Deftones are loved because of the ancient curse which dictates that every teenager must be sad, angry, and horny, both constantly and all at the same time. Their music meets the needs of this type of person perfectly, and after more than 30 years as a band, the formula is only getting more potent: The theory has now been proven true for four different generations of teens.

As such, many people—from keg-sucking Gen X bookworms allowing themselves a rare moment of sincerity before the Soviet bombs drop to today’s Twitch stream psychos stick and poking each other for playground clout—have decided to get a Deftones-related tattoo upon their skin. While fans of lesser bands are forced to make do with lyrics and album titles (boring), Deftones have something way more magical up their sleeve: For 30 years, the White Pony silhouette has been out there moving through the distressing noise and darkness of the world, guiding people towards each other, a conversation-starting emblem that has surely sparked tens of thousands of marriages, lifelong friendships, enmities, fuck parties, and whatever else humans get up to.

In the summer of 2025, VICE went to the band’s big outdoor mega concert in Crystal Palace, South London to meet those people and ask them about the pictures on their bodies. 

Danielle, 39 & Grace, 31

D: I was at this house party. A band was playing in the conservatory and people were crowd surfing, it was insanely sweaty.
G: I was walking through to the kitchen to get some cans, and Danielle was like, “Is that the White Pony tattoo?!”
D: We realized we had the same White Pony tattoo in exactly the same place. We stayed up till the sun rose talking about Shrek, became inseparable immediately, and went to Las Vegas. The rest is history. 

Jade, 20

“I didn’t really like school, everyone classified me as ‘the emo girl.’ I wanted this tattoo for years and got it as soon as I turned 18. I just love the music so much. I wanted to show that on my body. Chino’s voice…”

DREAMY!

Mo, 39

M: “I got the tattoo a week ago. I’m a tattoo artist and I had a cancellation in the morning, so I thought I’d just tattoo myself. There’s an outsider element to Deftones. It wasn’t the cool thing to listen to where I grew up, in Glasgow. But still, you feel something in it.”

VICE: Do you feel there’s any significance to it being a white pony?
M: I’m not sure. Doesn’t it mean cocaine or something?

Joe, 29

“I once had to rent a pig for a photo shoot to promote Busted’s reunion tour. Years before that, I’d heard their singer Charlie Simpson talking about how much he loved White Pony on the radio. I ran into him shortly after I got this tattoo. I had a few pints and went over and said, ‘I once had to book a pig for you and you got me into my favorite album ever,’ and showed him my arm. He said it was the best opener to a conversation he’d ever heard!”

Will, 19

VICE: So what got you into Deftones, Will?
W: The Matrix!

Jess, 18

J: I got mine for my 18th birthday!

Scully AKA ‘Ciaran,’ 25 

“When people see my tattoo they’ll try to start up a conversation. It’s usually in a pub smoking area and they’re just happy to speak about Deftones for like 15 minutes. If you like Deftones, you really, really like Deftones, you know? I can’t think of any other band that makes you feel like you’re levitating.”

ZAC, 29

Why do people love Deftones so much?

“ASMR-coded perverts, I reckon!”

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This story is taken from the fall 2025 issue of VICE magazine, THE BE QUIET AND DRIVE ISSUE, a Deftones special. We’ve sold out our copies, the only ones left are in stores—perhaps there’s one near you? Secure yourself the next 4 issues by subscribing.

The post Everybody’s Got a Deftones Tattoo These Days appeared first on VICE.

A traumatic tattoo happens when tiny bits of the world punch their way into your skin and never leave. Gravel. Dirt. Asphalt. Metal. Pencil graphite. Instead of ink injected on purpose, these particles get driven into the dermis during an injury and sealed there as the skin heals. No needle. No stencil. Just really bad timing.

“It’s when foreign particles like dirt, asphalt, metal, sand, etc., become embedded into the skin’s dermis,” Dr. Mara Weinstein Velez, a dermatologist at the University of Rochester Medical Center, told Live Science. “And it happens more often than you’d think. Events like car accidents, scrapes, and falls can cause this.”

