Interview with Dan Doverspike of the band First Offence and founder of Step Up Records.

Dan Doverspike is the singer and main song writer of the band First Offense.
This is Dan’s first live face to face interview. All before this were done over e-mail. From Ohio I got to hang out with the Step Up Records founders at The East Coast Oi! Fest which took place over the Memorial Day weekend of 12007.
After Dan spelled his name for me I asked another guy sitting with us for his name and he declined. This is Dan’s brother who will be referred to in the interview as “said stranger.”

Pedro Serrano

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PS: How about a short history of First Offense?

DD: It started with him and said stranger. He’s my brother and we started playing in bands. We started getting more serious about it. We loved Punk Rock it was fun to do bands.

PS: What bands did you first listen to that got you into Punk Rock?

DD: At first old English stuff. Reissues Subhumans, The Exploited. And then the American more pop stuff like Rancid and the Bouncing Souls stuff like that. But especially the English re-issues. I think a lot of people our age grew up on the re-issues and then the pop stuff. Yea I know the Bouncing Souls and they used to listen to Sham 69, The Business and those old British Punk Bands.

PS: Do you think kids today are aware of those old bands?

DD: Definitely. I think there more aware of the past then they are of the present unfortunately. Like I mean every catalog you buy weather it’s Two Tone or Angry, Young, and Poor here’s hundreds of releases by bands that haven’t existed in twenty years but there’s not as many bands today and you know that’s fine cause people should know there history. I’d love to see better distro for newer bands.

PS: That’s always been a problem. I remember that’s always been a big stumbling block for bands: just getting the stuff out. Has the internet been a help in getting the word out? Has the internet been of much help in getting your stuff out?

DD: The internet and unfortunately My Space. (Laughs) But that’s been a huge help. I think that the whole American scene is night and day pre myspace to after. Touring became much easier. Meeting people became much easier. They call them social networks for a reason. It works for us.

PS: What do you write about in your songs?

DD: Uh, You know. Um… Booze, brawls and broken hearts I guess. Classic Punk Rock subjects. You know we get a little political sometimes. Not much, you know, because that’s not the way we hang. Were mid western corn fed kids and we’re all different. We have two vegetarians in the band, a straight edge guy, and a hillbilly more or less.

PS: Woo HOO!!!

(laughs) DD: So it’s a pretty diverse group of people.

PS: When you say you’re political at does that mean to you? How do you define that?

DD: We’ve done some songs dealing with foreign policy, obviously anti Bush. I’m proud of it because we did it right after 9-11 when every body hoped on the flag waving band wagon. And don’t get me wrong, I believe in the flag waving thing as long as it’s done in the Bruce Springsteen way not the Leonard Skinard way.

PS: My definition of patriotism is based on, well,This one women on this show,…Um… You know how they say that if women ran the world everything would be peacefull. Well I used to believe that, and then, I started watching The View! And I’m thinking four months after women take over after every ones menstrual cycle synchs up, the world will end up a burned out charcoal briquette orbiting the sun! And they have this blond republican operative. And I heard her say that George W. Bush is “the leader” and we need to do what ever the leader says. And I’m thinking “Where did this child get her education?” George W. Bush isn’t the leader of this country. He’s the President, the “Chief Executive”. He’s an employee. And he can be fired. He gets a paycheck, a nice place to live and once a year he has to report to the legislative branch and give a report; “the State of the Union”. He’s an employee not a leader. Joseph Stalin was a leader, Chairman Mao, was a leader, Hitler, was a leader. To me patriotism means have responsibilities. What you refer to as the flag waving thing, like Bruce Springsteen to me it’s about responsibilities, and I should shut up now.

DD: No, I agree with you.

PS: You started Step Up Records. Good Stuff. When and why did you start the label?

DD: Cause if you’re not doing anything, you’re wasting space. You know what I mean? You know being in a band is great you know but. I tried to do a zine for a while and as I’m sure you knew paper is expensive. I’m not that great at grammar or spelling and all that. So you know, but I think a label works well I help other people get stuff out through my trial and error I’ve learned a lot about putting out records. I’m sure there’s a lot more to learn. So I just try to learn as much as I can and help other bands if I can in addition to putting out records I’ve helped other bands along the way. Like there’s this really great hardcore band from Kent Ohio called Skies Bleed Black. We’re helping them get there 7” record out right now. So I try to do as much as I can and that’s what Step Up is about.

PS: What advice would you give? What mistakes did you make that you would suggest folks avoid?

