Georgia-based band Skin To Bone fuse powerful guitars and raw emotion in an engaging sound that blends nu-metal and alternative metal and they describe as “unsettled, raw and heavy.”
Skin To Bone is formed of Davut Sergeev, Yaroslav Pavlov, Anna Kashleva, Arseniy Volkov and Varvara Filippova, who originally came from different parts of Russia. They met at a music cover party in Batumi, a resort city on the Black Sea, where they discovered a shared love for nu-metal, especially Linkin Park. That led to them rehearsing together and starting a Linkin Park tribute band, playing live shows to build on-stage chemistry and develop discipline, dynamics and audience connection. However, the tribute project soon began to feel limiting.
As Davut explains: “We had our own stories, emotions, and frustrations that didn’t fit inside someone else’s songs. That’s when Skin To Bone transitioned into an original band. Long story short, we decided to take it further and develop our own identity by writing and releasing original music. The sound became heavier, more personal, and more honest, reflecting where we were mentally and emotionally at that stage of our lives.
“Our sound bridges modern nu-metal and alternative metal with the raw energy of the early 2000s. Heavy riffs, dynamic shifts, and emotional vocals with elements of rapping are at the core. We care a lot about atmosphere and tension, not just aggression. Even when the music is heavy, there’s always a strong emotional narrative behind it.”
Our latest taste of this is the band’s third single No Way Back, which was released last month. It opens up with a thick slab of guitars and driving drums joined by piercing synth sounds before dropping into engaging rapped vocals. The vocals develop towards a big singalong chorus, which drops into drawn-out guitars with stabs of guitar giving way to another moody verse. Guitars kick in as it flows into another big chorus, followed by a delicious guitar solo. That ends with heavier guitars and vocals and increasingly intense drums, which lead us into a final blast of the chorus.
On the track, Davut said: “The reception has been very encouraging, especially from people who followed us from our earlier days and were curious about where we’d go with original music. A lot of listeners connected with the honesty and intensity of the track.
“For anyone who hasn’t heard No Way Back yet, they should expect an emotional, heavy song that doesn’t try to be polished or safe. It’s about hitting a point where retreat isn’t an option anymore, mentally or emotionally, and choosing to face whatever comes next head-on.”
That follows on from the band’s debut single Lost in Disguise, released last January, and the excellent ICAN’TSLEEP. The latter slowly builds up to delicious nu-metal guitars, before a rapped verse leads into an intense chorus. The pace drops halfway through, before exploding into a low-tuned stabbing guitar riff under big screamed vocals teeing up a final rendition of the big chorus. You can check it out in the video below.
Skin and Bone draw influence from the likes of Deftones, Korn and, of course, Linkin Park, as they tell us “especially in terms of emotional openness and the way they balance heaviness with vulnerability.”
And on what inspires them to write music, Davut told us: “Our music is driven by inner conflict and real-life experiences. Pressure, overthinking, growing older, strained relationships, and personal breaking points are recurring themes. We want our songs to feel lived-in and honest.”
As mentioned, this is the first band we’ve interviewed from Georgia, so we asked the band for their thoughts on their local scene. “The rock and metal scene in Georgia is very small and not particularly developed, especially when it comes to original heavy music,” Davut explained. “There honestly isn’t much of a scene to talk about. Heavy bands exist, but original material isn’t widely supported or valued, and there are very few proper venues or platforms for this kind of music.
“That’s one of the reasons we originally started as a tribute band. Covers are more accepted here, while original heavy music struggles to find space. Most things are DIY, and support is minimal. Because of that, our goal is to push past these limitations, take Skin To Bone to a new level, and reach audiences outside the local scene who are more open to original nu-metal and alternative metal.”
There’s plenty more to come from Skin To Bone, including new music and live shows as they continue to refine their sound. They’re particularly keen to spread their music beyond Georgia and have hopes of performing internationally.
And Davut added: “We want listeners to feel something real when they hear our music, whether that’s anger, release, or recognition. We’re just at the beginning of our journey, and we’re here to stay and evolve.”
You can follow Skin To Bone on Instagram and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.
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