Derek Ted

Genre-bending solo artist Derek Ted released his latest EP, Better Spirit, in January 2019 on Pure Noise Records. Better Spirit melds traditional genres like folk and jazz with classic emo and shades of new-millennium pop, all filtered through the lens of modern production.

Better Spirit expertly blends both old-school and new-school sensibilities able to resonate not only across genres, but generations. “I wrote this record to pull myself out of my own darkness. It was a way to push through and find hope in a time when I felt like I had none” shares Ted. “I wanted this record to be the beginning of a new path for my songs…to let them live aesthetically in a place where they could be their biggest and shiniest form.”

While the underground influences that moulded Ted as a young songwriter are still tightly embedded in his DNA — namely, his ability to craft a heartbreaking, soul-searching lyric — Better Spirit, his debut album for Pure Noise Records, is closely aligned with his more timeless muses. He’s light years away from the screamo bands he used to front as a teenager, but his songs are no less emotionally resonant.