DEFTONES’ Stephen Carpenter Opens Up On Hitting “Bottom” With Health Struggles, Talks New Album & Favorite Guitars

Deftones guitarist Stephen Carpenter recently sat down with Premier Guitar for a new rig rundown video filmed during the band’s August 30th stop in Milwaukee, WI. The feature gave fans a look at his guitar arsenal, the stories behind his gear, and his evolution as a musician — but also took a deeply personal turn as Carpenter reflected on his health battles, music influences, and contributions to the band’s latest album private music.

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Carpenter admitted he has been living with type 2 diabetes, a diagnosis that heavily impacted his physical and creative output in recent years.

“I’ve been diabetic, probably longer than I knew, and deteriorating because of it. And it was only this year that I finally accepted it and have engaged in actively handling it, because otherwise I’m going to die from it. I don’t want to die from it.”

The guitarist shared that his struggles initially limited his involvement on private music, with Chino Moreno stepping up to contribute a large portion of riffs. Carpenter credited Moreno’s work as an inspiration while he fought to regain control of his health.

“On this record, Chino really came and showed up with the riffs. There’s a lot of riffs on this record that are ones that he came up with. Good on him, man. I’m stoked and proud, and he inspires me right now.”

Carpenter also spoke candidly about hitting “bottom” in 2024, which pushed him to finally seek medical help and become accountable for his health. He expressed empathy for others facing similar battles, while criticizing the toxicity of modern food supply and its role in diabetes.

Beyond health, Carpenter revealed his admiration for bands like Sleep Token and especially Bilmuri, calling their record American Motor Sports an album he couldn’t stop listening to during some of his hardest moments.

While Carpenter stepped back from international touring in 2022 due to health and anxiety issues with air travel, fans can still catch him performing with Deftones at select U.S. dates this year:

With IDLES & The Barbarians Of California:
09/17 Kansas City, MO – T-Mobile Center

Deftones:
09/19 Atlanta, GA – Shaky Knees
09/20 Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life
10/03 Sacramento, CA – Aftershock
11/01 San Diego, CA – Dia de los Deftones
11/16 Mexico City, MEX – Corona Capital

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