was seriously injured in an automobile accident in November 2008, leaving him in a coma and putting the release of Eros on hold. Unsure if or when Cheng would recover and be able to perform with the band again, Deftones started playing various shows and festivals with Quicksand bassist Sergio Vega on bass, starting in early 2009. Vega, a close friend of the band, had previously filled in for Cheng during tours in 1999. [4] At this point, Deftones were not sure if they wanted to break up or continue writing and performing music. [5]
In June 2009, Deftones decided to indefinitely put the release of Eros on hold and start writing a brand new album with Vega. [6] The band still hopes to release Eros at some point, but wanted to wait until Cheng was no longer in a semi-conscious state, and they did not feel that it represented who they were as artists or as people at the time. [7] [8] Deftones wanted to make an optimistic record, as opposed to the dark and angry album they had just finished. [9]
Diamond Eyes was recorded in two months with producer Nick Raskulinecz, who had previously worked with Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver, Stone Sour and Alice in Chains. [10] Deftones avoided using Pro Tools on the album. Instead, they favored writing songs together as a band and practicing them "a million times 'til they were perfect" in order to achieve a more raw and "personable" sound. [9]
Diamond Eyes was originally scheduled to be released on April 27 by Reprise, [10] but was pushed back three weeks to May 18, [11] and later pushed forward to May 4, 2010. [12] The latter release date change was possibly due to the album leaking onto the Internet in March 2010, two months before the original scheduled release date. [13]
The first song from the album, "Rocket Skates", was available for free download through the band's official website on February 23, 2010. [11] The song had been included in Deftones live performances starting in October 2009, [6] and was later released as a limited edition 7" vinyl single for international Record Store Day on April 17, 2010, serving as the second overall single. [14] A music video directed by 13th Witness (Tim McGurr) was released on March 9. [15]
The first single, however, was the title track, "Diamond Eyes". It was released as a single to digital retailers on March 23, 2010. [16] The music video for the song, directed by Roboshobo (Robert Schober), was released on April 13. [17] Deftones performed a live webcast of songs from Diamond Eyes and answered fan questions on May 4 in Dallas, Texas. [18] A music video for the track "Sextape" was released on September 3, 2010. The video was directed by ZFCL (Zak Forrest and Chad Liebenguth, known for their work with Foxy Shazam and Fang Island). [19] On October 28, 2010, Deftones released the official video for "You've Seen the Butcher", directed by Jodeb Films. [20] In August 2011, Deftones released the official music video for "Beauty School", directed by 13th Witness. [21]
At just over 41 minutes, not including the pre-order and deluxe edition bonus tracks, Diamond Eyes is Deftones' shortest album.
After dealing with the tragedy surrounding Cheng's accident, Deftones wanted to create an album with an overall positive and optimistic vibe. Describing the band's state while writing for the album, Moreno stated, "Our inspiration and unity as a band is stronger than it has ever been before and we needed to channel that energy into our music". [22] Noticeably lacking on the album were songs about complaining, hurting or how "life sucks" – common lyrical themes for Moreno since the early '90s. [9] [23] Moreno described the overall theme of the album as a "positive zest for life", and also said it had "a fantasy vibe" similar to White Pony . [9] [23] The lyrics for "Rocket Skates" contained "beautiful yet violent imagery" and were compared to the song "Knife Prty" from White Pony. [9] Deftones also thought it would be difficult to tour in support of a new album with memories of Cheng attached to it. Commenting on songwriting, Moreno stated:
I don't like listening to people's problems -- I like music. Music has been smothered with that complaining since the early-'90s. It gets old. Instead of going to the opposite side of the spectrum and listening to The Black Eyed Peas, which is just straight silly, I choose to listen to more instrumental music. I do very little singing about myself on this record. I love songs where I can totally take myself out of being human. I can sing about really odd things, and they don't necessarily have to pertain to me at all. It paints a picture. Those are the kind of lyrics I grew up with -- like The Cure. Really visual images and no storytelling.
