18 Bonez was a raw, underground nu-metal band from San Diego / Escondido, active in the early 2000s.

The group started when friends Michael Daley (vocals), Dave Esani (drums), and Brian Lemke (guitar) began jamming in middle school and high school in the mid-’90s. They later reunited in 1998 under the name 18 Bonez—reportedly inspired by being two bucks short of a $20 bag—and built a heavier, more distinctive sound with Jake Richmond on bass (and backups) and Matt Young on second guitar.

They played the local and regional scene hard (San Diego County, Orange County, L.A., Las Vegas), sharing stages with bands like P.O.D., Unwritten Law, and others, and put out aggressive, emotional tracks like “Poser,” “Broken,” “720,” and “Drinks.” Their self-titled EP remains a cult favorite among nu-metal fans looking for that early-2000s underground energy.