Saturday Night Wrist
Encyclopedia
Saturday Night Wrist is the fifth studio album
by American metal
band Deftones
. It was released on Maverick Records
on October 31, 2006. Despite early contributions that were later scrapped, Saturday Night Wrist marks the departure of mainstay Deftones producer Terry Date
.
The band's fifth album was the product of an arduous and stressful creative process lasting roughly two years and straining relationships within Deftones. Complicating matters, and inspiring many of the album's songs, were frontman Chino Moreno
's drug addictions and the crumbling of his marriage. The outcome, however, would be an album met with critical praise.
This is the last Deftones album to be released with bassist Chi Cheng before his near-fatal 2008 car accident. Cheng continues to make a slow recovery as of 2011.
told Deftones they needed to head into the studio due to the lackluster sales of Deftones' self titled effort
. The band began pioneering ideas for a new album at their studio, The Spot, in Sacramento
, California
. On April 30, 2004 they announced they would be relocating to Malibu, California
to continue writing the album at the "Morning View Studios," famous for being the place Incubus
recorded their fourth album, Morning View
. The band spent most of the summer there, resulting in an album's worth of material Moreno
described as "straight evil music."
They then began searching for a producer and started recording. They initially considered enlisting Ken Andrews
of Failure
and Ric Ocasek
of The Cars
but to no avail. They then worked with Dan the Automator
for about a week. According to guitarist Stephen Carpenter
, during collaboration with Dan, Deftones seemed to be pursuing the "more technical," math metal
based elements of the band's sound. After some deliberation, however, Chino Moreno and Abe Cunningham
successfully pushed towards Pink Floyd
producer Bob Ezrin
and would have Brian Virtue engineer.
Deftones then took a short break before planning a month long tour with Dredg
and C-Minus to road test some material starting in San Francisco, California
, and ending in Hartford, Connecticut
, near where Ezrin's studio was located. Recording of the album began in November, 2004. During the recording, tensions mounted within the band and between singer Moreno and producer Ezrin. Chino eventually jumped ship to continue work on his side project Team Sleep
while the rest of the band continued recording. The Ezrin sessions concluded before Christmas
and the band relocated back to their home base in Sacramento
to take a break.
In early 2005, Deftones started tweaking the Ezrin material at their studio The Spot with Brian Virtue and wrote several new songs in the process. Singer Chino Moreno
decided to take a break from recording in the spring to tour with his band, Team Sleep
, who were also releasing their long awaited debut album. Moreno claimed that this was good for him, as he was somewhat unable to focus on the recording sessions due to his speed and alcohol addictions, as well as the dissolution of his longtime marriage to his now ex-wife, Celeste.
on October 4, 2005 which included one of the songs from the Virtue sessions, a Cocteau Twins
cover
titled "Wax and Wane." In late 2005, Moreno met with longtime Deftones producer Terry Date
to help record vocals for some of the remaining tracks. The band also managed to quickly record a cover of John Lennon
's "Jealous Guy
" for Amnesty International
as well as an iTunes
exclusive cover of The Cars
' "Drive
."
of Far
and The Revolution Smile
fame acting as producer. Finally, with all recording finished in April 2006, the album was mixed by Ryan Williams.
Guitarist Stephen Carpenter
stated in interviews that a significant portion of songs were based on Moreno's ideas and that "Pink Cellphone," minus Annie Hardy
's vocals, is all Chino. This is reflected in that Moreno plays second guitar on many of the songs. The known songs he plays second guitar on include "Hole in the Earth," "Beware," "Cherry Waves," "U,U,D,D,L,R,L,R,A,B,Select,Start," "Xerces," and "Rivière." However, Moreno has stated that "Rats!Rats!Rats!" is "all Stephen." Indeed, Stephen wrote and recorded all guitar parts on "Rapture," "Rats!Rats!Rats!," and "Kimdracula" but also played guitar and wrote guitar parts on all songs except on "U,U,D,D,L,R,L,R,A,B,Select,Start," where he played drums and Chino played guitar. The title for the latter song is a reference to a famous video game input-code known as the Konami code
.
