Derek Daisey

Some of the tracks remind of John Mayer, others of MOR Modern Rock...but I'm impressed with this band's professional sound for a self-starting opener. Pretty bitching - who needs a promoter when you got a CD burner?

- WESU 88.1 FM

Encapsulate yourself in the contemplative melodies of Derek Daisey, the brilliant and inspired up and coming songwriter/performer who simply “enjoys creating and hopes to connect with those longing for inspiration” ; and prepare your soul for a fresh and imaginative experience. Full of coarse realties, strong harmonies, inspired guitar riffs and captivating hooks, Derek Daisey has released “All behind me,” his debut album that’s sure to reverberate through hearts, minds, and radios for years to come. Born in Ft. Myers, Florida, Derek began singing and mastering the guitar at age 13 after having been heavily influenced by John Rzeznik and the musical styles of the Goo Goo Dolls. Though listening to music offered Derek a relieving escape at times during his adolescence, he was able to find himself when writing songs by liberating demons through rhymes and captivating melodies. Therefore since that time, he has been constructing a library of songs and other emotional conceptions.

At 18, after a few years of writing songs, entering contests, and even winning some awards, Derek teamed up with Keith Mack, the former guitarists for Scandal and Joe Cocker to record his song “Only 17;” this particular endeavor was written about the many limitations and frustrations a young individual tends to experience when only 17 years of age. Ironically, his first real “song against the establishment? 1; was entered last year into the John Lennon national songwriting contest and placed as a finalist, though unfortunately it was not a winner.

Curr ently Derek is a sophomore music business major at Catawba College in Salisbury, North Carolina. With a fervent desire to locate creative channels for his handiwork, Derek chose this small liberal arts institution to further his education and almost immediately upon arrival, new submissions of melodious gold began leaking out of his mind and his maturing soul. In September of 2006, Derek was introduced to Alan Grossman and Jimm Mosher of Hit Music, Inc. The two producers needed little persuasion after heeding the subtle sounds of Derek’s demo and after six months of demanding hours and precise engineering, the company sent a final copy to the mastering studio in Charlotte. Just reciently, and to be announced May 16th, 2007, Derek won 2nd place in the BMI John Lennon Songwriting Contest. Now, as it has never been before, ladies and gentlemen, Derek Daisey’s new album, “All behind me” is ready for order. So, indulge your senses today - Independent Artist Company

Derek Daisey Acoustic-based alt-songwriter Derek Daisey is here to set a new standard in musicianship. His songs explore poignant human territory and his ideas are delivered in music that is accessible but utterly creative, leaving his distinct mark on the listener with songs that are unforgettable and which resonate with their own personality. Everything In Between Daisey recognizes that the beauty of music is its ability to capture every human emotion from good to bad, happy to sad. “It makes me feel honest, trusting, happy, sad and everything in between.” His acknowledgement of music's infinite power in expressing the human soul has led him to write songs rooted in deep creative understanding, songs that masterfully touch on many aspects of the heart and spirit. “Music has the ability to touch any sense of feeling that I have.” Not Words Alone Daisey also understands that music goes well beyond words' ability to fully convey the thoughts and feelings of the mind and spirit. “Sometimes it takes more than words to express how I feel. I use melodies and rhythms to set the tones in my life,” he says. Indeed, the emotions that reverberate throughout the skillful songwriting of Daisey are out of reach for mere words. Only an artist of Daisey's caliber could convey such things. The Artist at Work Daisey won second place in the BMI John Lennon Songwriting contest in 2007, and was a top finalist in the 2006 edition of that contest. He also took home the singer/songwriter award for the Delaware Players Club Awards. Daisey nabbed track of the day and track of the week honors at Garageband.com and enjoyed a 258 out of 20,800 rating for one of his compositions. He has just released “All Behind Me” and is hard at work writing more music. When not writing, he's gigging and sharing his music with the fans. Daisey is currently working with A&R Select, the leading indie A&R firm in Hollywood, CA - Slice The Pie

