Davey Havok, the frontman for the platinum-selling punk outfit AFI, recently opened up about his long-standing friendship with the alternative metal icons Deftones. The comments come just after AFI was confirmed as support for Deftones‘ massive upcoming headlining show at Victoria Park in London on August 23, a lineup that also features IDLES and Interpol.
Speaking on the connection between the two bands, Havok noted that Deftones were a rare “exception” in the 90s music scene, capable of bridging the gap between mainstream alternative metal and the underground hardcore community.
“So we’re coming back to play the [UK} with Deftones again. This is what we do now. We only play in England with the Deftones,” he said (as transcribed by theprp).
“It’s a great bill. It’s really always an honor to play with the Deftones. We’ve been acquainted with them for quite some time, but we were fans before we ever met the Deftones. You know, they were… there’s a lot of crossover between what the Deftones were doing and the hardcore fan base. A lot of the hardcore kids that we grew up with were very, very much Deftones fans.”
Havok emphasized that while Deftones rose to prominence during the nu-metal explosion, they held a unique credibility within the hardcore scene—a world where AFI also cut their teeth.
“So they were a part of the zeitgeist in those days, as they are even more so now a completely different zeitgeist. So the the prospect of playing with them was never a prospect in the early days, because though the hardcore kids were involved in their scene, it was the exception. So having the opportunity to play with them is is always a thrill. And they’re such wonderful wonderful men.”
Beyond the scene politics of the 90s, Havok revealed that he and Deftones frontman Chino Moreno bond over a shared appreciation for darker, post-punk influences.
“They’re all just very kind and we have a lot of commonality in our tastes and our in our our musical affinities. I believe Chino and I did an interview together, I believe the last time we were in England together, talking about post-punk a lot as I recall. Something of the sort. I remember us talking about our shared love of Mr. Robert Smith and his peers.”
The connection Havok describes is backed by history. In the late 90s, Deftones maintained strong ties to the hardcore and metalcore worlds, often associating with bands like Will Haven and Far. Notably, in 1997, Chino Moreno made a guest appearance on the song “Will To Die” by the prominent California hardcore band Strife, who were signed to Victory Records at the time.