DD: Well this is just a trivial one but when you get seven inch records make sure there all the same color. Because you have to pay the set up prices twice you do. Like limited edition colored vinyl, that was a big one for us on his first record. When we figured out how much extra we spent just to do a hundred extra blue vinyls it was shooting ourselves in the foot, you know what I mean. I hope it helps some one who’s thinking about it. If you have the extra money, it’s a fun thing to do. But who does?

PS: Why vinyl? Haven’t you heard of these CD things?

DD: You know I have, on this record “Stranded in the Combat Zone” we made it vinyl because we don’t know how many chances we have to still do vinyl. Unfortunately even Punk Rock kids aren’t buying vinyl. When our first record “The Army of Youth” it sold more briskly then this one has. But that’s Ok we have a CD out with comp tracks and that’s sold well and we really feel that this record is a lot better but it doesn’t sell as well because it’s vinyl. Which is unfortunate but we all knew that this might be the last chance for us to do vinyl. It could hit resurgence, you never know. Vinyl’s really great too because you get to be more involved then CD’s. With CD’s you put the art work together you do this you do that but really you just send it off. When we do records it’s us cutting and pasting at the Copy Max!

PS: It’s a craft.

DD: Yea, it’s a way for us to step back. Our little homage to the 80’s, standing there at the copy store with our scissors and glue sticks. PS: One day Martha Stewart will do a show about putting out your own seven inch record. DD: We’ve had a lot of help with art work. We’ve had a lot of great art work that I want to give props to if I can. “The Bastards Choir” art work is great. Folks should check it out. And Josh Wright from the band “Brutal Solution” did the “They Can’t Shut Us Up” compilation cover. And Jeff Lamb from the Pittsburg 80’s band “Half Life” did some art work for the back of the seven inch as well as doing our T-shirts and some other “First Offence” related stuff. So we’ve been lucky to work with some great people on that stuff too.

PS: What kind of effect do you want to have on the scene?

DD: That’s hard to say. What kind of effect. I was thinking if we get more people involved in more then just wearing the cloths and going through the motions, I mean obviously it would be a better scene for every body.

PS: What do you man by “going through the motions?”

DD: It’d be great if every body could just do something, even if it’s just going to a show for Gods sakes. It doesn’t have to be much but go to a show! I’m from Akron Ohio and it’s not the biggest place in the world but there’s probably a couple hundred punk rock kids but every show only gets thirty of forty. Because you know there at home “Duh, I wish there was something to do. Gimmee the 40.” Which is great, I know it’s cool to sit around have a couple of beers with your bros but…

PS: Yea I have a friend who was complaining about something like this. And he said “Boy I hope this is just regional.” Going to a show is a social thing. You go to a show and you meet people that you didn’t know before. Last year at the OI! Fest I got to meet folks from all over. I remember when the Business first came to America and the Alaska skinheads came. Both of them. But they came from Alaska to see a band. But it’s a social thing. I don’t know why people would stay home.

DD: Actually we’ve had some good luck with places where you didn’t think there was even a scene. Like Point Pleasant West Virginia, we had a couple of hundred kids come out. If any body’s ever been through Point Pleasant West Virginia it’s not much you know. We’ve always heard, I’ve never been there but we’ve always heard that North Dakota and South Dakota hundreds of kids come out every show. That’s great. I don’t know why in the mid sized bigger cities it doesn’t work but…

PS: Ah there spoiled! Kids today! Grrr!!! I’m trying to be the old cantankerous old guy.

DD: I’m a young guy but I always wonder when I’m looking at kids a couple of years younger then me, “who’s going to do this if I have to move away?”

PS: Well actually, when I published my zine I gave a copy to my nephew and a friend of his saw it. He was trying to do a zine. And he looked through it and he said it inspired his friend to finish his zine. Kids see you do something: “Here’s my compilation, I have a record label, and this is the CD we put out. And they’ll think “Wow you did this?”

DD: Anybody can do it!

PS: Yes! Anybody can do it.

DD: I think doing stuff in general helps you out. For instance we didn’t get invited to play (The East Coast OI! Fest) last year. But this year we’ve been making a little bit more noise and we got the invite.

(Said Stranger) Next year there going to be turning it down to play the Warp Tour. (Laughter all around)

DD: I think not. My thoughts on the Warp Tour are pretty neutral. They don’t invite Punk bands any more. I don’t even know who’s playing this year.

PS: So do you have a web site?

DD: Oh yea, of course. Step Up Records has a web site. It’s www.stepupoi.com. If any band is reading this we’re not specifically OI! that’s just what was available as a URL.
Were not specifically OI! That’s just what was available as a URL thing, and www.myspace.com/firstoffence.

PS: Thanks a lot. This has been great.