Courtesy

Todd Wilkinson knew Chino Moreno long before the latter fronted multiplatinum rock act the Deftones. The two, who became friends in the late 1980s while attending high school together in Sacramento, Calif., found a similar interest in music and skateboarding. While Moreno since has found success with the Deftones, that isn't the only band of which he's a part. Along with Wilkinson and a few others, Moreno is a member of Team Sleep, an electronically influenced band that is venturing out on a nationwide tour for the first time in more than two years. That includes a date at The White Rabbit on Monday, Dec. 10. Before the band took the stage in San Antonio, Wilkinson — Team Sleep's guitarist — talked to 210SA about the band's origins, its differences from the Deftones and his eclectic taste in music.
 

How did you and Chino become friends?

We went to high school together. We skipped school together, actually. I had just moved to Sacramento and didn't know a lot of people ..... This was pre-Lollapalooza, and we listened to The Cure and Bad Brains and hip-hop. When we were kids, there weren't a lot of people that did that. We became friends because of that.

What are some other bands you two shared interest in?

Smashing Pumpkins were definitely huge for us. We also liked The Smiths, Morrissey and Ice Cube.

I don't know many people who like Morrissey and Ice Cube.

I guess I think people buy things that fit their identities, but they're so concentrated on creating an identity based on what music they listen to and what clothes (they) wear. People get locked into that.

What about Morrissey and The Smiths drew your interest?

They were cool and kind of just people who rode with it. I think what they were about is what Morrissey wrote songs about, being an uncomfortable person. A lot of adolescents really respond to that, hearing a grown man validating that and talking about it. The lyrics were so well-written, and the music was so good. Maybe a lot of bands do that (type of music), but not a lot of them are that good.

How have you been able to keep Chino involved in Team Sleep, considering the major success Deftones have had?

It's just because of the way he did it. We didn't have a business plan, and we didn't have a goal to take over the world. We just liked each other and playing music.

How does Team Sleep differ in sound from Deftones?

Most of the stuff is single-note over a drum machine ..... The process of writing songs like that makes you very different. When you're in a room with a drummer, drummers are loud and you turn the guitar up. It changes the tone, and it changes the vibe. It becomes louder and more aggressive and affects the way songs are written. The original intent for the band was just to have melodies and beats and vocals, not a lot of distorted guitars and not a lot of rocking out. That's never what we intended to do.

How does Chino's songwriting differ from his work with Deftones?

Some Deftones songs, when you're singing over aggressive music like that, you tend to write lyrics that are similar to that. The music here is more spaced-out, kind of a reflection of the music. Chino on a lot of Deftones stuff, their music is not only louder and more aggressive, I think it's also darker ..... Our music is more happy.

CLINT HALE | 210SA