Timeline
D.I. | |
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| Origin | Fullerton, California |
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| Years active | 1981–present |
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| Spinoffs | X-Pistols |
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D.I. is an American punk rock band formed in 1981 in Fullerton, California. It was founded by vocalist and primary songwriter Casey Royer, after previously playing drums in the bands Adolescents and Social Distortion.
Since its formation, D.I. has had many line-up changes over the years with Royer being the only constant member of the band. The band has continued to work, although they have had inactive periods, which include the band going on hiatus between albums. During their years of touring and recording albums, D.I. have never gained a huge mainstream success, but they have influenced many of the 1990s era melodic hardcore punk and punk rock revival bands, including Face to Face, Guttermouth, Jughead's Revenge, [1] The Offspring, and Pennywise. [2] Members of the band also joined up with Daddy X and the Dirtball of the Kottonmouth Kings, to create the punk rock band the X-Pistols, in 2010.
D.I. was formed in 1981 after the Adolescents' first break-up. The band's name initially stood for "Drug Ideology", but now, the initials no longer have any meaning. [3] Their original line-up consisted of Casey Royer on vocals, Tim Maag on guitar, Fredric Taccone on bass guitar, and Derek O'Brien on drums. The band combined the Orange County hardcore punk sound with a decidedly surf and new wave style on their debut self-titled EP. The EP featured five songs, including "Richard Hung Himself" (originally written by Casey Royer while he played for the Adolescents, recorded with the Adolescents and later re-recorded with D.I.), "Venus De Milo", "Reagan der Führer", "Purgatory", and "Guns". This EP was later reissued as Team Goon with extra tracks including versions of Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll Part II", The Saint and Nuclear Funeral. [4] The album was later released as a CD which added a cover of DEVO's Uncontrollable Urge which itself was originally released by XXX Records as the B-side on the 7-inch e.p. along with Surfing Anarchy.
Live footage of a D.I. performance of "Richard Hung Himself" was integrated into scenes from the 1983 coming-of-age feature film Suburbia , directed by Penelope Spheeris. [5] A longer set was later released on a DVD called DI - The Suburbia Sessions 1983. [6]
The band's first studio album Ancient Artifacts was a more straight ahead Orange County-sounding album that included a new version of "Purgatory" from the EP. Not long after the release of Ancient Artifacts, D.I. returned to the studio to record their second album Horse Bites Dog Cries , which was not released until 1986 (although the album itself has copyright date of 1985). This is generally considered their best studio album. [7] [8]
Before recording sessions for their next album commenced, guitarist Rikk Agnew left D.I. in 1987 to pursue his career with the Adolescents. Agnew was replaced in D.I. by Hedge on bass guitar. Alfie Agnew played guitar, and Bosco was switched from bass to second guitar. Eventually Mark "The Kid" Cerneka from Brea Olinda High School replaced Alfie. The resulting album, What Good Is Grief to a God? (1988), was a commercial failure. After the 1988 US tour, "The Kid" left and was replaced by Sean Elliot. The 7-inch Single. "Don't Do It" b/w "Johnny's Got a Problem" was released that year on Triple X, blue vinyl in partnership with Circle A Skateboards. This was given away as a promo with a skateboard. Some released with picture sleeves. In 1989, D.I. released their next album Tragedy Again . [9] That year another 7-inch Single was released on red vinyl again on Triple X records. "Surfin' Anarchy" (Beach Boys cover) b/w "Uncontrollable Urge" (Devo cover)
A live album, Live at a Dive, was released in 1993. After Stevie DRT left the band, original drummer John Knight rejoined, and their fifth album State of Shock was released the following year. [10] Chris Roboson and Steve Lyen joined and continued playing from 1995 to 1997. The band lost their record label soon afterwards. After two years of strictly playing live shows, and original guitarist Tim Maag replacing Roboson, D.I. headed back into the studio around 1997 to record what would be their follow-up to State of Shock and shopped the tracks around to labels without finding a taker.
Numerous line-up changes went on before they solidified their line-up, consisting of Royer, Chckn (guitars), Clinton Calton (guitars), Eddie Tatar (bass) and Joey Tatar (drums). Royer remained the only constant member of the band. D.I. continued touring for years and released their first original album in eight years, titled Caseyology , in 2002. Caseyology was followed up five years later by On the Western Front (2007) released on the Suburban Noize label, [11] with all music and lyrics written by Royer and Tatar. In 2009, the band released the tracks "Potbelly", "D.I.", "The Dehumanizers", and "Embrace The Kill – Shut the Fuck Up and Listen!!!" through PB Records. [12]
In March 2011, Casey Royer was arrested for child abuse, child endangerment and overdosing on heroin in the presence of his 12-year-old son. [13] The child abuse and child endangerment charges were dropped, but he was sentenced to a 90-day jail term and placed on probation for three years for the substance abuse misdemeanor. [14] After this, Royer got clean and sober, and D.I. returned to touring and playing live shows.
