Deftones

Deftones' fourth studio album arrived in May 2003 on Maverick, following the wide-reaching success of White Pony in 2000. It is self-titled, but it sits in the middle of the band's story rather than at a starting point: a record made by a group already well into pushing beyond the usual alternative metal template.

The sound leans into trip hop and shoegaze influences, folding more atmosphere and texture into their heavy guitar approach. It was also the last album produced by Terry Date until Ohms in 2020, which gives it a place as the end of one working partnership. The sessions were costly, at $2.5 million, making it the 13th most expensive album ever made. For anyone tracing how the band moved from the raw energy of Adrenaline and Around the Fur towards something more layered, this record is a useful stop on the way to Saturday Night Wrist.