The most famous example is the pencil stab. If you have a faint blue-gray dot on your hand from elementary school, congrats, that’s graphite under your skin, not ink. Road rash can do the same thing, leaving permanent dark freckles where asphalt got trapped. Gunshot wounds and explosions can leave metal behind. The skin closes up, and the mark stays.

Some traumatic tattoos come from moments people still talk about. Others come from stuff that barely registered at the time. A fall you walked off and forgot about. A scrape that never got cleaned properly. Years later, you notice a mark.

Sometimes those particles move. In one reported case, pencil lead traveled from a child’s hand to their wrist before settling. Even when that happens, pigment often remains at the original entry point, which explains why the mark doesn’t disappear.

Most traumatic tattoos aren’t dangerous once healed. The bigger concern is what happens right after the injury. Anything that breaks the skin can drag bacteria along with it, which raises infection risk if the wound isn’t treated.

“It’s very important to seek medical help right away to avoid infection, since it is a foreign object,” Weinstein Velez said. She noted that options like minor surgery, laser treatment, or dermabrasion can remove embedded material if it becomes a problem.

If you’ve had one for years and it hasn’t changed, doctors usually aren’t alarmed. It’s just a permanent footnote your body wrote without consulting you.

They aren’t meaningful or stylish. Just a mark that stuck around longer than the moment that caused it.

The post Traumatic Tattoos Are More Common Than You Think. How Many Do You Have? appeared first on VICE.

A new population-based study, published in the European Journal of Epidemiology, suggests tattooed people have a 29 percent higher risk of developing melanoma than people without tattoos, even after accounting for sun exposure, tanning beds, skin type, and other known risk factors.

Researchers reviewed 2,880 melanoma cases and found that 22 percent of patients had tattoos before diagnosis, compared to 20 percent of controls. It’s a small difference, but the statistical pattern remained even after adjustments.

Tattoos Linked to a Spike in Cancer Risk, Study Finds

The concern isn’t the art. It’s what the art is made of. Black ink often contains polyaromatic hydrocarbons, chemicals the International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies as carcinogenic. Colored inks rely on azo pigments, which can break down into carcinogenic aromatic amines when exposed to UV light.

Heavy metals show up across the palette. None of this is shocking if you’ve ever smelled the chemical funk of a fresh tattoo session, but seeing it framed within cancer epidemiology is another story.

Only 30 percent of melanomas in the study occurred at the tattoo site, which surprised researchers. A localized problem would point toward direct skin damage. This pattern hints at something systemic, possibly involving an immune response. Similar chemicals have shown up in studies of firefighters and petroleum workers who also face elevated melanoma risk, even when exposure isn’t concentrated on the skin.

The timeline adds another wrinkle. People tattooed for 10 to 15 years showed the highest increase in risk at 67 percent. Even those tattooed for under five years had an elevated risk. Tattoos with both black and colored ink carried a higher risk than black alone.

Europe tried to get ahead of this with 2022 regulations limiting thousands of chemicals in tattoo ink. Enforcement hasn’t kept pace. Market audits found toxic ingredients above permitted levels and, in some cases, banned pigments mislabeled as legal alternatives.

No one is saying tattoo ink is the new tanning bed. UV exposure still carries a far greater melanoma risk. The study doesn’t prove causation either, but it raises questions researchers say require more work.

As someone who keeps offering my skin to new needles, it’s food for thought.

The post Do Tattoos Cause Cancer? A New Study Challenges What We Think We Know. appeared first on VICE.

The process is less extreme than it sounds. Designs aren’t carved into enamel but etched onto 3D-printed crowns that fit over natural teeth. A smile might showcase a partner’s initials, a lucky number, or a phrase like “getting rich.” Since the crowns can be swapped out at any time, they function more like removable accessories than lifelong marks.

