Deftones Fan Interview

Thanks to all of you who submitted questions for Interview the Deftones. While Chino is busy putting the final touches on the next Deftones studio album, Stef, Abe, and Chi sat down to answer your questions! Enjoy...

What kind of music did you like growing up and which bands?
Anthony - Visalia, CA

Stef: My first music I listened to was old Motown and oldies kinda stuff. My mom listens to a lot of that music and that's how I heard it for obvious reasons. I was just a kid then, not older that 5 or 6. I love that music, it's great stuff. But not long after that, my mom bought me 3 records. Kiss Alive 2, Queen News For the World, and Saturday Night Fever. I loved them all equally, but gravitated to Kiss, also for obvious reasons. Kiss was my fav band for a few years while I was catching up with them finishing wearing make up. Then, I got into a bunch of stuff. AC/DC, Van Halen, Journey, Reo Speedwagon, Styx, Yes, The Police. Then metal showed up! All the glam stuff, then "thrash", then "funk metal", then "rap metal", then "speed metal", well you get my drift. Throw in some rap, country, jazz, classic rock, and all other kinds of music and here I am.

What is the REAL story behind the "knife party" incident while recording white pony?
Nate - Reseda, CA

Stef: Well, I’m not sure I actually know the exact moment 'cause I didn't really see it 'til after it "so called happened". Now for real, it's just Chino's lyrics. There was no "knife party". Well, at least not an official one anyways. Kinda stupid to play with knifes don't ya think? lol.

You guys have played it all, headliners, club dates, arenas, stadiums, openers, all day festivals. What format is best for you?
Jaime - West Des Moines, IA

Stef: We like them all. Cliché response I know, but it's true. Headliners are great because we play directly to our fans and that's the most fun. Arena’s are cool cause they're usually a place where you can do cool productions and big big sounds. Clubs are dope because you're right there all up close and personal. Everyone sweats their ass off and it's as good as it gets. Stadiums... hmmm? They could be cool if they're packed to the rim and everyone's wasted. You gotta really relax in those for sure. Festivals...real real fun if there are a lot of bands you wanna see. Some festivals have real abstract lineups and some of the dopest bands you ever heard on them. Others, not diverse. But the bigger the mix, I think the better the festival. My personal favs are clubs and festivals. Arenas are best during the summer.

One of the things I like most about the Deftones is their versatility. Your albums run the whole gambit of emotions. How do you (The Deftones) think your writing process (both musically and lyrically) differs from other bands in this respect?
Patrick - Baltimore, MD

Stef: I’ll say first off, lyrically Chino's pretty much the one that takes care of that. Chi kicks down some thoughts on them from time to time. But mainly Chino does the words. Musically we all have something to say about each song. We all are so different from each other musically. When we work on new stuff, sometimes songs just happen, but most times we butt heads on stuff. It can be quite a process for us sometimes. But in the end, it's what comes out of the battle that we enjoy.

Do you guys see yourself still touring and making music 10 years from now?
Steve - Denison, TX

Chi: If we could be so blessed to continue on I would be very grateful.

What keeps the band going so strong, and keeps you guys inspired after all these years?
Rachel - Chula Vista, CA

Chi: Coors light-kush-our fans-our collective love of music and our friendship.

What is your favorite song to play live?
Brian - Clovis, NM

Abe: Hey Brian, what's happening? My favorite song to play as of lately has been HEXAGRAM, but one that I never get tired of playing is NOSEBLEED. Thanks for your question, and we will be playing both HEXAGRAM, NOSEBLEED and many, many others for you soon!

How have you managed to stay the same (member wise) for so long and not break up?
Selina - Chicago, IL

Abe: Hello Selina! To answer your ?..........Who knows. The only thing I can think of is that we were friends. We had no specific goals and no timeline in which to achieve those goals. We had no idea. The only thing we knew for sure was that we wanted to rock. I know that's a pretty sparse answer, but it's the truth. There's a feeling that we get every once in a while when we get off stage that is the definition of pure joy, it's the greatest feeling I have ever felt and it doesn’t happen that often, but that feeling is why were still around. Hope that answers it. All the best, Abe C.

What is the oddest thing a groupie has ever done to get to meet you guys?
Ian - west Paterson, NJ

Abe: What's Crackin' Ian? Groupies? I didn’t know we had any. The absolute strangest thing was this girl that had a prosthetic leg and arm wanted me to use her leg as a bat. You see, there were some batting cages next to the venue we were playing. I was getting off our bus to go inside and do sound check. On the way in I stopped to talk to some people that were kicking it outside the bus, when this hella fine girl starts talking to me. Anyways, long story short she whips off her leg, hands it to me and tells me to go hit some balls in the batting cage. I didn’t want to, not because it was gross, but because I thought that would be a fucked up thing to do. Not to mention, I was kinda stunned. I ended up using here leg as a bat, and then later she let me burn things in her prosthetic arm with a magnifying glass. Later Ian, Abe C.