A song on this album contains explicit content.

Deftones’ 10th album, “private music” feels like a new beginning.

The album takes you on a roller coaster, from heavier songs like “cXz” to slower, sadder tracks like “i think about you all the time.” The album is definitely at its peak when the songs are listened to in order — beats and rhythms blending into one another, intended to create a seamless, cohesive listening experience.

The Saga of Deftones 

Getting their name from the phrase “tone deaf,”  Deftones formed in 1988, later releasing their debut album titled “adrenaline” in 1994. 

In the early years of the band, their sound was characterized by guitar-driven melodies and angsty vocals, leading them to be categorized under the genre nu metal — now considered a controversial take in the alternative music community as the genre has shifted with the times. 

The makeup of the band looks a little different now, but lead singer Chino Moreno, guitarist Stephen Carpenter, and drummer Abe Cunningham — all childhood friends, growing up in Sacramento, California — have stayed together since the band’s formation.

And after five years of a musical hiatus, Deftones announced “private music” in July 2025, an album demonstrating their timelessness. Throughout the album, they develop motifs of defying time through the imagery of shedding skin, timeless voids, and outer space, to name a few.

Track by Track

“my mind is a mountain” is on the heavier side compared to the rest of the album, sounding like a new phase for them while maintaining their earlier work’s style.

The song highlights their popularity decades ago, but notes that they’re here for a comeback: “Locked in this state clocking our time / The storm remains / And my heart’s entrenched / New fate explores me now.”

The lyrics encourage us to begin on a new journey just as they did: “The storm implodes / Exploring your fate / Now we sail / We’re starting now – behold!” 

Overall, the song sets the tone for the rest of the album: beginning with a new beginning. It feels like the opener to a concert, and the start of a new era.

“locked club” blends seamlessly from “my mind is a mountain” and highlights the unified community they’re building off this new album, serving as both an invitation to join and a subtle warning of exclusion, saying: “Join our parade or be left out.” 

Besides the album name being “private music,” this exclusivity can be seen in the band’s unique vinyl LPs, sold with exclusive colors and alternatively colored album art.

“ecdysis” represents the act of doing just enough to get by: “Can we sit here, silent / Just hoping to survive here?”

Ecdysis, literally, is the act of a snake shedding its skin — this imagery even appearing with the white snake featured prominently on the album cover.

The act of ecdysis is a well known metaphor for shedding the old to make way for the new: “The flames are alive / Reclaim their audience / These rains are divine / Reclaim their environment / A new phase arrives”

“infinite source” can come across as the band’s bowing out, including lyrics like: “A last time adorning the stage / A final wave and bow” and “This love we chased and found / The last ride we’ll ever take.”

The song title, “infinite source,” could be interpreted two ways: that they’ll never stop producing music, or that the band’s history will always be here, floating around somewhere in space.

“souvenir” is a testimony to how life isn’t endless — much like their time together as a band. 

The lyrics “I’ll keep loving you from space / Embracing our time of discovery, discovering” seems to mention how the music they create is infinite, but the band isn’t.

The last two minutes of the song is filled with a meditative moment of silence that feels like you’re floating through an infinite time void in space.

The song name could be indicating that this album is a souvenir to commemorate the journey that Deftones has taken with their fans, coming to an end.

“cXz” blends perfectly with the ending of “souvenir,” carrying on the calming music for a few seconds, then the track opens with the lyrics: “It’s starting to give / Past, present tense / Our memories split / Ones is up, one is down / One is lost, one is there” — a possible comment on how their old music now seems outdated compared to their new album 

“i think about you all the time” is by far the slowest song and has a very calming sense of comfort. 

The song is about having a sense of solace in someone or something and serves as a remark on how life isn’t endless, emphasizing instead the value of spending it with the people you love most: “All of our days / Show me the way / On a wave (on a wave).”

“milk of madonna” is an allusion to the feeling of being intensely engrossed in your religion and being lost in a sense of being spiritually untouchable, immediately notable from the lyrics, “Holy Spirit / I’m on fire.” 

The song feels very intense and conveys a very strong sense of feeling invincible.

The word “madonna” originates from the Italian phrase “ma donna,” translating to “my lady,” in English, and is also often used in reference to Mary, the mother of Jesus. The phrase “milk of madonna” is an acknowledgement of how Mary raised and cared for Jesus from birth — a reminder of Jesus’ salvation and a reason to feeling unstoppable, reinforced with: “Holy Spirit (save, save, save me).” 

“cut hands” has a heavier sound, while also keeping a catchy rhythm. 

The song communicates the struggle of dealing with other people’s negative comments, shown in the lyrics: “Not pulling me / Out of my / Grace.”

“~metal dream” radiates a sense of hope and excitement for the future, saying “In your dreams, all we see are the gold drenched days laid ahead.” 

The song is one of many in the album that speaks to the fact that Deftones is endless — “Together / Together / Forever.” This could either mean that they’re defying time by continuing to produce music, or that even if they stop, the legacy of the band will be around forever.

“departing the body” opens with vividly haunting vocals “There’s a room / We hang in space / It’s clear, cold.” This song is yet another ode to new beginnings. The song illustrates the shift from one phase of life to another: “Enchanted by what lies / What awaits our future.”

New Beginnings 

Although it’s unclear whether Deftones was trying to hint at the end of their band, or aiming to say that this is just the beginning, it’s clear that the band succeeded at defying the odds, being successful years after their peak and topping the Billboard Top Rock & Alternative Albums.

I’m not quite sure the real meaning behind this album, but I’m excited to see what’s to come — or not to come — from Deftones next.