Queens of the Stone Age v Deftones: The battle of the most consistent rock band?
“Genuinely, every one of your albums has delivered. I feel that way about Deftones, too; they never fuckin’ let me down. They just fuckin’ show up every time,” Zane Lowe told Josh Homme during a conversation in June. Whilst the broader topic of the discussion was Homme’s life in music and the new Queens of the Stone Age album, the subject of musical consistency is a compelling proposition within a genre that is regularly criticised for being monotonous.
The likes of Queens of the Stone Age and Arctic Monkeys can claim to be the most consistent contemporary outfits, but not enough of an argument is made for Sacramento outfit Deftones, as Lowe indicated. The band have a sweeping discography compared to many of their contemporaries, and if we were to collate with QOTSA à la Zane Lowe, we’d find the overall substance of their output is of a slightly higher quality.
You’d find a striking similarity by comparing both debut albums of Deftones and Queens of the Stone Age. Brilliant they may be, but they are considerably more raw than the later offerings, with both acts still finding their feet creatively. On 1995’s Adrenaline, Deftones sound the least distinctive of their career. Although tracks like the single ‘Bored’ might still pop, with Stephen Carpenter’s chugging riff an exemplary flourish, the then-quartet were only setting out their stall on the record, with much refinement to come.
The same can be said for Queens of the Stone Age on their eponymous 1998 debut. Tracks like the pulsating ‘Regular John’ are highlights, but there’s also a strong sense that the engine was only warming up. On this album, you can hear flecks of Homme’s old band – stoner pioneers Kyuss – and the direction that his new outfit were to take on their next record. Still, the frontman and group’s sonic metamorphosis was only just commencing. At the time, QOTSA were a two-piece, comprised of the frontman and guitarist and his old Kyuss bandmate, drummer Alfredo Hernández, meaning a slow start was inevitable.
As with every eminent group, the second album from both parties took things to an entirely new level. Moving quickly, in 1997, Deftones released Around the Fur, an offering many diehard fans deem one of their best. It is the record that saw the band forge the unwanted links to the era’s nu-metal movement that they’ve always loathed, offering something much heavier and more dynamic than its predecessor. All the band’s pistons were now firing, the album is chocked full of definitive tunes. Whether this be the timeless singles ‘My Own Summer (Shove It)’ and ‘Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)’ or indomitable album tracks like ‘Lhabia’, ‘Rickets’ and ‘Head Up’, it’s a full-throttle testament to this era of the group.
As with Deftones and their sophomore effort, it took Queens of the Stone Age two years to produce their follow-up. Released in 2000 and featuring a new lineup that included the debut of bassist Nick Oliveri and guest vocalist Mark Lanegan, this album also saw Homme’s outfit kick into gear. Seeing the band affirm their sonic blueprint, Rated R is punchier and much more full-bodied than their first, evidenced by their two successful singles, ‘The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret’ and ‘Feel Good Hit of the Summer’.
It was third time lucky for both Deftones and Queens of the Stone Age. Regarding the former, their third album, White Pony, is almost universally hailed as a masterpiece. Packed with powerhouse tunes, the LP marked a turning point, signalling a maturing of their sound, delivering a more diverse and comprehensive output. As well as carving out a concrete area in alternative metal, on White Pony, they blended shoegaze, trip-hop, post-hardcore, and even prog influences to create a pulsating sonic mass that has never lost its edge.
White Pony is also significant as it saw the quartet introduce Frank Delgado as a full-time member on the turntables and synthesiser. The move added another element to their sound, thickening it out and providing them with the cinematic edge that has made all their subsequent work hit with increased emotional profundity. Additionally, Moreno added a rhythm guitar, which supplied another ballast for lead guitarist Stephen Carpenter’s unmistakable work. Boasting the likes of ‘Back to School’, ‘Change (In the House of Flies)’, ‘Knife Prty’ and ‘Digital Bath’, the record is a cornerstone of modern alternative metal. Demonstrating its impact, ‘Digital Bath’ also won the 2001 Grammy Award for ‘Best Metal Performance’.
As for Songs for the Deaf, Queens of the Stone Age’s third studio effort, it too is universally hailed as their crowning achievement. A loose concept album, taking listeners on a heady drive through California from Los Angeles to Joshua Tree, it is a masterpiece in every sense. Featuring the elemental power of Dave Grohl on the drums, Homme and the group struck gold on this record and produced a host of their finest moments, including the singles, ‘No One Knows’, ‘First It Giveth’, and ‘Go With the Flow’.
The album tracks are also killer, with ‘You Think I Ain’t Worth a Dollar, But I Feel Like a Millionaire’ and ‘Song for the Dead’ two of the heaviest they have ever constructed. With the entire band and their long list of credited collaborators, including Alain Johannes, Natasha Shneider, Chris Goss, and even Dean Ween, this body of work is so polished artistically that it qualifies as one of the most outstanding modern rock records.
While the two bands have been evenly matched until this point, things change on their fourth LPs. Not only have Deftones contributed albums at a higher rate than QOTSA, but they’ve also done it with a superior quality. Both outfits took three years to assemble their fourth instalments, Deftones and Lullabies to Paralyse, respectively. The former takes the crown over the latter, a perfect response to Deftones’ masterpiece, a stumbling block many acts fail to circumvent. Despite QOTSA giving the world tracks like ‘Little Sister’ and ‘In My Head’, broadly speaking, Lullabies to Paralyse pales in comparison to Deftones.
This is a trend which continues as their discographies unfurl. All ensuing Deftones albums, Saturday Night Wrist, Diamond Eyes, Koi No Yokan, Gore and Ohms, have been brilliant. Admittedly, their two most recent efforts have seen a slight decline in quality, but if you compare them to Queens of the Stone Age’s since 2005, there’s an ever-so-slightly more elevated artistic lure.
Don’t get me wrong, 2007’s Era Vulgaris and its follow-up from six years later ...Like Clockwork, are two of QOTSA’s best albums, but I’d say that Villains and this year’s In Times New Roman… have seen things flatline a little. At this point, their formula is starting to feel very familiar. Yes, the same can be said for Deftones, but for Homme’s group, even some of the new album’s highlights don’t hit that sweet spot like those on previous ones. Ohms makes for a more compelling listen.
It’s a tough call that I’m sure many people will be up in arms about. To be fair to Josh Homme and his band, they are one album behind, so if the pair ever match up in their number of studio lengths, we’ll revisit this conversation. For now, though, I’ll repeat it: Deftones are the most consistent band of our time.