The writing recording process of Saturday Night Wrist was fraught and placed strain on the relationships within the band. Moreno stated that making it was "a seriously unhealthy experience," and that it "dragged on without much direction." Following its creation, after leaving to work on Team Sleep
, he stated that he "wasn't sure if [he] was going to return".
would describe the lyrical subject matter of some of the songs. Moreno explained that "Kimdracula" was part of his email address at the beginning of making the record during his heavy drug use phase. "Beware" is a warning to others about sex, drugs, and drinking, which were the three main problems he encountered during the album's creation. A story Moreno wrote about a witch during his heavy drug use phase would be told in "Rivière." "Cherry Waves" is about testing the trust a person has in someone else. The confusion Moreno experienced when making Saturday Night Wrist was illustrated in the song "Rapture." Communication issues between the band during the making of the album, in which they were quite divided, would be captured in "Hole in the Earth."
Moreno explained the record's title being reference to the nerve damage caused when an intoxicated person falls asleep on his or her arm. He elaborated on the title being attributed to "when you're alone on Saturday nights and your only best friend is your shaking wrist..."
would be "Hole in the Earth
" which was sent to radio on October 16, 2006.
A collection of sixteen demos from the Ezrin sessions would become available online; it contains rough vocal mixes of "Cherry Waves" and "Combat" as well as an instrumental version of what would become "Finger of Death." Also included are some instrumentals recorded by the band without Chino that did not make the final cut.
Upon the album's release, the iTunes
version included a cover of The Cars
classic track "Drive
" that features producer Shaun Lopez
, as well as a prominent sample of Massive Attack
's track "Protection" from their album of the same name
.
.
The music magazine Alternative Press
gave to the album a perfect score, stating: Saturday Night Wrist proves yet again that Deftones have a corner on the transcendental-metal market.
Drowned in Sound
also gave it a rather positive review saying: "If you’ve even the slightest interest in ‘heavy’ music, you simply must make Saturday Night Wrist an integral part of your record collection."
The A.V. Club
gave it a positive review, stating: "The album is mostly a heady, atmospheric, willfully too-difficult-for-radio wash of sound that, save for a handful of tracks, stretches out and explores Deftones' creative limits more than ever before." A similar statement came from PopMatters
, concluding: "For the most part, Saturday Night Wrist has the Deftones improving on all fronts, whether it’s Moreno’s stirring vocal work or the band’s improved versatility. The process might have been painstaking, but it appears that after all that work, the band is closer to a fully-realized sound than ever before."
Other positive review came from Allmusic stating: "these songs, as diverse as they are, are utterly disciplined sonically. They have all the tension and dynamic, all the immediacy of yore, but the mix is spacious, and Chino Moreno's vocals soar above it." Less enthusiastic though positive reviews came from Rolling Stone
, pointing that "The songwriting never quite comes together, but this is a metal record that gets by as much on sonic tricks as monster riffs."
Finally Spin magazine called the album "a sideways step in the right direction."
except where noted. "Pink Cellphone" is 3:54 on the clean album version.
Bonus tracks
Additional musicians
Production
Singles
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Deftones
Deftones
Deftones are an American alternative metal band from Sacramento, California, founded in 1988. The band consists of Chino Moreno , Stephen Carpenter , Chi Cheng , Frank Delgado , and Abe Cunningham . Currently Sergio Vega is standing in on bass while Cheng recovers from a car accident...
. It was released on Maverick Records
Maverick Records
Maverick Recording Company is an American record label owned and operated by Warner Music Group, and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:...
on October 31, 2006. Despite early contributions that were later scrapped, Saturday Night Wrist marks the departure of mainstay Deftones producer Terry Date
Terry Date
Terry Date is an American record producer and engineer, specializing in the rock and metal genres...
.
The band's fifth album was the product of an arduous and stressful creative process lasting roughly two years and straining relationships within Deftones. Complicating matters, and inspiring many of the album's songs, were frontman Chino Moreno
Chino Moreno
Chino Moreno is an American musician. He is best known as the lead singer and contributing guitarist of Deftones. He is also a member of the side-project bands Team Sleep and Crosses....
's drug addictions and the crumbling of his marriage. The outcome, however, would be an album met with critical praise.
This is the last Deftones album to be released with bassist Chi Cheng before his near-fatal 2008 car accident. Cheng continues to make a slow recovery as of 2011.
