10 Great Metal Albums (For People Who Don't Like Metal)

While Deftones are lumped in with - and often share a sound with - the ‘00s nu metal lot, they were a group that had a lot more to offer than most of the ilk. Their music is often combative, sometimes to its detriment, but in terms of ambition and complexity, they outshone most of their contemporaries, particularly on the masterful White Pony.

Much of the credit for the album’s success does go to vocalist Chino Moreno. Like Mike Patton before him, he’s versatile and charismatic performer. Within “Street Carp” alone, he can be heard shifting his delivery, tackling rapping, crooning, roaring, and losing control altogether. Coupled with the band’s inventive use of electronics and it’s a sound that remains distinct today.

“Street Carp”, an album highlight, sees a bravura performance from vocalist Chino Moreno, who shifts up his delivery every couple of bars, rapping, singing, spluttering. “Change (In the House of Flies)” rumbles with menace and the kind of bold ideas that Korn certainly weren’t having around this time.

The highlight, though, is the penultimate track, “Change (In The House Of Flies)”. The whole song is treated with house of horror effects, Moreno’s vocals dipping in and out of distortion, the guitars sounding miles away before exploding in the chorus. It’s the kind of genuinely disquieting music most metal acts would kill to make.