What began as an option for patients already getting crowns has turned into a style statement. Large dental clinics have started advertising tooth tattoos as part of their services, sometimes even offering them as a free upgrade. Why have a boring crown that looks like a plain-old tooth when you could have a statement-making smile?

Skin Tattoos Are So Last Year. The Youth Are Switching to Tooth Tattoos.

Social media has given the trend rocket fuel. Clips of engraved teeth circulate widely, sparking both admiration and disgust. One viewer’s “genius” is another’s “nightmare,” and that mix of fascination and recoil is part of the appeal. Online debates over whether the designs are stylish or cursed have only helped push them further into the spotlight.

Not everyone in the dental field is on board. Some professionals warn that engraving weakens crowns, leaving them prone to damage. The risk hasn’t stopped patients who see the tattoos as a way to turn dental work into personal branding. Even with warnings, the demand keeps growing.

Tooth tattoos fit neatly into the broader cycle of body modification. Piercings, fillers, and implants have already cycled through phases of shock and acceptance, and now teeth are stepping into the same territory. They’re functional, but also a blank surface waiting to be claimed.

The designs may never reach the popularity of skin tattoos, but they’ve already proven how quickly fashion can invade even the most unlikely corners of the body. For some, they’re playful ornaments. For others, they’re talismans of luck or love.

Just don’t be surprised when you start seeing people with inked canines. 

The post Young People Are Ditching Skin Tats for Tooth Tattoos appeared first on VICE.

According to tattoo artists across the UK and US, demand for lower back tattoos is booming again among younger people. “The lower back tattoo is making a comeback with 19 to 27-year-olds, who weren’t old enough for it the first time around,” said Adam Turley of Vagabond Tattoo in Hackney. “We’re still seeing butterflies, florals, and twists on tribal designs, but the reinventions are softer, smaller, and far more intricate.”

Gen Z Is Reclaiming the Tramp Stamp in the Name of Feminine Power

Gone are the thick tribal bands of the early 2000s. Today’s tramp stamps look more like dainty phrases, celestial symbols, and minimal linework etched with thin needles. “Delicately sprawled phrases with thinner needles look great and are becoming a classic of our time. We’re doing 10 a week of that style all over the body,” Turley added.

Let’s not forget: millennials did this first. We walked so Gen Z could get fine-line tattoos that don’t look like a Hot Topic clearance rack. After the initial boom in the late ’90s and early 2000s, the trend crashed hard. “Back then, a lot of people were getting it done, but I saw requests for the lower-back tattoo vanish,” said Brian Keith Thompson of Body Electric. “No one was getting them anymore by, I’d say, 2008 to 2010.”

Of course, the “tramp stamp” label itself is part of what killed the trend in the first place—a not-so-PC term that turned the tattoo into a misogynistic punchline. But Gen Z has no time for that kind of policing. With this revival, the lower back tattoo is less about seduction and more about self-expression. It’s cute, nostalgic, and a little tongue-in-cheek—which is kind of the whole point.

What was once labeled trashy is now just…ideal tattoo real estate. And Gen Z is not afraid to put their mark on it.

The post Gen Z Is Reviving the ‘Trashy’ Tattoo Millennials Tried to Forget appeared first on VICE.

Unfortunately, some new research suggests that tattoos could lead to an increased risk of certain types of cancers, like skin cancer and lymphoma.

A study from the University of Southard Denmark compared the health outcomes of tattooed versus non-tattooed people, and they did it by finding sets of twins who fell into each category, which sounds like it was a huge pain in the ass.

There’s A Chance That Maybe, Possibly, Tattoos Could Give You Cancer

The researchers found that people with tattoos were more likely to develop cancer, especially in areas with a high concentration of tattoo ink particles like lymph nodes and, of course, skin. The researchers also found some particularly bad news for people with the aforementioned giant murals covering their bodies: people with tattoos larger than the size of a palm had a two to threefold increased risk of these cancers.

To be clear, none of this suggests a clear-cut link that tattoos equal cancer. But, what it does do is provide a new avenue of research that other research teams around the world can look into to further explore the possibilities.

