D.R.I.

D.R.I.

D.R.I. (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles) is a crossover band formed in Houston, Texas, in 1982. The group is made up of founding members Kurt Brecht on vocals and Spike Cassidy on guitar, with Rob Rampy on drums and Harald Oimoen on bass.

Style and significance

D.R.I. combines hardcore punk roots with thrash metal influences. The band is regarded as one of the pioneers of crossover, a term it uses on its third album, which appears in 1987. It does not gain a mainstream audience, but its approach influences contemporaries including Agnostic Front, Corrosion of Conformity, Verbal Abuse, Cro-Mags and Dr. Know.

Releases and activity

By the time of the available information, D.R.I. has released seven albums. The band continues touring and has periods of hiatus. In 2004, it releases the web-only demo track "Against Me", which is its first recording in a decade. An eighth album is discussed for years but does not appear.

Other work

D.R.I. also runs its own label, Rotten Records.