Deftones

All right, ten bucks to anyone who can explain how the Deftones have managed to remain salient years after their so-called nu-metal contemporaries were either toe-tagged or devolved into shameless parodies of themselves. On their latest effort, Saturday Night Wrist, Chino Moreno and company sound every bit as vital as they did more than a decade ago. The reason: multi-dimensionality. Their songs caress, bludgeon and unnerve with equal veracity. From the spectral, slow-burn intensity of such tracks as "Beware" and "Cherry Waves" to the jarring, vein-popping verve of "Rapture" and "Rats! Rats! Rats!" -- which summons the act's trademark truculence -- to the humid electro come-on of "Pink Cellphone," Wrist is a cohesive compendium of all the different textures the Deftones have explored over the years. Moreno may not have progressed much as a lyricist -- he's still a bit esoteric -- but otherwise the band has aged extremely well. This Wrist is far from Limp.