It could be that there is a 100 percent link between cancers and tattoos, or it could be nothing, maybe just an anomaly. The researchers also suggest that if there is a link between tattoos and cancer, it could be indirect, meaning that maybe a person who is more inclined to get a tattoo might also be inclined to do things that cause cancer. Maybe they smoke cigarettes or they like to be out in the sun without sunblock.

Again, there’s a lot more to study. Until we find out more, keep very still because your tattoo artist is having a hard time sculpting the abs on the ripped wizard you asked for.

The post Do Tattoos Cause Cancer? appeared first on VICE.

Earlier this year, a 45-year-old male influencer died while getting a tattoo under general anesthesia. Unfortunately, he ended up going into cardiac arrest on the table.

Even so, many individuals are still seeking this controversial practice.

“I’ve been working with a lot of celebrities and high net-worth individuals, and they’ve actually been asking me about this for quite some time,” Romeo Lacoste, an LA-based tattoo artist, told USA Today.

“We finally found a way to make it happen and connect the dots and work with some of the top anesthesiologists in Los Angeles,” he insisted. “The facility that we work with is one of the best of the best, so everything that we do is always top-of-the-line and safety first.”

However, Dr. Tiffany Moon, a well-known anesthesiologist, shared the countless dangers of this practice in a recent TikTok video, which she captioned: “STOP having general anesthesia for tattoos- that’s not what it’s for.”

People Are Requesting General Anesthesia for Tattoos

In the video, there’s a screenshot of another TikTok that features a guy lying on his stomach, seemingly unconscious while getting a back tattoo.

“This guy is having general anesthesia, which the American Society of Anesthesiologists describes [as] not responding to a painful stimulus,” she explained. “Well, he’s got like four guys giving him a back tattoo right now, and I’m pretty sure he’s unresponsive.”

One of the most concerning parts of this situation, however, was that the individual was not intubated, “meaning that we are not controlling his airway,” she continued. 

“You don’t see a tube sticking out of his mouth [where] we’re controlling his oxygenation and his ventilation. In fact, he’s getting supplemental oxygen through some nasal prongs, but the nasal prongs are down … by his chin,” Dr. Moon said. “So, unless his chin skin can absorb oxygen and circulate that around, those prongs aren’t doing anything.”

She then points out the seemingly unnecessary sticker on his head, which is usually used to measure someone’s degree of paralysis.

“But he’s not paralyzed because he’s still breathing on his own—at least for now,” she said. “And then if they give him just a little too much medicine, or it’s really long and the medicine starts to accumulate, and he stops breathing…Well, you’re about to have yourself a Michael Jackson situation.”

“They won’t give me anesthesia for an IUD!!” someone wrote in the comment section of the TikTok video. “This is completely ridiculous. Any doctor that does this in the States should be reported. What happened to taking the pain of a tattoo?”

That’s a great question.

The post Anesthesia Makes Tattoos Painless—But It’s Probably Not a Good Idea appeared first on VICE.

Several teachers have been suspended in response, and an investigation has been launched into the matter since sharing needles is a bit of a health risk that can lead to the spread of diseases like HIV and hepatitis B and C.

Ashley Armstrong is the parent of an 11-year-old boy who had either given himself or was given by a friend a pair of tattoos that read “I heart my lord” on his arm and “JC” on his hand. The kid likes Jesus.

Speaking to a local Fox affiliate, Armstrong said, “The needle was shared several times. From one class to another class to another class. How is it that these kids are getting tattoos in class and not one teacher noticed it?”

It’s unclear how many students tattooed themselves or each other, or if any of the tattoos get any cooler than what Armstrong’s son got etched on him. We can only hope that at least one of them has a crude eagle tattooed on their back with the wings extending down to their arms, so when they flap their arms, it looks like the eagle is flying.

All the rural kids involved have undergone blood tests to detect any illnesses they may have contracted while sharing needles like a bunch of big-city heroin addicts. Still, their parents are concerned about any long-term health consequences that could arise from such irresponsible behavior.

