
The new Deftones record, Diamond Eyes, was released this week and it's the first new record from Sacto's finest since 2006's Saturday Night Wrist. I've been listening to the album for a while now and it's amazing, like Adrenaline and White Pony had a baby, amazing. I'm particularly partial to the raw emotion and intensity in the song "Rocket Skates" and (like many times before) have completely fallen in love with Chino's vocals on "Sextape." Seriously, he has one of the best voices I have ever heard.
This fall, the band will embark on a tour with Alice In Chains and Atlanta's Mastadon, with a stop at Madison Square Garden September 24th. I'm hoping that they'll do their own headlining tour as well, since I'm not sure I'd enjoy a Deftones show unless I was practically on stage with them.
From everything I've read so far about Diamond Eyes, most people seem to think it's classic Deftones and it will probably be looked back on as one of their best. And it IS a great record. However, it's impossible for me to listen to the new album, or any Deftones record at all, and not think about Chi.
I wrote about Chi and his accident a while back and though he's made great progress, he's still got a ways to go. Gina at One Love for Chi updates the site with news about Chi's condition. Recently she posted about Dr. DeFina, a doctor who the family has brought on to help Chi get better. Dr. DeFina was featured on this week's episode of True Life, which followed three young men whose lives have been turned upside down after suffering serious brain injuries. We certainly take for granted the fact that we can hold objects or walk or speak or even remember something that happened 2 minutes ago, because our brains work in a way that makes these things absolutely effortless. But after a serious brain injury, these "effortless" motions and thought processes can become significantly impaired, making once simple actions extremely difficult, and in turn making life more difficult. My heart went out to these guys, particularly because they're all so young (19, 20 and 26). You can view the episode of True Life here.
While Chi has come far since his accident and has a great team around him, it's still very important to remember that he needs our continued prayers and support. You can also still donate to help with Chi's medical bills. I recently came across this post from Chi's ex-wife Adrienne about why help is so very needed:
For those of you that wonder why fundraising is necessary to a Grammy award winning musician I can tell you first hand there was a time when Chi was bringing in so little capital that the courts wanted ME to pay HIM child support during the long time between albums. Bear in mind I am a hairstylist and the money I bring in does not exactly put me on any top earner lists. Even during these hard times Chi would do whatever it took to make sure that Gabriel was provided for, including selling several of his personal possessions. The stories posted on this site from fans all over the world about Chi’s generosity don’t even touch what he has done for Gabriel, myself and my family. He was generous to a fault sometimes and often put his needs last to make sure everyone was happy.After Chi's accident, listening to Deftones was a little hard. Just thinking about what happened made me feel so sad for him and his family. But I know that his fans, friends and family continue pulling for him to get better and I know that Chi would definitely want the rest of his band out there, playing music for the people who have enjoyed Deftones over these last several years.
When I first listened to Diamond Eyes, I misheard a lyric in the song "Risk." I thought Chino said, "I will sing your life," probably because I'm also a huge Morrissey fan and one of his best songs is Sing Your Life. As all Deftones fans know, the band is fond of Moz and even recorded a masterful cover of The Smiths classic Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want. In the song "Sing Your Life," Morrissey doles out these wise words:
Others sang your lifeMelina and I used to always joke about how we weren't quite sure what the word we were hearing was in certain Deftones songs and we got into some pretty humorous debates about Chino's lyrics on several occasions. However, I think "I will sing your life," is just as good of a sentiment. You never know what could happen to you in life, so you have to make the most of the time you have to do all that you are able to do.
But now is a chance to shine
And have the pleasure of saying what you mean
Have the pleasure of meaning what you sing
Oh, make no mistake my friend
All of this will end so sing it now
I know that Chino, Abe, Steph and Frank will continue to sing Chi's life, as will his friends and family. And hopefully one day, he'll be able to sing his life for himself again.
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