Locals Only: Tedd Hazard is angry, and it’s awesome

Tedd Hazard’s music is angry and abrasive, yet somehow catchy and funny at the same time. This distinct local artist, across multiple creative mediums, had his latest single recently aired on 979X’s Locals Only radio show.

There’s no one else quite like Tedd Hazard in the Northeastern Pennsylvania music scene, or maybe anywhere.

“I think what I do is unique from a lot of the other artists in the area. I play alone. I know what I want to do, and I know how I want it to sound, and I don’t need people to glob on and turn it into their own thing,” said Tedd Hazard in an email interview with The Weekender.

Tedd Hazard thinks outside the box and isn’t afraid to do something different with each song. No track sounds the same as another. He’s known to experiment and doesn’t cement himself into sticking to the same motif.

“I don’t need someone who thinks they know better to change me. I’m really trying to not make the same song or record twice,” said Hazard.

Tedd Hazard’s journey into music isn’t the typical origin story — it all started with comics.

He said in 2003, he was self-producing his own comic books and selling them around his school. In homeroom, a friend kept trying to convince him to come out to live shows at The Strand Roller Rink in McAdoo.

“I would always decline, but one day, he offered me a table to sell my comics, and I took him up on the offer. I didn’t sell much, but that was the night I decided I wanted to start a band,” explained Hazard.

He was inspired. A few months later, Tedd Hazard was singing with Choking Hazard (which is a band, not a relative), then started his own first band the following year called Terror Town High. Now, he’s been making music for 22 years.

His sound combines folk and punk into his own original style full of heart and anger, and Hazard continues to evolve. Many of his songs also utilize humor to get the message across in a fresh, fun way that keeps his audience listening closely.

His latest single, “Hard Sell” was featured on 979X’s Locals Only show. The track, released in Jan. 2025 to Spotify and other streaming platforms, uses cheery electronic beats along with Tedd Hazard’s raspy, rough vocals and accompanying banjo.

This song not only catchy and hilarious, but also something many people can relate to as he conveys feeling trapped in the mundane.

“’Hard Sell’ is a song I’ve been sitting on for a while now about complacency, being stuck in the same spot for years and refusing to change. Some people are happy with that, some are not,” explained Hazard. His upcoming album will feature a different version of this song.

Tedd Hazard recently recorded his upcoming record live at Curry Donuts of South Pennsylvania Ave in Wilkes-Barre, which has become an awesomely unlikely venue for local live music.

“I’ve been meaning to do a live record for years and I’ve always wanted to get it done at Curry since I’ve had a lot of amazing shows there,” said Hazard.

Tyler of Condition Oakland and George Rittenhouse of Dour/Vulturepeak both recorded parts of it and were present at the live performance as well. They are currently in the process of getting it all together for release.

“There’s a lot of energy, a lot of banter, and I made sure not to pick on the crowd too too much,” said Hazard.

Hazard said he always enjoys doing live shows. Nothing beats that exuberant feeling of entertaining the right audience on the right night. There’s a magic to it!

“I’ve been told I’m a great opener or closer. Adam Witner of No Service Project once said I have ‘more energy than a full piece band’,“ recalled Hazard.

Tedd Hazard’s next live performance is coming up Friday, March 14, at Union Vapors in Dickson City with WILL COLLIDE and Condition Oakland.

^{Photo Credit – Shanna Serfass}

In addition to music, Tedd Hazard is a creative in all senses of the word. He’s also an accomplished animator and director.

Tedd Hazard said he’s been off the radar lately, but recently restarted his daily web comic, Krust Toons — a comic strip about the happenings in the drama-filled music scene of “Gutsville, USA” by his production company Hazard Studios. It originally ran from 2014 to 2020, has three seasons of an animated series, and was even a weekly installment on Philadelphia-based music website The Deli.

“I’m glad it’s back, I missed doing it and it feels like a big part of me is back,” said Hazard.

He also throws shows at the Hazleton Art League in Hazleton and participates in the local music and arts scene in numerous ways. Last year, he also voice acted in a video game called “3 Minutes to Midnight” by Scarecrow Studio.

Next for Tedd Hazard is the unveiling of “studio album #11,” which will blend together all his quirky indie garage band vibes. His 2022 album release, Destructive Criticism, was the piece that he always envisioned himself doing, which he described as filled with “jagged honest rage.” For this next one, he’s ready to change it up again.

Apart from the 2022 album, his favorite milestone to date is actually his work in animation. He’s in the process of releasing his comic strip backlog into print.

“It’s a whole lot of life experience. Both my songs and comic strips take a lot from my everyday life. I’ve been focusing a lot on family life the last year or so, but I’m finally back in my comfort zone again,” said Hazard.

Listen to Tedd Hazard across listening platforms, keep an eye out for his comics, and tune into 979X’s Locals Only show with Lazy E to hear more music from NEPA artists hit the radio every Sunday night from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.

“I’m loud. I’m angry, and if you’ve got a lot of feelings you need to get out — it’s probably good to listen to,” said Hazard.