— Chino Moreno [9]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 78/100 [24] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [25] |
Alternative Press | [26] |
The A.V. Club | B [27] |
Entertainment Weekly | B [28] |
NME | 8/10 [29] |
Q | [30] |
Rolling Stone | [31] |
Slant | [32] |
Spin | 7/10 [33] |
Sputnikmusic | 4.5/5 [34] |
The album was received well by both critics and fans upon release. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote, "Naturally, there is quite a bit of roiling darkness here -- they're Cure-loving metalheads, it's in their blood -- but there's shade and light, control of texture, with the band deepening rather than expanding." [25] Jason Pettigrew of Alternative Press stated, "Unlike their alleged 'peers' (do they really have any?), Deftones learned years ago that a whisper can be more terrifying than a scream and power isn't always about BPMs and downstrokes per minute." He also added that Diamond Eyes "belongs in a pantheon of amazing albums born from tragedy". [26] BBC writer Mike Diver was also impressed, and opined that the album "knocks every pretender to the band's throne into the middle of next week". He praised the band for playing to their strengths, and summarized: "Eros is reportedly their excursion into weirdness, while this is a statement of consolidation, a neatly segued set that finds Deftones playing to their well-established strengths." [35]
Guitar World hailed the album as a "return to form with [an] alt-metal masterpiece". [36] NPR described the sound of the album as "goth-rock tinged shoegaze". [37]
BLARE Magazine's Joshua Khan observed "Deftones give birth to a refined sound that makes creations like 'Prince' and '976-Evil' enslaving." [38] The Skinny's Mark Shukla likewise explained, "The first four tracks set a blistering pace as churning riffs transition relentlessly into fret-burning breakdowns; all the while Chino Moreno deploying his wounded croon and lacerating howl with an intensity that remains impressively undiminished." [39] Sputnikmusic staff writer Nick Greer gave an unequivocally positive review and called the album "better than White Pony ". He described the album's sound as "intense and visceral, but introspective and sensitive in ways Deftones have never been before", before finally adding, "I can honestly say it's Deftones' best album to date." [34] Scott Gordon of The A.V. Club stated that while there are moments on the album where Deftones "sound a bit like a band on auto-pilot", many of the other tracks "stomp such limp moments with pleasingly crude riffs that claw and scrape through the verses, then release Chino Moreno's voice into glimmering, menacing choruses." [27]
Slant Magazine described the tracks "Sextape" and "Beauty School" as shoegaze. [32] [40]
Diamond Eyes was named "Rock Album of the Year" by the iTunes Store. [41] Kerrang magazine also placed it as their Album of the Year. [42]
In their roundup of the 25 Best Metal Albums of 2010–2019, the music blog MetalSucks ranked Diamond Eyes as the 4th best metal album of the '10s. [43]
Revolver Magazine ranked Diamond Eyes as the best album of the Decade. [44]
Diamond Eyes was expected to sell between 55,000 and 60,000 records in the U.S. during its first week, based on first-day sales, according to Hits Daily Double . [45] The album sold above these expectations, moving 62,000 copies in the U.S. It debuted at No. 6 on the Billboard 200, making it the fourth consecutive Deftones album to debut within that chart's top 10. [46]
As of October 2012, the album had sold approximately 236,000 copies in the U.S. [47]
All tracks are written by Deftones [48]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Diamond Eyes" | 3:09 |
2. | "Royal" | 3:31 |
3. | "CMND/CTRL" | 2:26 |
4. | "You've Seen the Butcher" | 3:34 |
5. | "Beauty School" | 4:50 |
6. | "Prince" | 3:37 |
7. | "Rocket Skates" | 4:18 |
8. | "Sextape" | 4:02 |
9. | "Risk" | 3:37 |
10. | "976-EVIL" | 4:32 |
11. | "This Place Is Death" | 3:46 |
Total length: | 41:22 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
12. | "Rocket Skates" (M83 Remix) | 5:45 |
Total length: | 47:07 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
12. | "Do You Believe" (The Cardigans cover) | 3:29 |
13. | "Ghosts" (Japan cover) | 4:29 |
14. | "Caress" (Drive Like Jehu cover) | 3:35 |
Total length: | 52:55 |
Diamond Eyes personnel according to CD liner notes. [48]
Deftones
Art and design
Production and recording
Chart (2010) | Peak position | Sales/ shipments [50] |
---|---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA) [51] | 22 | |
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [52] | 13 | |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [53] | 55 | |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [54] | 31 | |
Danish Albums (Hitlisten) [55] | 28 | |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [56] | 55 | |
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [57] | 32 | |
French Albums (SNEP) [58] | 23 | |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [59] | 8 | |
Greek Albums (IFPI) [52] | 10 | |
Irish Albums (IRMA) [60] | 45 | |
Italian Albums (FIMI) [61] | 50 | |
Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico) [52] | 81 | |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [62] | 8 | |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [63] | 17 | |
Portuguese Albums (AFP) [64] | 28 | |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [65] | 29 | |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [66] | 53 | |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [67] | 25 | |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [68] | 11 | |
UK Albums [69] | 26 | |
US Billboard 200 [70] | 6 | 62,000 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [71] | Silver | 60,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Deftones is an American alternative metal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by frontman Chino Moreno, lead guitarist Stephen Carpenter and drummer Abe Cunningham, with bassist Chi Cheng and keyboardist and turntablist Frank Delgado joining the line-up in 1990 and 1999, respectively. The band's experimental nature has led some critics to describe them as "the Radiohead of metal".
Camillo "Chino" Wong Moreno is an American musician who is best known as the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band Deftones. He is also a member of the side-project groups Team Sleep, Crosses, and Palms.
