Deftones frontman Chino Moreno has spoken to NME about Oasis‘ legacy, and looked back at the time Liam Gallagher called him “a dude”.
The rock icon sat down for a new interview with NME, celebrating the release of Deftones’ ’10th album ‘Private Music’. It marks their first new album in five years, following on from 2020’s ‘Ohms’, and was previewed by the singles ‘my mind is a mountain’, ‘infinite source’ and ‘milk of the madonna’.
The record was quick to receive high praise from fans and music critics alike, and saw the band continue to win over a new generation of fans, following previous hits like ‘Be Quiet And Drive (Far Away)’, ‘Sextape’ and ‘Cherry Waves’ all going viral on TikTok recently.
Speaking about Deftones’ ability to keep making new fans, over three decades since they first formed, Moreno said that he doesn’t take it for granted, but also didn’t go into the writing process looking to win over a younger generation.
“Even if we thought about it that way – ‘Oh, we need to make something for everybody’ – I think we’d be fooling ourselves to think we had a formula to do that,” he told NME. But what’s the secret sauce for this? “The answer is that I don’t know. I would like to think that it is because we’ve written good songs that have stood the test of time and transcend generations.”
He compared that to the overwhelming hype that Oasis have generated for their current reunion tour, adding: “I can say that without sounding arrogant about Oasis, too: that’s why their shows are what they are and why they have this broad demographic there.
“They write great songs. I’m not saying we write as great a song as they do, but I’m saying that if you go through a catalogue, there are a handful of songs that transcend time.”
He continued: “Multiple generations are into what we’re doing. When I’m on stage, it is inspiring to look out there and see fresh faces, and familiar faces as well. I don’t think that’s something that any of us anticipated.”
Moreno also rocked up to his interview with NME wearing the black Oasis Adidas football shirt from the band’s 2025 tour merch line, and recalled the time that frontman Liam shared a tweet about him.
For the latter, it came earlier this summer when a fan got in touch with Liam on X/Twitter, sharing a photo of him and Moreno backstage at a festival. “Do you remember meeting Chino Moreno from Deftones? You two look absolutely BEAUTIFUL,” the fan wrote, to which the Manchester legend responded: “He’s a dude”.
Looking back at the tweet, Moreno told NME: “I had to ask [my PR] what that meant. I was like, ‘Is that good? Is that bad?’”
When being told it was high praise, Moreno joked, “Awesome, I love it.” He then said he would be going to see Oasis when they perform in Chicago tomrrow (August 28), as part of their current North American tour.
You can check out the full interview with Chino Moreno here, where the singer also spoke about mental health, clarity, and how sobriety makes his creative projects “more pristine, more polished, and more honest, in a weird way.”
NME gave ‘Private Music’ a glowing five-star review, writing: “‘Private Music’ once again finds the band as masters of beauty and brutality rolling over the horizon in one stunning but powerful storm. Batten down those hatches, throw up those horns, and lean in close.
“Very much a whole journey through a full-bodied and expansive fever dream, but this time somehow spiritual, intimate and direct, Deftones’ 10th album is a gift for fans old, new, and certainly finding them in the very distant future. Their peers can’t touch them.”
Next year, Deftones will play a run of UK and European dates, including a huge show at The O2 in London on February 20. Denzel Curry and Drug Church will be joining them as special guests, and tickets are available here.
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