Derek Daisey
derekdaisey.com
Derek Daisey used to work at the Cold Stone Creamery on Rehoboth Avenue. For a tip, visitors could hear him and the other ice cream-scoopers sing a thank-you rhyme. Now a rising star with an album under his belt, Daisey said he finds time to return home to Rehoboth Beach at least three times a year – though he skips the corny jingle-singing.
Daisey currently lives in North Carolina, hammering out new songs with his band. He groups his music as heart-on-the-sleeve alt-rock – longing ballads built around a strong core of acoustic strumming.
“Every song I write has some kind of underlying story or background to it,” he said. It all starts with facing something real and deciding if it’s something I want to share with the world.”
This will be Daisey’s first show at the Rusty Rudder. The singer-songwriter took second place in the 2007 BMI John Lennon Songwriting Contest, and he took top honors at the Delaware Players Club Awards. While he and his band brace for a summer tour, he said he’s looking forward to a rocking homecoming. Fans of debut “All Behind Me” should enjoy his live act, he said, which is louder but more or less faithful to the album sound.
“I do find myself wanting to come home a bit, even if it’s just for a few days,” he said. “But when I am home, there never seems to be enough time to see and visit the things I want to see.” - Cae Gazette

I don’t, as a general rule, have anything against artists wearing their influences on their sleeves. Plenty of acts I enjoy do it, and almost every artist creating meaningful music is to some extent standing on the shoulders of those who came before them.

I have to admit, though, that I scratched my head a bit after reading Derek Daisey’s one-sheet, and then a post on his blog, both of which state his undying admiration and affection for… the Goo Goo Dolls.

Really?

This declaration is not what a lot of the musical cognoscenti would consider a promising path to earning positive press. To many, the Dolls’ “Iris”-and-onward incarnation feels like the very epitome of turn-of-the-century homogenized-to-beige-perfection commercial adult pop music, the sort of “rock and roll” that mildly depressed yuppies might opt for on long car rides with their mothers. Ah, but when you scratch beyond the surface of the rather obvious series of radio singles that followed 1995’s breakthrough power ballad “Name,” you learn that the Dolls rose out of Buffalo in the early ’90s as rowdy Replacements disciples, before gradually sanding every single rough edge off of their music.

The good news is that Daisey seems to have taken musical cues from the full arc of his idols’ career to date. Opener “Words You Bleed” establishes its hook early and delivers on every melodic promise it makes, even if its wholesale adoption of the latter-day GGD template of scrubbed-clean guitars behind ascending-descending couplets is almost over the top in places. “Not Myself” veers into similarly formulaic territory, a breathy-voiced ballad built around acoustic rhythm guitar, a gently picked electric hook, and soaring strings.

Fortunately, with “Josie” and “Tainted,” Daisey pushes away from the edge of the pool and starts swimming toward the deep end. Both push for a harder sound without sacrificing melody; to the contrary, the former’s hook might be the strongest on this entire disc, but unlike on the first two tracks, Daisey’s voice stretches into rougher territory, and the drums have more punch and bottom. The latter is in fact a genuine rock and roll tune, powered by chugging brio and vocals with an edge.

There’s more of the same triptych of styles the rest of the way as Daisey alternates acoustic-foundation ballads (“Stay Or Leave,” “All You Know,” “Gone In October”) with surging, blatantly commercial tunes (“Couldn’t Be More”) and edgier rockers (“How I Roll”). Closer “Where To Begin” is perhaps the finest work here in terms of stretching Daisey’s musical range, building around piano, finding and filling a solid groove, and featuring handclaps, tambourine and sweet Beatlesque harmonies.

The end result of Daisey’s work on All Behind Me is actually two. First, Daisey has delivered a consistently appealing album of adult alt-rock; it might lack either high highs or low lows, but there’s nary a misstep to be found here, and plenty of evidence of talent and drive. Second, thanks to the more interesting numbers here, damned if Mr. Daisey hasn’t piqued my curiosity about the pre-“Iris” Goo Goo Dolls…

Rating: B
- The Daily Vault