Essentially just vocalist Casey Royer surrounded by an ever-changing lineup of sidemen, D.I. got its start in Orange County, CA in 1982. After honing his chops as drummer in the original lineup of Social Distortion, Royer put together D.I. and released their first self-titled EP soon after. 1985 saw the release of the follow-up, "Ancient Artifacts," which is considered by many to be their best work.