White Pony is the third studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on June 20, 2000, through Maverick Records. It was produced by Terry Date, who produced the band's first two albums, Adrenaline (1995) and Around the Fur (1997). Recording sessions took place between August and December 1999 at Larrabee Sound Studios in West Hollywood and The Plant Recording Studios in Sausalito, California.
Around the Fur is the second studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on October 28, 1997, by Maverick Records. The songs "My Own Summer " and "Be Quiet and Drive " were released as singles with accompanying music videos. The album was certified gold by the RIAA in 1999, and was later certified platinum in 2011.
Stephen "Steph" Carpenter is an American musician, known as the co-founder and lead guitarist of the alternative metal band Deftones.
Deftones is the fourth studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on May 20, 2003, by Maverick Records. The album features a strong change in musical direction from the band's previous albums, ranging from some of their heavier compositions to moody trip hop and shoegaze influences. It was also the band's last release to be produced by Terry Date until Ohms in 2020.
B-Sides & Rarities is a compilation album by alternative metal band Deftones, consisting of a CD and a DVD. The CD compiled previously released and unreleased B-sides, while the DVD featured multimedia content, including a complete videography. It was released in 2005 by Maverick Records.
Saturday Night Wrist is the fifth studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on October 31, 2006, by Maverick Records. Despite early contributions that were later scrapped, it marked the departure of Terry Date, who had produced the band's first four albums. It was also the last Deftones album with bassist Chi Cheng, as well as the last album of his career and his lifetime, prior to being involved in a serious car accident in 2008, which put him in a coma. He eventually died five years later from cardiac arrest.
The discography of Deftones, an American alternative metal band, consists of nine studio albums, three extended plays, three compilation albums, five demo albums and 22 singles. Their back-catalogue of B-side material encompasses 52 tracks. One release is certified gold by the RIAA in recognition of shipments exceeding 500,000 copies, and three are certified platinum for exceeding one million copies. They have sold over 10 million albums worldwide.
Eros is the working title of an unreleased album by American alternative metal band Deftones, with tentative release dates in 2008 and 2009. The band spent time recording the album from April to November 2008 at The Spot in Los Angeles. The November 2008 car accident of bassist Chi Cheng forced the band to initially hold off on releasing the album, however, and they later shelved the album indefinitely in a creative decision to move forward. With Cheng in a coma, Deftones recruited former Quicksand bassist Sergio Vega and released Diamond Eyes instead in 2010. In the years that followed, the band has had mixed feelings about finishing and officially releasing Eros at some point down the road. The recording sessions of this album marked the first time in five years, since their self-titled fourth album, that Deftones had worked with Terry Date.
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"Rocket Skates" is a song by the American alternative metal band Deftones. It was the second single released from Deftones' sixth studio album, Diamond Eyes. It was also the first single released without bassist Chi Cheng, who was in a coma during its recording, following a car accident in October 2008. The single was recorded with former Quicksand bassist Sergio Vega, who played bass on the entirety of Diamond Eyes. It was later released as a limited edition 7" vinyl single for international Record Store Day on April 17, 2010, serving as the second overall single.
"Diamond Eyes" is a song by American alternative metal band Deftones, and the title track of their sixth studio album, Diamond Eyes. It was the first single released from the album. It was the second single recorded without bassist Chi Cheng, due to a coma induced by an automobile accident in November 2008. Former Quicksand bassist Sergio Vega played bass on the single as well as the entire Diamond Eyes album.
Sergio Vega is an Hispanic-American musician. He is the bassist of post-hardcore band Quicksand, former bassist of alternative metal band Deftones, and a solo artist.
Nightmare is the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold, released on July 23, 2010, through Warner Bros. Records. It was produced by Mike Elizondo, mixed in New York City by audio engineer Andy Wallace, and mastered by Ted Jensen.
"You've Seen the Butcher" is a song by the American alternative metal band Deftones. It was the fourth and final single released from their sixth studio album, Diamond Eyes (2010).
Crosses is an American musical side project of Deftones singer Chino Moreno and Far guitarist Shaun Lopez, based in Los Angeles, California, and formed in 2011.
Koi No Yokan is the seventh studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on November 12, 2012, by Reprise Records. Its title is a phrase from the Japanese language "恋の予感", translating to "premonition of love".
Gore is the eighth studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on April 8, 2016, by Reprise Records. Its release was met with critical acclaim, debuting at number two on the US Billboard 200; it is the band's fifth album to debut within the chart's top-ten and is their highest-charting since their 2003 eponymous album.
Ohms is the ninth studio album by the American alternative metal band Deftones, released on September 25, 2020, through Reprise Records. The album was produced by Terry Date, making it their first collaboration since the unreleased Eros and the final with bassist Sergio Vega who departed from the band in early 2021. The album was preceded by the release of two singles: "Ohms" and "Genesis". The song "Ceremony" was later released as a single. Ohms received acclaim from critics. The opening track "Genesis" was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance and the closing track and title track Ohms was nominated for Best Rock Performance at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.