Such is the life of a parent. You spend so much time instilling valuable life lessons into them, trying to teach them right from wrong, trying to lead by example as you teach them to respect others, that you totally forget to teach them the valuable lesson of not having your friends tattoo you in the middle class with the same dirty needle that just tattooed several other kids. I guess there are some lessons they have to learn on their own.

The post Texas Middle Schoolers Shared a Needle to Tattoo Themselves Mid-Class appeared first on VICE.

Born in San Francisco, brought up in Santa Monica, Gigliotti was always obsessed with skateboarding. When he left home for New York, he increasingly involved himself in DIY art: T-shirts, flyers, zines. It’s his link up with pro skaters Kevin ‘Spanky’ Long and Andrew Reynolds – the founder of iconic skateboard brand, Baker – through which his artwork has been most widely seen.

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Baker, the office of which has a skate park inside of it, has proved to be a fruitful link up for Gigliotti. He’s worked on their skate deck designs for years, in turn becoming a crucial creative cog in the company’s visual output. “He is Baker,” Reynolds says in the latest episode of Let It Kill You. “We could do five brands with what he provides each season,” Long says.

What comes across clear as day is Gigliotti’s love of the brand, which began when he was a kid and ran into Reynolds skating in front of the Santa Monica courthouse. Reynolds, already a famous skateboarder, was using a Baker board, the company having just launched.

“You’re never gonna make 100% cool shit, like that’s fucking the nature of it. But we try,” Gigliotti says of the Baker boards. “It seems like it’s just flying out of him, at, like, the highest level,” Long says of Gigliotti’s creative output. Among the many sick works of Gigliotti’s is a skateboard with actual Freddy Krueger on the back. His house is festooned with illustrations of “just shit I like,” Gigliotti says.

Gigliotti got hold of his very own shop, Lotties, by way of a children’s skate book he’d put together. A bookstore that was keen on stocking the book had an open lot a few doors down. Gigliotti moved in, and the store became an iconic LA skate and hangout spot.

“There’s Freddy Krueger 2 [A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge] playing on the DVD player, and Sammy’s (Aviles, a local to the shop) in the background making jokes, and like Mike (Gigliotti) is making an oil painting. You know, you’re just kind of like, that’s pretty unique,” videographer Daniel Wheatley says of the place.

Lotties was filled with nostalgic nick-nacks, had its own merchandise, and doubled up as an art studio for Gigliotti. “The shop was art,” Reynolds says. Locals kids hung out there and pro skaters would shoot videos under the Lotties banner.

Lotties eventually closed, though Gigliotti refrains from getting into exactly why – there is clearly a story there, too. Gigliotti now does graphics for multiple skateboard brands along with Baker. “I get to do Andrew Reynolds boards… Casper [Brooker], Jacopo [Carozzi], Rowan [Zorilla]! I just got to do a Grant Taylor board. I’m beyond grateful,” Gigliotti says. “I owe forever, I feel.”

The post The First Episode of ‘Let It Kill You’ Is Out Now appeared first on VICE.

When you picture a sexy tattoo of a naked woman, you might think of a pin-up with big boobs and a tiny waist inked onto someone’s bicep. But Rotterdam-based tattoo artist Khaddouj Barghout thinks that erotic tattoos aren’t only meant for a man’s arm. They should be reclaimed for – and designed by – women, as a celebration of female sexuality.

Barghout, 24, is a self-taught queer visual artist of Moroccan descent who started tattooing two years ago. In her work, Barghout explores female sexuality, the female body and how society still looks down on women who dare to express themselves as sexual beings.

VICE spoke to her about tattoos, painting, and why it’s important to make sensual images of women from a woman’s perspective.

VICE: Can you tell us about your latest exhibition, Sappho and her Friend, which took place in Rotterdam this summer? Barghout: The exhibition was about the perception of female love, intimacy and sexuality between women within the North African culture. I’d noticed that these types of images are still often erased, not only in North African culture, but all over the world.

