In 1981, some guys appeared from Texas who called themselves "dirty rotten imbeciles", they were under the influence of the Punk scene. They wrote short songs and played fast, aggressive, furious music so a bridge was created between Punk, Hardcore, and American Thrash Metal. This style was called "Crossover", and D.R.I. brought an interesting Punk Metal pattern to the scene.
This style would gain huge respect and caused the birth of a genre. But they haven't released a new album since 1995. Finally, Morbidzine contacted the U.S.A.'s legend Crossover guys D.R.I., here is an interview with Spike Cassidy!
MORBIDZINE: Hi, primarily thank you so much for spending your time for us. D.R.I. celebrated 25 years in 2007. What have Crossover guys been doing in recent years? We heard bad news about Spike Cassidy being diagnosed with cancer. How is he doing now?
SPIKE CASSIDY: I'm doing good. I feel good. I've been working a real job now for a few years. So I guess you could say I have my strength back.
MORBIDZINE: What is the band planning for the future? A new album soon?
SPIKE CASSIDY: I'm not sure. We live in four different states across the country — Washington, California, Texas, and Florida. Just to practice will cost thousands in plane fare alone. Money that we don't have. We all have our own lives and families now, conflicts in scheduling keep us from touring right now. We might be able to put together some shows, but it won't be easy. We have a long way to go before we are working on a new album again. I just hope we can play a few shows.',
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MORBIDZINE: Why didn't the band make a new full-length studio album after 1995's "Full Speed Ahead"?
SPIKE CASSIDY: I think there were many reasons. Full Speed Ahead did not sell many copies. Why would the next record? Our fans really didn't want a new record, they just wanted to hear their old favorites from the 80's over and over again. We didn't mind playing them for them.
MORBIDZINE: As a forefather of Hardcore Punk/Thrash metal combination bands, from past till today, what are your ideas about the Thrash/Crossover metal scene in U.S.A.? Do you like new Crossover bands?
SPIKE CASSIDY: Of course. We have a great scene here. There are many great bands. It's a big country, and there is a lot of competition. That raises the bar.
MORBIDZINE: You have been inspired much by Punk/Hardcore bands like Minor Threat, Dead Kennedys, and Black Flag.. Have you also been influenced by the UK82 movement? If so, can you give some examples you like?
SPIKE CASSIDY: We liked Discharge, GBH, and the Exploited to name a few.
MORBIDZINE: Is today's Punk scene dead in your opinion? Why did Old School Punk scene lose its old mood?
SPIKE CASSIDY: We are all old, retiring and dying 50-year-olds. Yet the music still lives. It has to change. It has to always become something new and different, or it will die.
MORBIDZINE: With 1987's legendary album called "Crossover", do you really want to characterize the band's music and this genre?
SPIKE CASSIDY: Sure. We didn't choose the name. It was what people were calling us. We just went with it.
MORBIDZINE: Can you tell us unforgettable events from "Rock Against Reagan Tour"? Who came up with the idea of this tour?
SPIKE CASSIDY: I don't know exactly, but I would imagine it was a collaboration. There were a lot of people involved in that tour. The highlight of the whole tour was playing in front of thousands on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on the 4th of July.
MORBIDZINE: The band has progressively added more Thrash Metal elements on every album, beginning from "Dirty Rotten" to "Crossover", "4 Of A Kind", "Thrash Zone" etc. Has the Bay Area scene affected you too much?
SPIKE CASSIDY: I guess so, if you don't like thrash. But, in reality, we had access to all kinds of music. And influences from most we liked showed up in music we wrote.
MORBIDZINE: What can you say about Anthrax's last position? Do you like their last albums?
SPIKE CASSIDY: I haven't heard it yet, I'll have to check it out.
MORBIDZINE: If it is not wrong, as we knew "Dirty Rotten Imbeciles" is coming from one of the names which Kurt's dad called you. How did you decide to give this name to the band?
SPIKE CASSIDY: It was one of the funniest, coolest, three-letter band names we could come up with. I thought it showed we had a sense of humor. That was good because back when we were choosing a band name we had some serious lyrics. We were starting to become a political band. I know I didn't want to get too serious.
MORBIDZINE: Are you pleased with Beer City Records?
SPIKE CASSIDY: Yes. Beer City has done a great job for us. We are working on more new releases right now.
MORBIDZINE: Well if it's not a problem for you, I want to ask some questions apart from music. What do you think about the president selection in U.S.A.? And can we learn your ideas about Bush government?
SPIKE CASSIDY: Like I said before, I don't like to get too serious. And I don't like politics much. But, I definitely did not like Bush jr. Guess I didn't like Bush sr. much either. I guess I'm a democrat at heart. I think Obama will do a better job than Bush. It's not a tall order.
MORBIDZINE: And ideas about global warming? Where are the world's conditions going in your opinion?
SPIKE CASSIDY: The world is a terrible place. We all need to do a little to change that. We all need to do our part. You can't just give up. You can't wait for someone else to do it for you. Even if there really isn't a real global warming threat, how can you be against trying to reuse, reduce, and recycle? And trying to reduce our carbon footprint. Or reducing pollution. How can you think we don't have to worry about destroying the planet?
MORBIDZINE: Thanks again. We were honored to do an interview with D.R.I. legend... Do you want to send the last message to fans?
SPIKE CASSIDY: Thanks for the ride, it was a blast! I hope we can do it again sometime soon.