In 2012, the band released a new 7-inch EP, United We Slam through Hand Grenade Records. [12]
| Dates | Members & prominent instruments | Releases |
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| (1981–1983) |
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| (1983) |
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| (1983–1984) |
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| (1984–1986) |
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| (1986–1987) |
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| (1987–1988) |
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| (1988–1990) |
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| (1990–1992) |
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| (1992–1995) |
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| (1995–1997) |
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| (1997–1998) |
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| (1998–1999) |
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| (2000–2001) |
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| (2001–2003) |
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| (2003–2008) |
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| (2008–April 2018) |
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| (April 2018 – present) |
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| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1985 | Ancient Artifacts | Debut album. |
| 1986 | Horse Bites Dog Cries | Contains material from Ancient Artifacts . |
| 1988 | What Good Is Grief to a God? | Contains a re-recording of "Johnny's Got a Problem". |
| 1989 | Tragedy Again | First D.I. album not featuring re-recordings of any song from their previous albums. |
| 1994 | State of Shock | Also re-released with Demo EP Bonus Tracks recorded 1996–97. |
| 2002 | Caseyology | First studio album since 1994; also features re-recordings of original songs and features live tracks on some versions. |
| 2007 | On the Western Front | Second D.I. album featuring only one re-recording of a song from their previous albums. |
| 2020 | Flashback Favorites | Covers album |
| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1983 | D.I. | EP; re-released in 1987 as Team Goon with four bonus tracks. |
| 1987 | Rat Music for Rat People, Vol. 3 | Compilation (CD Presents, 1987) |
| 1988 | "Don't Do It" 7-inch | Promotional release given out with skateboard. Not all had sleeves. |
| 1989 | "Surfin' Anarchy" 7-inch | Single |
| 1991 | Gabba Gabba Hey: A Tribute to the Ramones | Covered "she's a sensation" on Triple X Records tribute album. |
| 1993 | Live at a Dive | Live |
| 1996 | "Zwei Frau Und Eins Stein" 7-inch | Single |
| 1999 | Short Music for Short People | Compilation including various other bands. |
| 2003 | Best of D.I. | Compilation |
| 2004 | Redefining Scenes 2 | Compilation including various other bands. |
| 2012 | United We Slam | EP containing 4 new original songs, the first to be released on the band's own label Hand Grenade Records. |
| 2021 | Greatest Hits A-Z | Re-recordings of the band's "biggest and best hits" [15] |
The Vandals are an American punk rock band, established in 1980 in Orange County, California. They have released ten full-length studio albums, two live albums, and have toured the world extensively, including performances on the Vans Warped Tour. They are well known for their use of humor, preferring to use their music as a vehicle for comedy and sarcasm rather than as a platform for more serious issues. Kung Fu Records, founded in 1996 by Escalante and Fitzgerald has signed and launched many punk rock bands.
The Adolescents are an American punk rock band formed in Fullerton, California in 1979. Part of the hardcore punk movement in southern California in the early 1980s, they were one of the main punk acts to emerge from Orange County, along with their peers in Agent Orange and Social Distortion. Founding bassist Steve Soto was the sole constant member of the band since its inception until his 2018 death, with singer Tony Reflex being in the group for all but one album.
Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness, Jonny Wickersham, Brent Harding, David Hidalgo Jr. (drums), and David Kalish (keyboards).
Adolescents, also known as The Blue Album due to its cover design, is the debut studio album by American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in April 1981 on Frontier Records. Recorded after guitarist Rikk Agnew and drummer Casey Royer joined the band, it features several songs written for their prior group, the Detours, including "Kids of the Black Hole" and "Amoeba", which became two of the Adolescents' most well-known songs. Adolescents was one of the first hardcore punk albums to be widely distributed throughout the United States, and became one of the best-selling California hardcore albums of its time. The band never toured in support of it, and broke up four months after its release. The Blue Album lineup of Agnew, Royer, guitarist Frank Agnew, bassist Steve Soto and singer Tony Brandenburg reunited several times in subsequent years, but only for brief periods.
No Fun at All is a Swedish punk rock band.
Brats in Battalions is the second studio album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in August 1987 on SOS Records, the band's independent record label. It followed a reunion of the band after a five-year breakup, and subsequent lineup changes which saw drummer Casey Royer and original guitarist Frank Agnew replaced, respectively, by Sandy Hanson of the Mechanics and by Agnew's younger brother, Alfie Agnew. Brats in Battalions explores several styles of punk rock and features new recordings of all three songs from 1981's Welcome to Reality EP, as well as cover versions of the traditional folk song "The House of the Rising Sun" and the Stooges' "I Got a Right". Singer Tony Brandenburg left the band after this album, and the Adolescents recorded one more album without him, 1988's Balboa Fun*Zone, before breaking up for another 12 years.
