Considering thrash owed as much to hardcore punk as it did metal, it’s no surprise certain hardcore bands started incorporating metal elements into their sound, resulting in the subsequent advent of crossover. Alongside Suicidal Tendencies, D.R.I. were perhaps the earliest purveyors of this hybrid sound. Their early material relied heavily on politically inclined lyrics and hardcore rage, with underlying tinges of metallic force. By the late 80s, their name was spoken in the same breath as Metallica, Slayer, Kreator, and the other thrash titans of the day. Talk about literally crossing over! Today, we pay tribute to these crossover kingpins with our Top 10 D.R.I. Songs.
10. “Slumlord / Dead in a Ditch”
Kicking off our list at #10 is technically #10 and #11. Yes, I know I’m cheating, but this one of those technicalities in which you can’t have one song off the other. Off D.R.I.’s aptly titled fourth album, 4 of a Kind, “Slumlord” takes charge with a metallized spin on the hardcore fury of D.R.I.’s early days. The riffs bounce and thrash around as vocalist Kurt Brecht shouts on about the soulless character that is a slumlord. Cleverly, the closing riff to “Slumlord” opens the thrashcore throwback that is “Dead in a Ditch”. This second half is short and anything but sweet, but so is life in many cases. Just be glad it’s not you who’s “Dead in a Ditch”.
9. “Couch Slouch”
Dealing With It! (1985) has always been my favorite D.R.I. album, so much so that I could’ve easily picked any 10 songs off this 25 track melee and it would’ve made for a faithful list. I’m sure you could too, although one of those 10 songs would HAVE to be “Couch Slouch”. The speed and intensity of this rager is nothing short of revolutionary for the era. At times, we hear something closer to what would become grindcore and death metal than thrash in its earliest stages, and this is one such example. Leave it to a band with the youthful angst of D.R.I. to pen such a hyperactive ode to laziness. Kick that slacker rock shit to the curb!
8. “Hooked”
Although D.R.I. was never explicitly a straightedge band, it’s safe to assume they didn’t advocate recreational drug use, if only because “Hooked”. In an age where every other hard rock and metal band was exploiting their excess, indulging in every chemical pleasure that came their way, here was D.R.I. warning young thrashers of the danger of such substances. And to think Tipper Gore thought they were a bad influence! As a song, “Hooked” exemplifies the refined metallic direction of their third album, Crossover (1987), even down to the opening “Master of Puppets” gone metalpunk riff. Correct us if we’re wrong Spike!
7. “Violent Pacification”
In between their debut Dirty Rotten EP/LP (depending on who you ask) and Dealing With It!, D.R.I. released a gem of an EP in 1984’s Violent Pacification. Just a year since their debut and the songs were already showing signs of development. The opening title cut, while still firmly rooted in hardcore, boasts a dark, misanthropic edge akin to Negative Approach and My War era Black Flag. It’s heavy and eerie, but raw and unpredictable. In other words, chances are your headbanger friend who worshipped Maiden and Priest wasn’t going to be vibing with this one…or maybe he would if he had enough ‘ludes in him to aggravate the mood.
6. “Snap”
Most bands need a few minutes to craft an anthem. D.R.I. only needed a minute and change. “Snap” stands out for its melodic singalong verses, but a melodic hardcore prototype this is not. No, the thrashing mad midsection makes sure to reinstill this. That said, there’s no doubt every metalhead, punk, and moshist will be sing-screaming along to Brecht’s tale of being the victim of a “bigtime government scam”. Do lyrics get any more hardcore than that? Mind you, this was before hardcore splintered off in a million directions and was still a vehicle of protest against, primarily, Reagan and Thatcher. D.R.I. stood out as agents of anarchy in their early days, and their music remains the soundtrack of such.
5. “I’d Rather Be Sleeping”
“Snap” isn’t the only singalong on Dealing With It!. There’s also “I’d Rather Be Sleeping”, although this time it’s the chorus that gets the crowd shouting instead of the verses. Whenever I hear this song, I feel like it could’ve been by any number of bands. It could’ve been a Black Flag song or a Bad Brains song or even a Minor Threat song. Yet D.R.I. didn’t blatantly sound like any of these 3 bands when writing or playing it. They just happened to write a song of the same caliber of “Rise Above”, “Banned in D.C.”, and “Betray”. As we’ll find out later, it isn’t the last time they reached such heights of hardcore greatness.
4. “Oblivion”
Apocalyptic lyricism, breakneck riffs, mosh sections, punk attitude: What more could you ask for when cranking up “Oblivion”? The closing track on Crossover, “Oblivion” checks off every thrash metal box and then some, serving as the perfect finale for such a menacing affair. As I said earlier, Crossover showcased D.R.I. at their most metallic thus far, and remains arguably the strongest example of the band employing this formula. With “Oblivion” in their arsenal, D.R.I. proved they could thrash alongside the likes of Dark Angel and Sodom, even though many in the thrash scene were sold on their metallic abilities going back to Dealing With It!.
3. “Beneath the Wheel”
While I don’t hold it in the same esteem as their first three albums, Thrash Zone has its shining moments and is definitely D.R.I.’s thrashiest album, even down to the title and cover art. Hardcore who? One could argue this is the archetypal pizza thrash album, but that’s another argument for another day. What I will argue is that “Beneath the Wheel” HAS to be on this list. It is perhaps the be all, end all two-step thrasher ever recorded, and that speaks volumes. Every time I hear those knuckle-dragging riffs, skanking drums, and lyrics that embody teen angst, I thrash about like I’m 13 all over again. My body says otherwise, but my head sure doesn’t. “School’s a job but you don’t get paid.” Were truer words ever sang?
2. “The Five Year Plan”
It’s no wonder “The Five Year Plan” remains one of the biggest “hits” (a word I’m sure the band resents) of their career. On this song, guitarist Spike Cassidy makes his contribution to the compendium of classic guitar riffs, cranking out something that now resides somewhere between “Smoke on the Water” and “Raining Blood” in this fictitious anthology. No doubt every thrasher has air guitared the intro at least once before moshing like a lunatic for the remainder of the song. I know I did the one time I saw D.R.I. back in high school, coupled with some hits to the ribs and a kick or two to the head. If I think enough, I can still feel ’em. Ouch!
- “I Don’t Need Society”
This is it: THEE D.R.I. song. Not only that, but arguably the greatest punk song of all time. Yes, I said it. Originally appearing on their Dirty Rotten EP, it’s the Dealing With It! version of “I Don’t Need Society” that tops our list of greatest D.R.I. songs by a landslide. This minute and a half blast of anti-authoritarian bliss accomplishes more in its brief runtime than most punk bands have in their entire career. The message remains prevalent as ever, even 40 years later. Society needs D.R.I., but D.R.I. doesn’t need them, and they’re sure to remind everyone with the greatest song in their catalog. “Fuck the system” indeed.