Early writing and recording
In early 2004, Maverick RecordsMaverick Records
Maverick Recording Company is an American record label owned and operated by Warner Music Group, and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:...
told Deftones they needed to head into the studio due to the lackluster sales of Deftones' self titled effort
Deftones (album)
Deftones was well received by critics earning an aggregate rating of 74 on Metacritic. The music website Sputnikmusic gave it a perfect score and praised the band for have returned to their heavy sound without leaving behind their experimental side, lauding also Moreno's abstract lyrics and the...
. The band began pioneering ideas for a new album at their studio, The Spot, in Sacramento
Sacramento
Sacramento is the capital of the state of California, in the United States of America.Sacramento may also refer to:- United States :*Sacramento County, California*Sacramento, Kentucky*Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. On April 30, 2004 they announced they would be relocating to Malibu, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
to continue writing the album at the "Morning View Studios," famous for being the place Incubus
Incubus (band)
Incubus is an American rock band from Calabasas, California. The band was formed in 1991 by vocalist Brandon Boyd, lead guitarist Mike Einziger, and drummer Jose Pasillas while enrolled in high school and later expanded to include bassist Alex "Dirk Lance" Katunich, and Gavin "DJ Lyfe" Koppell;...
recorded their fourth album, Morning View
Morning View
Morning View is the fourth studio album by American rock band Incubus, released October 23, 2001 through Epic Records. A companion DVD, Morning View Sessions, was released on May 29, 2002...
. The band spent most of the summer there, resulting in an album's worth of material Moreno
Chino Moreno
Chino Moreno is an American musician. He is best known as the lead singer and contributing guitarist of Deftones. He is also a member of the side-project bands Team Sleep and Crosses....
described as "straight evil music."
They then began searching for a producer and started recording. They initially considered enlisting Ken Andrews
Ken Andrews
Ken Andrews is an American musician and producer, based out of Los Angeles, California.Andrews was born in Seattle, Washington, and attended film school in Los Angeles before his band Failure received a record deal from Slash Records.He was the co-founder, lead vocalist, guitarist, and...
of Failure
Failure (band)
Failure was an American rock band that was active from 1990 to 1997, during which they recorded and released three critically acclaimed albums...
and Ric Ocasek
Ric Ocasek
Ric Ocasek is an American musician and music producer. He is best known as lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the rock band, The Cars....
of The Cars
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
but to no avail. They then worked with Dan the Automator
Dan the Automator
Daniel M. Nakamura , better known by the stage name Dan the Automator, is a Japanese-American hip hop producer. He founded the record label 75 Ark, which was distributed by Tommy Boy Records during its short existence....
for about a week. According to guitarist Stephen Carpenter
Stephen Carpenter
Stephen Carpenter is an American musician known as the co-founder and lead guitarist of the alternative metal band Deftones. His guitar technique makes use of both ringing open strings and dissonant chord voicings, as well as stock power chords in polyrhythms...
, during collaboration with Dan, Deftones seemed to be pursuing the "more technical," math metal
Mathcore
Mathcore is a rhythmically complex and dissonant fusion style of hardcore punk and Metal. It has its roots in bands such as Converge, Botch, and The Dillinger Escape Plan. The term mathcore is suggested by analogy with math rock. Both math rock and mathcore make use of unusual time signatures...
based elements of the band's sound. After some deliberation, however, Chino Moreno and Abe Cunningham
Abe Cunningham
Abe Cunningham, , is an American musician, he is the drummer of the alternative metal band Deftones. He is known for his use of ghost notes and other technical drumming techniques.-Biography:...
successfully pushed towards Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
producer Bob Ezrin
Bob Ezrin
Robert Alan "Bob" Ezrin is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, known for his work with artists including Alice Cooper, Kiss and Pink Floyd. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2004.-Biography:...
and would have Brian Virtue engineer.
Deftones then took a short break before planning a month long tour with Dredg
Dredg
Dredg is an American rock group formed in 1993 in Los Gatos, California. The band consists of vocalist Gavin Hayes, guitarist Mark Engles, bassist Drew Roulette and drummer Dino Campanella....
and C-Minus to road test some material starting in San Francisco, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and ending in Hartford, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, near where Ezrin's studio was located. Recording of the album began in November, 2004. During the recording, tensions mounted within the band and between singer Moreno and producer Ezrin. Chino eventually jumped ship to continue work on his side project Team Sleep
Team Sleep
Team Sleep is an American experimental alternative rock group led by singer/guitarist Chino Moreno, better known for fronting the Sacramento-based band Deftones....
while the rest of the band continued recording. The Ezrin sessions concluded before Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
and the band relocated back to their home base in Sacramento
Sacramento
Sacramento is the capital of the state of California, in the United States of America.Sacramento may also refer to:- United States :*Sacramento County, California*Sacramento, Kentucky*Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta...
to take a break.
