Deftones stop in LR to prove their metal

Sacramento's Deftones have been making some of the most intriguing and thoughtful metal for almost 30 years now, and they aren't even thinking of slowing down.

Touring in support of their latest album, Gore, Deftones bring their live show to Little Rock's Metroplex on Wednesday. New York-based hardcore band Burn will open.

Deftones, whose sound and approach have influenced a new generation of experimental heavy bands such as Deafhaven, got off the ground in 1988 with lead singer/guitarist Chino Moreno, guitarist Stephen Carpenter, bassist Dominic Garcia and drummer Abe Cunningham. The lineup was in constant flux in the early years, but by 1990 the band solidified with Chi Cheng on bass.

Their debut, Adrenaline, was released in 1995, followed by Around the Fur in 1997.

It was 2000's White Pony, though, that proved to be the band's breakout. Combining heavy riffs, Moreno's sung-screamed lyrics, the textures added by new member Frank Delgado on keyboards and turntables, and a healthy dose of teen angst and frustration, the album resonated with kids soaking up similar records by Korn, Linkin Park and System of a Down. The band even won a Best Metal Performance Grammy for the raving and aggressive "Elite."

If cover versions are an accurate indication of a band's taste and influences, Deftones rank high on the list of top quality. Check their thunderous and plodding cover of "If Only Tonight We Could Sleep" by British gloom rockers The Cure; their cover of Sade's "No Ordinary Love" is eerie and seductive; they've also tackled The Smiths' "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" and Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man."

In 2008, Cheng was injured in a car wreck in Santa Clara, Calif., and Sergio Vega of Quicksand took over bass duties. Cheng made a partial recovery, but died of cardiac arrest in 2012.

Gore, the eighth Deftones studio album, was released by Warner Bros. in April. Pitchfork.com called it the band's "most engaging since White Pony." It's an album that proudly waves the heavy metal flag, as on the Iron Maiden-influenced "Doomed User," while exploring other avenues like Carpenter's progressive-rock guitar solo on "Phantom Bride."

Speaking with Spin.com about Gore and his band's career, Moreno said, "... we've never been that big of a band -- we've always been one of the biggest underground bands, but we still have not had this crazy commercial success. But the longevity of our career, to me, outweighs any of those accolades, or hit songs that spirited us into the atmosphere. I've always been comfortable with the success level that we've had."

Style on 09/20/2016