10 Legendary Hard Rock Bands That Have Terrible Debut Albums

There have been many metalheads willing to compare Deftones with rockers Radiohead, and that's not necessarily a bad comparison. Operating on the heavier side of the spectrum, these guys have always had a hand in bringing more atmospheric soundscapes to the world of metal, making for some truly beautiful records like White Pony and Diamond Eyes. If we were to keep the comparison though, Adrenaline does stand as Deftones' version of Pablo Honey.

Much like Thom Yorke and co., this record just is not a very good snapshot of what Deftones can be at the best of times. Taking the more tired and dated tropes from the nu metal era, a lot of these songs feel like they're stuck in the '90s from the minute they get started, with production that looks quaint to what would be coming with metal producer Terry Date.

You also see here Chino Moreno kind of taking a back seat to the rest of the instruments, almost like he's not fully committed to the idea of being a front man. Considering how much of a force he is normally, the idea of kneecapping your band's strongest asset almost feels wrong at this point. Deftones may have been able to sort their sound out a bit later, but judging from this album alone, they still had a long way before even reaching Around the Fur.