In early 2005, Deftones started tweaking the Ezrin material at their studio The Spot with Brian Virtue and wrote several new songs in the process. Singer Chino Moreno
Chino Moreno
Chino Moreno is an American musician. He is best known as the lead singer and contributing guitarist of Deftones. He is also a member of the side-project bands Team Sleep and Crosses....
decided to take a break from recording in the spring to tour with his band, Team Sleep
Team Sleep
Team Sleep is an American experimental alternative rock group led by singer/guitarist Chino Moreno, better known for fronting the Sacramento-based band Deftones....
, who were also releasing their long awaited debut album. Moreno claimed that this was good for him, as he was somewhat unable to focus on the recording sessions due to his speed and alcohol addictions, as well as the dissolution of his longtime marriage to his now ex-wife, Celeste.
Hiatus
The rest of the band, while anxious to finish the album, decided it would be best to take a break from music. During the hiatus, Deftones released a 10-year anniversary CD/DVD entitled B-Sides & RaritiesB-Sides & Rarities (Deftones album)
-DVD:# "7 Words"# "Bored"# "My Own Summer "# "Be Quiet and Drive "# "Change "# "Back to School "# "Digital Bath"# "Minerva"# "Hexagram"# "Bloody Cape"# "Engine Number 9"# "Root"-Credits:...
on October 4, 2005 which included one of the songs from the Virtue sessions, a Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...
cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
titled "Wax and Wane." In late 2005, Moreno met with longtime Deftones producer Terry Date
Terry Date
Terry Date is an American record producer and engineer, specializing in the rock and metal genres...
to help record vocals for some of the remaining tracks. The band also managed to quickly record a cover of John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
's "Jealous Guy
Jealous Guy
"Jealous Guy" is a song written and performed by John Lennon which first appeared on his 1971 album Imagine. It is one of the most commonly covered Lennon songs, with at least ninety-two recorded cover versions, the most notable being Roxy Music's version, which reached number one in several...
" for Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
as well as an iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
exclusive cover of The Cars
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
' "Drive
Drive (The Cars song)
"Drive" is a 1984 song by The Cars, the third single from the band's Heartbeat City album and their biggest international hit. It was written by Ric Ocasek and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange with the band. Lead vocals were by Cars bassist Benjamin Orr....
."
Continuation on production
In early 2006, all previously recorded vocals were scrapped and the band started working on the album again with longtime friend Shaun LopezShaun Lopez
Shaun Lopez is a US musician and the guitarist for Far, a band from Sacramento, CA.After a number of local releases, including their first demo tape, Sweat A River, Live No Lies, and two independent albums Listening Game and Quick, they signed to Epic/Immortal Records and released their major label...
of Far
Far (band)
Far is a band from Sacramento, USA.-Releases :After a number of local releases including their first demo tape Sweat A River, Live No Lies and two independent albums Listening Game and Quick they signed to Epic/Immortal Records and released their first major record, Tin Cans With Strings To You...
and The Revolution Smile
The Revolution Smile
-History:The band was formed in 2000 by former Far guitarist Shaun Lopez after he briefly played in an early version of Rival Schools headed by former Quicksand frontman, Walter Schreifels, and after he auditioned for various bands, including the Foo Fighters....
fame acting as producer. Finally, with all recording finished in April 2006, the album was mixed by Ryan Williams.
Guitarist Stephen Carpenter
Stephen Carpenter
Stephen Carpenter is an American musician known as the co-founder and lead guitarist of the alternative metal band Deftones. His guitar technique makes use of both ringing open strings and dissonant chord voicings, as well as stock power chords in polyrhythms...
stated in interviews that a significant portion of songs were based on Moreno's ideas and that "Pink Cellphone," minus Annie Hardy
Annie Hardy
Annie-Summer Hardy is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter for the American rock act Giant Drag.Previously signed to Interscope Records, she was voted one of NMEs "50 Coolest People," and has received major news coverage in NME, Spin, MTV News and Rolling Stone, among others.She is known...
