The second annual Dia de los Deftones took over Petco's Park at the Park on Saturday, Nov. 2, with an eclectic lineup featuring Deftones, Megan Thee Stallion, Chvrches, Gojira and more.
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Of course, the fest's namesakes were the evening's big headliners. (Frontman Chino Moreno pictured)
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As expected, there were plenty of attendees celebrating Día de Muertos on hand (the traditional Mexican holiday takes place annually from Oct. 31-Nov. 2).
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Chvrches, the Lauren Mayberry-led (pictured) U.K. electro-pop trio, delivered a rousing set earlier in the night.
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The festival took San Diego by storm for the first time last year. In a recent interview with SoundDiego, Moreno explained that the choice to bring it back for a second year was a no-brainer: "It's super rad. It's a beautiful park and the grounds, where the actual festival's at, are outside and it's a really cool vibe. I loved the setting, and this year, there will be a few minor tweaks as to where things are situated, but overall the vibe was good so why change it?"
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As to why they originally chose San Diego for Dia de los Deftones, Moreno said: "I don't really actually have a definitive answer for that. It was brought up last year, like 'What do you think about doing it there?' So, we went down maybe six months before the actual festival and looked at the space and the people there were super nice and to get support from the Padres and Live Nation, who we've partnered with on the festival, it was just a super cool vibe down there ... They took us on the field and gave us jerseys and everything with our names on 'em and it was awesome."
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Aside from Moreno, the band -- which came up in the early-'90s via Sacramento -- is comprised of guitarist Stephen Carpenter (pictured), drummer Abe Cunningham, keyboardist/turntablist Frank Delgado, and bassist Sergio Vega.
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During his interview with us, the frontman alluded to the possibility of adding deeper cuts to their Nov. 2 set list: "With this show, since we're headlining and it's our festival, we're just digging in and playing some songs we haven't played in a long time, some songs we've never played from our catalog or things we've sort of ignored for one reason or another. Just sprinkling a few of those in here and there and just trying to have fun with that."
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And they certainly didn't disappoint: For the first time ever, the group performed "Smile" -- a long-lost track from the shelved "Eros" album (which the band was recording in 2008 when their original bassist Chi Cheng was involved in a car accident that left him in a coma; he sadly passed away in 2013). The record has never been officially released. (Vega pictured)
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Deftones also performed: "Rickets," "Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away)," "MX," "Swerve City," "Romantic Dreams" (its first live performance since 2013), "Diamond Eyes," "Rocket Skates"...
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Along with "Prince," "Digital Bath," "Change (In the House of Flies)," "Passenger," "Rosemary," "My Own Summer (Shove It)," "Birthmark" and "7 Words."
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Pictured is an ofrenda, a temporary altar for families to honor their deceased loved ones and provide them what they need on their spiritual journey, cherished belongings, and/or objects that remind them of their lives. (If you look closely, you'll see a photo of Cheng in a green frame)
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Chvrches wowed the crowd with a 14-song set list comprised of "Get Out," "Bury It," "We Sink," "Graffiti," "Miracle," "Graves," "Under the Tide," "Deliverance," "Forever," "Recover," "Leave a Trace," "Clearest Blue," "The Mother We Share" and "Never Say Die."
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Gojira -- originally formed as "Godzilla" in 1996 -- was one of the day's big headliners. The French metal group consists of brothers Joe Duplantier (lead vocals, guitars, pictured) and Mario Duplantier (drums, backing vocals), guitarist Christian Andreu, and bassist Jean-Michel Labadie.
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The group tore through an eight-song set list on Nov. 2, featuring "Toxic Garbage Island," "Backbone," "Silvera," "Stranded," "Flying Whales," "The Cell," "L'Enfant Sauvage," and "The Gift of Guilt."
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Frontman Joe Duplantier pictured.
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Baltimore rapper JPEGMafia delivered an outstanding, headliner-worthy set. Be sure to check out his latest acclaimed album, "All My Heroes Are Cornballs."
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Arguably music's biggest name in 2019, Megan Thee Stallion simply blew us away with her performance. While it may be fall right now, it sure still felt like "Hot Girl Summer" when she was onstage!
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The hip-hop star was recently included in XXL's coveted "Freshman Class" of 2019, and released her first full-length mixtape titled "Fever" in May -- be sure to check it out if you haven't!
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Shoegaze/alt-rock heroes Hum also performed. The band (which consists of vocalist/guitarist Matt Talbott, guitarist Tim Lash, bassist Jeff Dimpsey and drummer Bryan St. Pere) played "Desert Rambler," "The Scientists," "The Pod," "Comin' Home," "Suicide Machine," "Stars" and "I Hate It Too."
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One of the festival's openers, Youth Code -- an industrial/hardcore punk duo from Oakland, California comprised of Sara Taylor and Ryan George -- performed "Anagnorisis," "Commitment to Complications," "To Burn Your World," "Puzzle," "For I Am Cursed," "Carried Mask" and "Consuming Guilt."
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One of Deftones' favorites, Brutus, helped open the day's events. The Belgium-based post-hardcore trio is led by drummer/vocalist Stefanie Mannaerts -- and we gotta admit, we were blown away after the first song!
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The calm before the storm. Thanks for the amazing memories, Deftones, Live Nation and Petco Park -- we already can't wait for Dia de los Deftones 2020!
