Enchanting, yet savagely heavy.
Deftones are the perfect festival band. They turn up, belt out all the hits, raise hell and leave the crowd desperate for more. Friday evening's setlist at Reading was no different as the band were able to effortlessly seam together newer tracks from the outstanding Koi No Yokan with older, dare I say 'classic', material.
This show had it's usual moments of total insanity, My Own Summer made everyone forget who they were for 4-5 minutes, and the double whammy of Engine No. 9 and 7 Words at the end of the set caused a large part of the crowd to look like sections of a World War 1 battleground by the conclusion. By the way, my word has Sergio Vega found his voice on backing vocals! His powerful screaming performance added a great sinister touch.
But of course, Deftones are masters at mixing together the brutal heaviness of tracks like this with beautifully serene moments. The touching tribute to the tragically lost Chi Cheng with Change (In The House Of Flies was a true high point in the set and really made you admire how well this band are still able to hold it together with everything that's gone against them in their career up until now.
Not their fault but only gripe I had with this show was the persistence shown in pockets of the crowd with "Chino Chino" chants. We get it, you're trying to grab his attention and its clearly not working. Just cheer the band. An interesting side point also, there may be room to argue that a headline slot in the NME tent in future would be a fantastic move. Granted it seems a step down from playing Main Stage, but the longer set time within a space that just oozes atmosphere at times could be amazing. Either way, wherever Deftones play live these days, they always bring their absolute 'A' game. Enchanting show.