's vocals, is all Chino. This is reflected in that Moreno plays second guitar on many of the songs. The known songs he plays second guitar on include "Hole in the Earth," "Beware," "Cherry Waves," "U,U,D,D,L,R,L,R,A,B,Select,Start," "Xerces," and "Rivière." However, Moreno has stated that "Rats!Rats!Rats!" is "all Stephen." Indeed, Stephen wrote and recorded all guitar parts on "Rapture," "Rats!Rats!Rats!," and "Kimdracula" but also played guitar and wrote guitar parts on all songs except on "U,U,D,D,L,R,L,R,A,B,Select,Start," where he played drums and Chino played guitar. The title for the latter song is a reference to a famous video game input-code known as the Konami code
Konami Code
The Konami Code, known in Japan as the , is a cheat code that appears in many Konami video games, although the code also appears in some non-Konami games...
.
The writing recording process of Saturday Night Wrist was fraught and placed strain on the relationships within the band. Moreno stated that making it was "a seriously unhealthy experience," and that it "dragged on without much direction." Following its creation, after leaving to work on Team Sleep
Team Sleep
Team Sleep is an American experimental alternative rock group led by singer/guitarist Chino Moreno, better known for fronting the Sacramento-based band Deftones....
, he stated that he "wasn't sure if [he] was going to return".
Lyrical themes
In interviews since the album's release, vocalist/guitarist Chino MorenoChino Moreno
Chino Moreno is an American musician. He is best known as the lead singer and contributing guitarist of Deftones. He is also a member of the side-project bands Team Sleep and Crosses....
would describe the lyrical subject matter of some of the songs. Moreno explained that "Kimdracula" was part of his email address at the beginning of making the record during his heavy drug use phase. "Beware" is a warning to others about sex, drugs, and drinking, which were the three main problems he encountered during the album's creation. A story Moreno wrote about a witch during his heavy drug use phase would be told in "Rivière." "Cherry Waves" is about testing the trust a person has in someone else. The confusion Moreno experienced when making Saturday Night Wrist was illustrated in the song "Rapture." Communication issues between the band during the making of the album, in which they were quite divided, would be captured in "Hole in the Earth."
Moreno explained the record's title being reference to the nerve damage caused when an intoxicated person falls asleep on his or her arm. He elaborated on the title being attributed to "when you're alone on Saturday nights and your only best friend is your shaking wrist..."
Release
Saturday Night Wrist was released on October 31, 2006, having been leaked onto the Internet on October 13, 2006, over two weeks prior to its release. Its lead singleLead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
would be "Hole in the Earth
Hole In The Earth
"Hole in the Earth" is a song by American alternative metal band Deftones. The song was released as the first single from their fifth album Saturday Night Wrist, and appears as the opening track for the record.-Success and reception:...
" which was sent to radio on October 16, 2006.
A collection of sixteen demos from the Ezrin sessions would become available online; it contains rough vocal mixes of "Cherry Waves" and "Combat" as well as an instrumental version of what would become "Finger of Death." Also included are some instrumentals recorded by the band without Chino that did not make the final cut.
Upon the album's release, the iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
version included a cover of The Cars
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
classic track "Drive
Drive (The Cars song)
"Drive" is a 1984 song by The Cars, the third single from the band's Heartbeat City album and their biggest international hit. It was written by Ric Ocasek and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange with the band. Lead vocals were by Cars bassist Benjamin Orr....
" that features producer Shaun Lopez
Shaun Lopez
Shaun Lopez is a US musician and the guitarist for Far, a band from Sacramento, CA.After a number of local releases, including their first demo tape, Sweat A River, Live No Lies, and two independent albums Listening Game and Quick, they signed to Epic/Immortal Records and released their major label...
, as well as a prominent sample of Massive Attack
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
's track "Protection" from their album of the same name
Protection (album)
-Sound:Protection was featured in the top ten of Rolling Stone magazine's 'Coolest Albums of All Time List,' calling it "great music for when you're driving around a city at 4 am," due to the 'chill out' nature of the album...
.
Reception
Saturday Night Wrist gained largely positive reviews. earning an score of 72 at MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
.
The music magazine Alternative Press
Alternative Press (music magazine)
Alternative Press is an American music magazine based in Cleveland, Ohio. It generally provides readers with band interviews, photos, information on upcoming releases, and music charts. It was founded in 1985 by Mike Shea, who is the current president....
gave to the album a perfect score, stating: Saturday Night Wrist proves yet again that Deftones have a corner on the transcendental-metal market.
