Deftones vocalist Chino Moreno has contended that one shouldn't necessarily be embarrassed for enjoying some of the more boneheaded nu-metal styles that emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s — the type of music that, two decades later, some have relegated to the "guilty pleasure" department.

Quite the contrary. The musician made the case that contemporary reappraisals of such music often misses the fact that listeners "knew it was dumb" then, but relished in the catchiness despite its foolishness.

Moreno's unlikely defense came at the end of a recent Vulture interview with the Deftones frontman. After discussing his group's forthcoming effort, Ohms, and the in-the-works White Pony remix album, Black Stallion, the pop culture site asked the singer for his thoughts on those who disparage the era.

"I think they probably always did look down," Moreno responded. "They always felt guilty about listening to certain things. I don't think it's us so much but definitely Limp Bizkit and shit like that. I think motherfuckers were embarrassed for that shit back then, too."

The musician continued, "You can't deny it. It's fucking stupidly good, some of it, but they knew back then that it was stupid. I mean, listen to the words. It's stupid. So it's not like in retrospect they're like, 'I can't believe I listened to that.' It's like, 'No, when you listened to it then, you knew it was dumb, but you liked it.' And that's okay. No one should be embarrassed by shit they like that's dumb. … It wasn't any smarter back then."

Deftones have fostered an uneasy relationship with nu-metal throughout their career. Once considered pioneers of the subgenre, they quickly outgrew the style.

"It's the same music it was 20 years ago," the Deftones figurehead added. "And you know what? It's catchy. I get it. There's nothing wrong with that."

Ohms comes out this Friday (Sept. 25). Two singles from the record have so far materialized, the pummeling "Genesis" and the sprawling title track. Fans can also adopt a portion of the album artwork for charity.

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