Deftones - Around the Fur (1997)^{Release ID: 436}

Around the Fur is hailed as the first truly great Nu Metal album and considered one of (if not) the best in the genre. It was also Deftones’ breakthrough success, and a telling sign of the Metal trend in the late 90’s.

To me, it’s a really plain Nu/Alternative Metal album. Honestly, the production is probably the best part of this, the guitars having a fantastic tone and a perfect amount of reverb and effect on them to create a strong wave of slightly dissonant chords. The music though, is really average. There aren’t many riffs, progressions or leads that stand out, as the best part of the guitars are when they’re used more atmospheric like in “Be Quiet and Drive.” The rhythm section is quite standard, never doing anything too fast or complex. The vocals are at least unique, and I can see an appeal to them, but they don’t do a whole lot for me personally; the lyrics are similarly boring and border on cryptic. For a genre that excels at self-expression, there’s just not a lot of that here, and it hurts the whole thing. Nu Metal should either be full of catchy charisma or painfully emotional vulnerability, and this release doesn’t pack either one.

It’s the same quality as their debut for me. Average Nu Metal. Not bad, but nothing special.

The whole nu metal thing is a tough scene for serious metalheads to get into beyond just a couple key bands: basically Korn and Deftones.  Usually Deftones because they're less "nu metal" than the creators of the genre.  But there is definite truth to the notion that Deftones brought something a bit more polished to the table within their short lifespan as a nu metal band.  Before the straightforward alternative metal release, White Pony, Deftones produced something freakishly heavy for the alternative scene, not from an extreme perspective, but from production and emotional perspectives.  These guys didn't just scream, they SCREAMED.  With every deep riff, shoegaze and hardcore inspired wall of sound, whisper and shout, you could feel the feelings that these guys were going through at the time just as strongly as when Jonathan Davis of Korn sings his lyrics.  I mean, the lyrics here tend to build themselves on the more realistic side of the dialogue expected from the visions one gets just from listening to them, although at the same time they're jumbled details that rely solely on the imagery.  We don't need the excess weight like "she has this," or even saying the word "the."  Simple words are displaying an effective visual trait.  This especially comes from the songs Macara and Lotion.

I wouldn't consider this a "masterpiece," though.  The truth is that this alternative band ended up making a lot of the songs feel a little too similar, a common trait among musicians.  Don't get me wrong, each song here is delievered well enough, and it has a cool blend of the punk attitude and that aquatic noise production of another alt-metal album that came out the same year: Biomech (yes, I feel that Biomech is alt-metal, and am thankful that RYM finally came to their senses about it).  Overall, this is in fact a very cool album that builds itself on effective simplicity in ways that a lot of tame and careful albums can't manage.  So I would easily recommend this for anyone looking to get into alternative stuff.

Deftones were one of the first metal bands that I ever listened to, although in hindsight that probably wasn't a very good choice. For a "nu-metal" record, this is one of the least sounding nu-metal records that came out of that time period. Sure it does have its clear influences in the genre, but this has more in common with late 90s to early 2000s post-hardcore.

And how does it hold up? Well, surprisingly well, even if the Deftones themselves have moved further and further away from the nu-metal influences of their early years in the time since. And there is a reason why; it's because nu-metal hasn't aged very well.

The moments on this album that portray the most anger and frustration are typically its worst elements. "Rickets" and "Headup" highlight this albums least entertaining moments, as the bass is swamped out and replaced exclusively by chugging, rhythmic guitars, to the point where one wonders whether or not this album actually needed a drummer. I also have a problem with Chino as a performer. Whenever he dips into his softer almost whisper like delivery, it almost always seems to be paired with a clipping vocal effect that emphasizes some of his harsher syllables. 

But the first half of this record does make up for some of the second half's faults. "My Own Summer (Shove It)" has a great exchange of ideas and play styles, "Around The Fur" has a pretty sticky guitar melody, and "Be Quiet And Drive (Far Away)" is the most melodic track on the album and one of the standout moments. Chino's cleans are very enjoyable and his screams are usually paired with genuine frustration.

I think that for a nu-metal album, Around the Fur has the potential to be one of the best albums of that descriptor... if the Deftones actually decided to make a nu-metal album. But I still don't think that they did. And going back and listening to it again, I still feel that this record is more of a post-hardcore album with nu-metal tendencies. It's still a good album, but not a great one. Deftones would wait a couple more years to release their magnum opus, but this album helped to get them there.

This is a really solid metal album & a massive improvement on their debut. They got the production right this time & the song-writing is miles better. It's actually a pretty heavy record & the first couple of tracks are fantastic. I've always thought they sounded a lot like a metal version of Smashing Pumpkins & there's a lot of that here this time too. There's a couple of negatives in that I'm not a huge fan of "Headup" or the half hour of silence you have to skip through to get to the secret track at the end but I have no hesitation in giving it a 4/5. It's not quite as memorable as the follow-up "White Pony" but it's not far behind.