Drowned in Sound
Drowned in Sound
DrownedinSound.com or DiS is a UK based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway . The site is an editorially independent music website.-History:...
also gave it a rather positive review saying: "If you’ve even the slightest interest in ‘heavy’ music, you simply must make Saturday Night Wrist an integral part of your record collection."
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
gave it a positive review, stating: "The album is mostly a heady, atmospheric, willfully too-difficult-for-radio wash of sound that, save for a handful of tracks, stretches out and explores Deftones' creative limits more than ever before." A similar statement came from PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
, concluding: "For the most part, Saturday Night Wrist has the Deftones improving on all fronts, whether it’s Moreno’s stirring vocal work or the band’s improved versatility. The process might have been painstaking, but it appears that after all that work, the band is closer to a fully-realized sound than ever before."
Other positive review came from Allmusic stating: "these songs, as diverse as they are, are utterly disciplined sonically. They have all the tension and dynamic, all the immediacy of yore, but the mix is spacious, and Chino Moreno's vocals soar above it." Less enthusiastic though positive reviews came from Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, pointing that "The songwriting never quite comes together, but this is a metal record that gets by as much on sonic tricks as monster riffs."
Finally Spin magazine called the album "a sideways step in the right direction."
Track listing
All songs written by DeftonesDeftones
Deftones are an American alternative metal band from Sacramento, California, founded in 1988. The band consists of Chino Moreno , Stephen Carpenter , Chi Cheng , Frank Delgado , and Abe Cunningham . Currently Sergio Vega is standing in on bass while Cheng recovers from a car accident...
except where noted. "Pink Cellphone" is 3:54 on the clean album version.
Bonus tracks
- "DriveDrive (The Cars song)"Drive" is a 1984 song by The Cars, the third single from the band's Heartbeat City album and their biggest international hit. It was written by Ric Ocasek and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange with the band. Lead vocals were by Cars bassist Benjamin Orr....
" (Ric Ocasek) – 4:50 (iTunesITunes StoreThe iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
Bonus Track) (The CarsThe CarsThe Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
cover, performed with Shaun LopezShaun LopezShaun Lopez is a US musician and the guitarist for Far, a band from Sacramento, CA.After a number of local releases, including their first demo tape, Sweat A River, Live No Lies, and two independent albums Listening Game and Quick, they signed to Epic/Immortal Records and released their major label...
)
Personnel
Deftones- Abe CunninghamAbe CunninghamAbe Cunningham, , is an American musician, he is the drummer of the alternative metal band Deftones. He is known for his use of ghost notes and other technical drumming techniques.-Biography:...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Chi ChengChi Cheng (musician)Chi Cheng, is a Chinese American musician, best known as the bass guitarist for the American band Deftones.-Personal life:...
- bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, backing vocals - Stephen CarpenterStephen CarpenterStephen Carpenter is an American musician known as the co-founder and lead guitarist of the alternative metal band Deftones. His guitar technique makes use of both ringing open strings and dissonant chord voicings, as well as stock power chords in polyrhythms...
- guitarsElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Chino MorenoChino MorenoChino Moreno is an American musician. He is best known as the lead singer and contributing guitarist of Deftones. He is also a member of the side-project bands Team Sleep and Crosses....
- vocals, guitars - Frank Delgado - keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, samplesSampler (musical instrument)A sampler is an electronic musical instrument similar in some respects to a synthesizer but, instead of generating sounds, it uses recordings of sounds that are loaded or recorded into it by the user and then played back by means of a keyboard, sequencer or other triggering device to perform or...
Additional musicians
- Serj TankianSerj TankianSerj Tankian is a Lebanese-born Armenian-American singer–songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, playwright, record producer, poet, and political activist...
- additional vocals on "Mein" - Annie HardyAnnie HardyAnnie-Summer Hardy is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter for the American rock act Giant Drag.Previously signed to Interscope Records, she was voted one of NMEs "50 Coolest People," and has received major news coverage in NME, Spin, MTV News and Rolling Stone, among others.She is known...
