Formed by songwriter/guitarist Al Barile (then a machinist at the General Electric plant in Lynn, Massachusetts and a student at Northeastern University), SSD started performing at smaller venues throughout the Greater Boston metropolitan area, like Gallery East, in the summer of 1981.
The band quickly gained notoriety within the local music scene for intense, charged performances and the provocative antics of their core group of followers, the Boston Crew.
[2] The original lineup was Al Barile on guitar, Springa (David Spring) on vocals, Jaime Sciarappa on bass and Chris Foley on drums.
In 1983 they added second guitarist Francois Levesque and released the EP Get It Away, widely regarded as their best record, and one that helped define Boston's straight-edge scene.
[1] In 1984 they signed to the Boston label Modern Method and released the How We Rock EP, which was rooted in the hardcore sound but exhibited overt heavy metal characteristics, such as a relatively high number of lengthy guitar solos.