When people see depictions of two women, they often assume they’re friends or roommates. I even noticed this during the exhibition: While visitors were looking at paintings of two women, I asked them what they thought they were looking at, and many of them said “sisters”. And when they saw more sensual depictions of women, lots of visitors assumed the artist behind them was a man.

**So, people still commonly assume that sensual art about women is made by men?
**Yes, exactly. I actually incorporate that theme into my art. For a new exhibition in December, I want to depict the female body again, but in metamorphosis. I will show realistic paintings of women’s bodies fusing with objects, like a carpet or a piece of meat.

When portrayed by men, the female body is often objectified and used to sell products, like in advertisements for example. With this work, I want to ask the question: What functions are prescribed to the female body, even today? And should we want that?

**Your work seems to be evolving from straightforward depictions of naked women to more abstract representations. Why?
**I want to zoom in very closely on skin and bodies. This kind of image repels you on the one hand, but you also feel the urge to touch the flesh and skin. My ethnicity is also increasingly fading into the background in my new work.

**Why did you choose to tattoo your art, too?
**I’m fascinated with the texture of skin and the shapes it can take. I find that interesting to incorporate into my work, and tattooing is a part of it.

Also, by getting a sensual tattoo, you claim your sensuality back. You literally put it on your skin. I’ve noticed that lots of North African and Asian women come to me for tattoos, and I think it’s because there are few people with my roots who do this, so they feel more comfortable doing it with me.

**Your erotic tattoos also hold many references to Middle Eastern and North African culture: tajine dishes with sexy legs, a Moroccan teapot, etc. How come?
**They are quite nostalgic images that are still present in my life. My roots are in Morocco – both my parents are Moroccan – and I’m proud of that. I am also a queer woman, and I incorporate the different ways in which I explore my body in my work. The way I discover my body as a woman cannot be separated from where I’ve come from.

**Do you want to convey a specific message with these tattoos?
**My culture is a part of me and this is obviously reflected in my work. But I want to emphasise that my aim is not to shock anyone with my work. Sensuality is something that belongs to everyone, no matter your cultural background.

**Do people come to you specifically for these kinds of tattoos?
**Well, the people who come to me for a tattoo know the kind of work I do. Sometimes they come with a very specific idea and then we design it together. But in the end, I usually tattoo my own concepts.

One tattoo that has stayed with me is the one of the mirror with two vulvas in it. I think it’s so beautiful that she wanted and dared to do this. And it also gives me hope that a time will come when more and more women will dare to express their queerness.

Erotic tattoos, of course, are nothing new. But images of erotic women were always paired with a straight man. That may well change. And the thing is, women are getting these tattoos for themselves because they like it and they stand behind this idea.

**What kind of reactions do you get to your art?
**I often hear from women that they experience my work as a relief, or that they are pleasantly surprised when they discover it. To them, it’s a confirmation that it’s normal as a woman to explore and express yourself in this way. I get different reactions from men, though.

**Go on…
**For example, I don’t like to use the word “erotic” when describing my art to men, because I’ve noticed that the word is mainly used to portray a female body as an object of lust. This, in turn, often leads to slut-shaming. I’ve noticed that men regularly take offence when a woman paints another naked woman.

And sadly, this has led to me being stalked and attacked. Let’s just say I have to keep my phone number and address private. That just proves there is still a lot of work to be done. I’m harassed by all kinds of people, of all ethnicities. Slut-shaming is a universal problem that does not only affect painters like me.

**When you receive these kinds of responses, do you sometimes feel like quitting, or does it ignite a fire in you?
**The latter. I am constantly confronted with how important it is for me to make this kind of art. I don’t make these paintings and tattoos for men. If men feel so appalled by my work, it says something about how women are still perceived today. Apparently we are still not used to a woman’s body being portrayed from a perspective other than the male gaze.

Scroll down for more pictures of Barghout’s work:

The post These Tattoos Celebrate The Sexuality of Queer North African Women appeared first on VICE.