Return to the Black Hole is a live album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in September 1997 on Amsterdamned Records. It was recorded in December 1989 during a reunion performance by the band's 1980–81 lineup.
Richard Francis "Rikk" Agnew Jr. is an American musician with a career spanning more than 40 years. He has previously been a member of some of the most influential bands of the Orange County hardcore punk genre, as well as the influential deathrock band Christian Death. During his years with the Adolescents, Agnew became known as one of the best guitarists in the Southern California hardcore punk scene.
Kill the Musicians is a compilation album released in 1995 which was meant to serve as a "cleaning up" of loose ends after Screeching Weasel's breakup in 1994. The compilation collects demos, B-sides, vinyl-only EPs, and other various odds and ends the band had accumulated in their career from 1989 to 1994. It came on the heels of 1994's How to Make Enemies and Irritate People, which itself was a collection of the final songs the band had written prior to splitting up. The band would soon reform in 1996 and remain together again until 2000, when they disbanded again. This collection was out of print for a short period until it was remastered and re-released by Asian Man Records in 2005. The original album contained an in-depth essay written by Ben Weasel covering the history of the band. This was later omitted from the re-issue. In 2010, Recess Records had intentions to release a double LP vinyl reissue, however production was aborted and only a small amount of test pressings exist.
The Mechanics (1977–1981) are considered to be the first punk band to come out of Fullerton, California.
Casey A. Royer, is an American musician and an early pioneer of the hardcore punk rock genre in Orange County. He named and formed the band Social Distortion as a teenager. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Royer is best known as the lead vocalist for Southern Californian punk rock band D.I. and as a drummer for the Adolescents.
Francis Thomas "Frank" Agnew is an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being a member of punk rock band the Adolescents. Frank's brothers Rikk Agnew and Alfie Agnew, as well as his son Frank Agnew Jr., are also former Adolescents guitarists.
Derek Shawn O'Brien is an American punk rock drummer and producer.
D.I. is the eponymously titled debut EP by the American hardcore punk band D.I., released in 1983 through Revenge Records. It was recorded by the band's early lineup of Casey Royer, Rikk Agnew, Tim Maag, Derek O'Brien, Steve Roberts, and Frederic Taccone. The EP was re-released in 1987 by Triple X Records as Team Goon with four additional tracks: The first three—"Nuclear Funeral", "The Saint", and a cover version of Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll Part II"—were recorded by the band's mid-1980s lineup of Royer, John Bosco, Steve Garcia, and brothers Rikk and Alfie Agnew, while the fourth—a cover version of Devo's "Uncontrollable Urge"—was recorded by the late-1980s lineup of Royer, Bosco, Steve Drt, Sean Elliott, and Hedge.
OC Confidential is the fourth studio album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in July 2005 on Finger Records. It was their first studio album since 1988, and followed their reunion in 2001 after a twelve-year breakup. The album features founding band members Tony Reflex, Frank Agnew, and Steve Soto, joined by drummer Derek O'Brien. It was the final Adolescents album to include Agnew, and their only studio album with O'Brien.
Welcome to Reality is an EP by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in October 1981 on Frontier Records. Recorded after guitarist Rikk Agnew left the group, it was their only release recorded with guitarist Steve Roberts. The band broke up in August 1981, and when the EP was released two months later it was not well received. When the Adolescents re-formed five years later, a new lineup re-recorded all three songs from Welcome to Reality for their reunion album, 1987's Brats in Battalions.
Live 1981 & 1986 is a live album by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in 1989 on Triple X Records. It consists of live performances recorded during the band's original 1980–81 run and during their 1986 reunion.
Live at the House of Blues is a live album and concert film by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in February 2004 on Kung Fu Records as part of the label's The Show Must Go Off! series. It marked a reunion of the band after a twelve-year breakup, and features songs from their original 1980–81 run and from their then-upcoming reunion album OC Confidential (2005).
The Complete Demos 1980–1986 is a compilation album of demo recordings by the American punk rock band the Adolescents, released in March 2005 on Frontier Records. It includes the band's first three demo tapes, recorded between March and July 1980; one outtake from the recording sessions for their 1981 EP Welcome to Reality; and two songs recorded during their 1986 reunion as demos for their second album, Brats in Battalions (1987). The first eight tracks are the only material recorded by the Adolescents' original lineup, which included guitarist John O'Donovan and drummer Peter Pan. The remaining tracks include their replacements Rikk Agnew and Casey Royer.
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