While alt/nu/rap-metal typically bounds between two emotional poles--pissed-off and extremely pissed-off--and a musical range to match, the Deftones continue to push the genre's narrow boundaries outward on their fourth big-label release. Mic man Chino Moreno's patent yowl belies a range of emotion rare in the genus, while guitarist Stephen Carpenter seasons his buzz-saw assault with some industrial-strength riff textures and mixer Frank Delgado's spooky, synthetic textures further underscore Moreno's blossoming lyrical impressionism.
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