February 2021 Feature Release – The Gateway Edition

So just like that we find that a new month is upon us which of course means that we’ll be nominating a brand new monthly feature release for each clan. This essentially means that we’re asking you to rate, review & discuss our chosen features for no other reason than because we enjoy the process & banter. We’re really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on our chosen releases so don’t be shy.

This month’s feature release for The Gateway is 2012’s classic “Koi no Yokan” album from Californian alternative metal giants Deftones. Look, I’m well aware that we featured Deftones’ latest album “Ohms” only a couple of months ago so this may seem like overkill to some of you but “Ohms” really struck a chord with me & also made me realise that, despite being a fan of the band for many years, I’m still yet to experience one of their most celebrated releases. I also remember reading in the associated feature release thread that Xephyr hasn’t checked this one out either so I kinda exercised some creative licence by choosing this one predominantly because I’m looking forward to giving it a few spins. I don’t often take the personal route but… you know… fuck it as they say!

https://metal.academy/releases/441

Y'know, after 5 featured albums I'm starting to think that Deftones might just be a good band. 

And surprisingly enough, Koi No Yokan might actually be my favorite one yet. Even though I haven't revisited White Pony for a month or so and Around the Fur for a few months now, this one has some serious replayability for me. Still, as I said with Ohms, Deftones are ridiculously consistent when it comes to their acclaimed albums, so this is another record where you get exactly what you expect. But thanks to some slight differences in the production of the vocals and songwriting, Koi No Yokan has really smoothed out some of the issues I've had with other Deftones albums. 

After discovering Deftones really late given I listened to quite a bit of Alternative Metal in the past, I'm inclined to agree that they're essential to the subgenre. However, their shtick on Around the Fur and White Pony wears on me quickly, even though I do really like those albums, especially White Pony. The vocal performance of Moreno is a blessing and a curse, since I think it obviously makes Deftones who they are, but I can only handle his voice having unmitigated sexual intercourse with my eardrums for so long. Koi No Yokan, however, puts a limiter on Moreno's microphone so that you don't hear every single slight sound that comes from his mouth, and it's a game changer for me. I listened to this one almost on repeat for the past 2 days and it hasn't worn thin, showing that Deftones still have something special 12 years after their "quintessential" release. Plus with Ohms being so well received, it doesn't seem like they're finished anytime soon, despite some duds in-between. 

I'll probably change my mind on this later but Koi No Yokan tops White Pony for me overall, just due to ease of listening and some fantastic sounding riffs and memorable songs. It's not exactly challenging, but it's essential Deftones material that's just well done. 

The only bad thing about this is that Daniel is quickly running out of Deftones albums for easy Gateway monthly features!

4/5

Look, I probably deserved that but I was hardly trying to hide the fact that I just really wanted to find an excuse to listen to this record & my efforts were rewarded in spades because this is another brilliant Deftones record. It certainly sounds exactly like Deftones. There's no question about that & it's interesting that a lot of reviewers always seem to want to tell us that each subsequent release from this band incorporates this or that disparate influence but the end result is generally just what you expected it to be. That's not a problem for me at all because I love Deftones' sound & the more finely honed it becomes the more I find myself salivating at the prospect. The point of differentiation between each release in their back catalogue is just how deep those emotionally charged hooks dig their talons in & I'm pleased to say that these ones grab on for dear life. There's not a sign of a weak track amongst this lot with only closer "What Happened To You?" seeing the quality drop a little. Album highlights like "Leathers" & "Gauze" sit amongst the best work of Deftones' career while "Tempest", "Rosemary" & "Goon Squad" are also elite examples of the alternative metal sound. Where does "Koi no Yokan" sit against their highly praised back catalogue? I'd place it in the top three behind "White Pony" & their latest release "Ohms" (which I seem to rate more highly than most). This is perhaps not quite as consistently heavy as "Ohms" but goddamn the instrumentalists know how to hit on a chunky down-tuned riff!! This is a top ten release for the alternative metal genre as a whole for me.

4.5/5

Ohms really grew on me after giving it more chances from being featured on here, and after hearing how they sound on this album compared to White Pony, it might put Ohms into better perspective. I didn't find Ohms to be as impactful and emotional as you're saying Daniel, but Koi no Yokan was much closer to achieving that for me. I still don't think Deftones are the kind of band that I would go out of my way to listen to on the regular, but they're good enough that I really enjoy coming back to them every now and again. 

I think the reason why I constantly go back to the point of Deftones sounding like Deftones is that there's a fine line for music commenters between bands that are bad and stagnant because they consistently sound the same and bands that are brilliant because they consistently sound the same. If I were to ever do a full Deftones review for any of their albums I'd definitely want to explain my stance on that a bit better, since Deftones and other bands like Bolt Thrower get to hone their craft playing one style with minimal overall changes with no backlash. Obviously it's because the style they landed on is incredibly good and no one cares if, at the surface level, many of the albums follow and use similar ideas. Deftones are an interesting case because while they obviously deliver exactly what the listener expects, there's a ton of nuance between this album and White Pony as well as even this album and Ohms, even though they do many of the same things. 

Good band is good.

I haven't listened to this record in quite some time and part of the reason why is because Koi No Yokan was the album that had me question its strengths. Following in the footsteps of two of The Deftones most underrated albums (Saturday Night Wrist and Diamond Eyes), this album feels very safe and comfortable for The Deftones. Not bad by any stretch of the imagination; Deftones are too strong of songwriters to create anything genuinely bad, but really lacking in progress.

And I say that knowing this album has some great tunes on it. I thoroughly enjoy "Swerve City", "Leathers" and "Entombed", but the second half of this record tries to get more progressive and can't stick the landing. Whether it be longer songs that don't flow together ("Tempest" and "Rosemary") or the shorter songs that just don't evolve ("Graphic Nature"). The band still has some great hooks like "Rosemary" and "Swerve City", but every Deftones album since Diamond Eyes has focused more on texture than hooks. And even though Gore had it fair share of production issues to boot, it still felt like a Deftones album. Ohms falters because of how same-y it sounds.

Koi No Yokan does not have the same personality as its predecessors, but still contains the quality that one would come to expect from this group. I see why critics flocked to this album at its release time, but as a longtime Deftones fan, I've heard these sounds done before, and better.

7/10

P.S. This is fourth Deftones album featured in The Gateway in just fourteen months. And while I certainly see no problem with highlighting one of Alternative Metal's best groups, it does feel a little disproportionate, especially when there is a shoegaze/post-metal/alternative metal revival going on with groups like Loathe and Hum.

I thoroughly enjoy "Swerve City", "Leathers" and "Entombed", but the second half of this record tries to get more progressive and can't stick the landing. 

It's interesting that I actually find the B-side to be the stronger of the two, particularly the four track run from "Tempest" through to "Goon Squad" which is the best part of the record for mine.

every Deftones album since Diamond Eyes has focused more on texture than hooks.

I dunno about that. To my ears "Koi no Yokan" is still built around heavy riffs & catchy hooks & I feel similarly about "Ohms".

P.S. This is fourth Deftones album featured in The Gateway in just fourteen months. And while I certainly see no problem with highlighting one of Alternative Metal's best groups, it does feel a little disproportionate, especially when there is a shoegaze/post-metal/alternative metal revival going on with groups like Loathe and Hum.

Point taken. I knew it was self-indulgent when I made the call for this month's feature but I honestly didn't realise how heavily I'd focused on the one band until you guys highlighted it. You'll see more variation moving forwards. In fact, I've already got something penciled in for next month that's more in line with your suggested direction.