Deftones made Around the Fur to sound like nothing else on the radio in 1997. The record pairs heavy guitar riffs with soft, layered vocals, and the band never once settles on either side of that split. This is an album built to confuse anyone expecting metal to hit hard and hit fast, then stop. Instead, it drifts between the two extremes, sometimes in the same song.
The record runs ten tracks and 74 minutes, and it moves through a mix of slow, quiet pieces and faster, heavier ones without ever losing its footing. That balance is the whole point, and it holds up across the full run.
Opening With Two Songs
“My Own Summer (Shove It)” opens the record with a heavy riff that never quite turns into a full-throated scream. It sets the terms immediately: this is a band that can play both sides of the fence at once, and it wants to make sure you notice.
“Lhabia” follows with a softer, slower approach, letting the guitars sit behind the vocal melody rather than pushing it forward. The two songs together show the range the band is working with from the very start.
Mascara Through Around the Fur
“Mascara” picks the pace back up, with a heavier riff and a tighter groove that keeps the song moving without losing the band’s sense of space. “Around the Fur” slows things down again, a quieter, more patient piece that lets the layers breathe.
“Rickets” is the shortest track here at 2:43, and it earns its place as a breather between the bigger songs around it. It doesn’t try to be anything more than a pause, and it doesn’t need to be.
Be Quiet and Drive Through Dai the Flu
“Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)” is the longest track on the front half of the record at 5:08, and it uses that time to build a wall of sound that slowly pulls back into a softer finish. It’s one of the stronger songs here, a track that knows when to push and when to pull back.
“Lotion” keeps the pace steady, a mid-tempo piece that doesn’t try to reinvent itself but holds its own against the songs around it. “Dai the Flu” closes the middle stretch with a heavier edge, one of the few moments on the record where the band leans fully into the metal side of its identity.
Headup and the Long Closer
“Headup” is the final track before the closer, and it stretches to 5:13 while keeping a steady, driving pace that carries the record toward its end. It’s a strong closer to the main run of the album, setting up the big finish that follows.
The closer is where the record makes its boldest move. “MX / Bong Hit / Damone” runs 37:19 across three distinct parts, and it’s the kind of extended closer that could sink a weaker record entirely. Here, it works. Each part holds its own identity while still serving the larger statement the band is making.
“My Own Summer (Shove It)” opens the record with a heavy riff that never quite turns into a full-throated scream.
What Holds Up, What Doesn’t
The album’s biggest strength is its refusal to pick a side. Deftones could have made a straight metal record or a straight soft record, and either would have been easier to pull off. Instead they chose to sit between those two poles, and the result is an album that rewards attention even when it doesn’t demand it.
The longer closer is the riskiest move on the record, and it lands. It doesn’t feel like filler tacked onto the end of a shorter album; it feels like the natural conclusion to everything that came before it.
Not every track reaches the same heights. “Rickets” and “Lotion” are competent without being essential, the kind of songs that fill space well but don’t demand a second listen on their own. They don’t hurt the record, but they aren’t the reason anyone will return to it.
The Verdict
Around the Fur isn’t a perfect record, but it’s a confident one. It knows exactly what it wants to be and doesn’t waste time getting there. The long closer is the boldest moment on the record, and it pays off.
This is a record about balance, and it finds that balance consistently across its full length.
- My Own Summer (Shove It)3:35
- Lhabia4:11
- Mascara3:45
- Around the Fur3:32
- Rickets2:43
- Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)5:08
- Lotion3:58
- Dai the Flu4:37
- Headup5:13
- MX / Bong Hit / Damone37:19