- additional vocals on "Pink Cellphone"
Production
- Produced by Bob EzrinBob EzrinRobert Alan "Bob" Ezrin is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, known for his work with artists including Alice Cooper, Kiss and Pink Floyd. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2004.-Biography:...
and DeftonesDeftonesDeftones are an American alternative metal band from Sacramento, California, founded in 1988. The band consists of Chino Moreno , Stephen Carpenter , Chi Cheng , Frank Delgado , and Abe Cunningham . Currently Sergio Vega is standing in on bass while Cheng recovers from a car accident... - Vocals produced and additional production by Shaun LopezShaun LopezShaun Lopez is a US musician and the guitarist for Far, a band from Sacramento, CA.After a number of local releases, including their first demo tape, Sweat A River, Live No Lies, and two independent albums Listening Game and Quick, they signed to Epic/Immortal Records and released their major label...
- Recorded and engineered by Brian Virtue And Brian Humphrey
- Drums on "Beware" recorded by Joe Johnston
- Assisted by Robert "Flossy" Cheek at The Spot, Sacramento, CA & The Hangar, Sacramento, CA
- Pro Tools Engineer: Ryan Gorman
- Recorded at the Carriage HouseCarriage House StudiosCarriage House Studios is a residential recording studio located in the suburbs of Stamford, Connecticut. Established in 1980, the Carriage House has recorded well-known artists like Diana Ross, Derek Trucks, Johnny Winter, Meatloaf, Rakim, Pantera, Ronnie Dio, Phyllis Hyman, Spyro Gyra, and The...
, Stamford, CT; The Spot, Sacramento, CA; The AirportThe Airport"The Airport" is the 52nd episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. It was the 12th episode of the 4th season and aired on November 25, 1992.-Plot summary:...
, Burbank, CA; The Hangar, Sacramento, CA; Morning View House, Malibu, CA - Mixed by Ryan Williams
- Mixed at Pulse Recordings, Los Angeles, CA & Westlake Studios, Los Angeles, CA
- Assistant Mix Engineer at Westlake Studios: Brian Warwick
- Mastered by Howie WeinbergHowie WeinbergHowie Weinberg is a music mastering engineer who has worked with numerous bands.- Career :He has worked at Masterdisk, New York City, since 1977...
at MasterdiskMasterdiskMasterdisk is an audio mastering and multimedia company in New York City, located on West 45th Street in Manhattan. They provide production services such as audio mastering, vinyl cutting and enhanced CD and DVD production....
, New York, NY - A&R: Kevin Williams and Guy OsearyGuy OsearyGuy Oseary is an Israeli-American expert businessman who began his career in entertainment at 17 at what was to become Maverick Records. He is Madonna's manager.-Maverick:...
- Worldwide management: Velvet Hammer Music and Management Group
- North American booking: Jenna Adler for Creative Artists Agency
- South American booking: Marlene Tsuchii for Creative Artists Agency
- International booking: Mike Dewdney for ITB
- Legal representation: Mouthpiece for Maffgel, LLP
- Business management: David Weise/Sue Davidian at David Weise & Associates, Inc.
- Creative direction & design: Frank Maddocks
- Photography by Lego
- Images from the motion picture RoxanaRoxanaRoxana sometimes Roxane, was a Bactrian noble and a wife of Alexander the Great. She was born earlier than the year 343 BC, though the precise date remains uncertain....
courtesy of Retro-Seduction Cinema
Chart positions
Album| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
26 |
| Austria Albums Chart Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
18 |
| Belgium Album Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Flanders Flanders Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp... ) |
70 |
| Belgium Album Chart (Wallonia) | 49 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
4 |
| Danish Albums Chart Tracklisten Tracklisten is a Danish top 40 record chart that is presented every Thursday midnight at .The weekly Danish Singles Chart also known as Track Top-40 combines the 40 best selling tracks from legal music downloads and the sales of music singles on either CD or vinyl... |
30 |
| Dutch Albums Chart MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
63 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 33 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
33 |
| German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
24 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
50 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
8 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
32 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
35 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
31 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
33 |
| The Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
10 |
| Billboard Digital Albums | 10 |
| Billboard Rock Albums | 4 |
| Billboard Tastemakers Albums | a |
Singles
| Year | Song | Peak position |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Alt. |
US Main. | UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
||
| 2006 | "Hole in the Earth" | 18 | 19 | 69 |
| 2007 | "Mein" | 38 | 40 | — |