Former D.R.I. Bassist JOSH PAPPE Dies At 53

Josh Pappe

Sad news to report as former D.R.I. bassist Josh Pappe has passed away on January 31st, 2020. He was 53.

He played for D.R.I. from 1984 to 1989 and recorded two albums, 1987’s Crossover and 1988’s 4 of a Kind. No cause of death has been revealed.

D.R.I. never gained a mainstream audience, but the integration of their hardcore punk roots with thrash metal influences was a stylistic catalyst for their contemporaries — most notably SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, STORMTROOPERS OF DEATH, THE CRO-MAGS, NUCLEAR ASSAULT And CRYPTIC SLAUGHTER — alongside whom they are considered to be one of the major pioneers of what would later be called “crossover thrash”, along with ADRENALIN O.D., with both bands having a heavy influence on modern thrash metal.