"This quartet purveys a perfectly potent brew of modern rock akin to their famed bourbon of their home state, Kentucky." As "NU-METAL" takes a back seat, do to the flood of unrecognizable bands that spawned over the last few years, Nik (24)(vocals/guitar) and his bandmates, Mike (19)(guitar), David (18)(bass), and Lee (19)(drums), take a different approach however."It's more *ROCK* oriented, rather than metal." Mike adds, "...it's nothing *NU* at all!". When asked how they describe their sound Nik replied "brutally honest." "DEGREE is a heavy rock band. There's a chunk side to it, but it's also heavy in emotion." One listen to "Explanation" should provide the listener with the knowledge that there isn't always a reason or an answer for why certain things, good or bad, take place in their lives. "I really try to explore my emotions and use that 'write about what you know' mentality". In early 2001, bored with the state of music, and different sub genre's popping up quicker than McDonald's sells hamburgers, Nik set out to find a new band. After a few visits to local music stores in DEGREE'S hometown of Lexington, Ky. he ran across a flyer of Mike's. The two hooked up shortly after and began writing new material. They were both in a previous band locally, playing shows at such places as "A1A," "M.F.HOOLIGANS," and the now defunct "MILLENNIUM" and "LYNAGH'S." As well as opening slots with locals "SUPAFUZZ," "C.O.JONES," and "CHANNEL Z-ROW" to name a few. As drummers came and went, they finally found a full time replacement. "Lee was playing drums in a metal band locally, and we kind of borrowed him!" says Nik. "He was playing a show with his band in his backyard, and everyone was in awe just watching him rip it up!" Nik adds "we just had to have him." As Lee found a permanent spot with DEGREE, a bassist was in order. David, a classically trained musician with plenty of stage experience of his own, was discovered by Mike through family acquaintances. Mike explains, "After a few practices, he knew the set list of about eight songs and we wrote two new songs in the process!" Going strong, this Four piece plans to keep hitting it hard and shoot for a full length CD by fall of 2003! .:{DEGREE}:.