Just after they soundchecked at the UNSW Roundhouse in Sydney, we caught up with Frank Delgado (Keys, Samples) and Abe Cunningham (Drums) of legendary Californian troupe Deftones. We talk about the Big Day Out tour, their latest album, we check up on bassist Chi Cheng (who suffered serious injuries following a car accident in 2008) and more… read on!
Welcome back to Australia!
Thanks for having us back. We always love being here.
You were last here for the Soundwave tour?
Yeah in 07 I think.
What were you up to before you made the long journey down here?
We actually had five weeks off. We were home (in California) for Christmas. We were in Europe before then, took some time off and here we are.
You’re still based in Sacramento?
For the most part, yeah.
So of course quite a lot has happened in between your visits, you’ve released a new album and it seems like you haven’t stopped touring in the last year… well, since it was released…
Yeah we started a few months before it was released, so we’ve been going pretty strong for the last eight months or so.
And it’s not stopping anytime soon by the looks of things.
We hope not, no! We’re off to the Pacific Rim right after this. Malaysia, Singapore, Bangkok, Japan, then Hawaii, then we tour in the US in April with Dillinger.
Is this your favourite time, when you have a new album out, and you’re out on the road, playing the tracks?
It can vary it times, depending how life is. Sometimes it’s better than others. But right now it’s really good actually. We’re having fun, we’re excited to play this new record. And it shows, because we’ve been playing six to eight songs off it at our shows.
The long journey between albums is well documented, and there was an unreleased album between the two studio releases, Eros – has any of that material been heard by the public?
It has actually. Right before Chi’s last show, we were playing “Melanie” off Eros, and that’s all over the web. But we haven’t touched any of it since then.
What would you say would be the main differences between the music of Eros and Diamond Eyes..
I’d say it’s way more focused. Obviously for many reasons, we were forced to put our entire lives into perspective, due to Chi’s accident.
How is Chi doing?
He’s still hanging in there. He’s still in what they call a minimally conscious state. Making progress, but it’s very very slow. They’re working on getting him back to these Doctors who are willing to take him in, who are trying some experimental type of stuff. It’s just one of those things, insurance in the States, when you need it most, you don’t get it. So we’re trying to keep people aware, and raising money where we can. We add a certain amount to our ticket prices in the States, that goes to him. He’s just hanging in there…
Unfortunately it is what it is… a pretty horrible card to have been dealt.
It certainly is man.
How did this change of perspective you mentioned influence the new record?
In a roundabout way, the whole record was about him, without being about him. A lot of positive stuff came out of it. We tried to make it a positive thing, rather than dwell of course. And I don’t mean to sound like I’m taking it lightly, because we think about it every fucking day, all day. But we’re in a good spot in our lives now. And that’s a great place to be.
You toured around in August last year with Mastadon and Alice in Chains, how did that go – it’s an interesting trio.
We had become friendly with the AIC guys from making records in Seattle, and then as time went on we became friends with the Mastadon guys as well. Then years later, it ends up that Alice joins up with the same management as us, and logistically it came together to work, and we got Mastadon on board because we’d been wanting to tour with them for the longest. It just made sense. It was one of the best tours we’d ever had. Just in terms of comradery and in terms of how successful it was.
A cool mix of music too, just a total blast. Definitely good times.
I remember there was a Facebook petition to bring the three of you down to Australia around that time! The whole ‘co-headlining tour’ has become quite a trend in the US – with the NINJA tour and The Big Four as recent examples. What has made them so common place do you think?
Yeah, well it’s just getting harder and harder to tour as much as everyone wants to. People aren’t selling records anymore so everyone’s touring (to make money). It’s so condensed…
…there’s only so many venues…
Yeah exactly. And plus people are hurting for money everywhere. So people can only spend so much on entertainment. So it makes sense to package bands together. Plus, it’s fun to tour with other bands man.
That’s also part of the fun of touring with the Big Day Out, which you’re enjoying at the moment, alongside a couple of sideshows. What’s the touring lifestyle of the Big Day Out circuit like?
I think it’s whatever you want to make of it. Honestly, Australia – is there a better place in the world to tour? All the days off in between, it makes it really relaxed. The tour is designed for maximum wild times, it’s a total blast. And it’s great comradery too. We’re meeting lots of great people. There are just good vibes amongst everyone.
It’s what it’s known for, too, everyone (in the industry) knows that about the festival. Every when we did it many years ago, it was the same comradery, and everyone was really nice. It was a really good time. Most bands know Big Day Out as the “Big Week Off”, but just as a lineup, it’s killer. Always. Always something for everyone, and a lot of it.
Anyone you recommend seeing?
Reggie Watts! He’s sick. He does lots of looping, and is amazing with his voice, just phenomenal. He’s a comedian too… it’s different every time. The act is so good. I had turned a couple of the guys in the band onto him before we did the tour. We were watching his YouTube videos because someone told me he was a Deftones fan. So we really got into him, and didn’t even know he was on the Big Day Out tour. Now we’ve become friends with him.
You’ve been going for twenty two years now, since you started playing in your garages in Sacremento, and in that period a lot has changed from an industry standpoint. How do you feel Deftones have moved with the times?
In terms of the internet and everything… we’ve now have five releases leak, from White Pony to Self-Titled to the B-Sides and Rarities, to Saturday Night Wrist and then this record. But we’ve always embraced it.
For one, there’s nothing you can fucking do about it. It’s the world we live in. It makes a big difference in the way we make a living, it’s put a massive dent in it all… but it has also done so many great things for us. And for others it’s opened so many doors and created new avenues for bands to go down. So we’ve always just rolled with it.
You were, however, the iTunes Rock album of 2010.
Yeah that’s a trip. We were talking about it the other day. Like it’s such a new thing but maybe in time that will be considered… We come from the record generation, at a time when Tower Records were around the world, which started in Sacramento. And now iTunes is the Tower Records of the world.
Are there any Towers left?
I think there may be a couple, but as a brand, it’s gone. But I used to love going around the world and seeing Tower Records. It was something to relate to home! But for the most part, iTunes is the way people get their music now. Grandmas and everything.
And Abe, my last question is for you, and that’s what’s your favourite percussion instrument?
That’s a great question. I’d have to say the hand clap. *demonstrates* Doesn’t cost anything either…
Plus, you can get 10,000 people joining in on it…
Yes! There you go.
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Diamond Eyes is in stores now.
