Best Leeds Guitarists

Leeds is known for its great music venues, bands and of course musicians and performers. 

Throughout its history, scenes and sounds, many inspiring guitar players have emerged, shaping some of the most iconic and memorable songs to come from the city.

As ICMP looks to launch its undergraduate music courses in Leeds in September 2025, we explore some of the best guitarists to come from the city. 

Andy Gill 

From jagged to angular, Gang of Four's Andy Gill unique guitar style has inspired different generations of players and artists with his band's debut, 'Entertainment', a searing blueprint for many others to follow. 

His distinctive style can be heard in the songs of everyone from Bloc Party to Idles and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. In Pitchfork's tribute following his passing in 2020, they described Gill as "a guitar-hero for a 'no more heroes' era, Gill saw rock as an agent of change: a hammer to reshape reality, not just reflect it".

While the band continued to disband, reform, then tour, he also found himself in the studio as a much in-demand producer, working with Killing Joke, Jesus Lizard, and INXS' Michael Hutchence. His influence and music lives on.  

Find out more | Photo credit - John Ordean/Andy Gill website

Chantel McGregor

Influenced by the classic rock of Fleetwood Mac and Black Sabbath, Chantel McGregor came to Leeds to study and enhance her guitar playing skills and has spent recent years pursuing her own musical path through the industry. 

Chantel's skills have taken her through the world of the blues, cover versions of Lady Gaga, presenting her own Hard Rock Hell Radio broadcast alongside going as far as working with musical icon, Dr John. 

The revered New Orleans musical genius invited Chantal to appear on the 'Gumbo Blues' record alongside blues veterans such as Sonny Landreth and Joe Louis Walker. 

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Corinne Bailey Rae

Corinne Bailey Rae was initially known for her musical mixture of pop and folk with her ubiquitous single, 'Put Your Records On', a huge early hit. 

Now on her fourth album, 'Black Rainbows', the record takes Corinne's sound into a harder, more guitar-heavy sound with wide themes to match. 

The album's subjects are drawn from encounters with objects in the Stony Island Arts Bank while exploring concepts surrounding Black femininity, time collapse and ancestors, the erasure of Black childhood and music as a vessel for transcendence.

Corinne pre-empted this latest musical chapter back in 2017 when she posted on Facebook: "I love aggressive music, wild guitar and massive riffs, I love Jimi Hendrix. If 'Crosstown Traffic' comes on when I'm out, I lose my mind!"

The latest record was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2024 alongside eventual winners and fellow Leeds artists, English Teacher. 

Find out more | Photo credit - Corinne Bailey Rae's Instagram

Pale Saints 

Shoegazing was a music scene in the nineties, associated with fuzzy guitars and melancholic melodies and a sound that is currently in vogue with contemporary artists and bands. 

Alongside the likes of My Bloody Valentine and Ride, the Pale Saints were one of the definitive acts with founder and guitarist Graeme Naysmith a brilliant musician. The Pale Saints signed to 4AD in 1989, and he and his band recorded three albums for the label. 

Sadly, Graeme passed away in April 2024 and 4AD  label founder Ivo Watts-Russell paid tribute to the brilliant musician and his friend: "I've always been extremely fond of Graeme's guitar playing. He was one of only a handful of musicians I worked with who wasn't afraid of a good guitar solo."

Venus Grrrls

Goth and grunge are musical touchpoints for Venus Grrrls, a rapidly emerging group who also channel the spirit of vintage Riot Grrrl into their music.

Eliza Lee is lead guitarist with the group while Grace Kelly helps fuel their musica; charge as vocalist and rhythm guitarist. The group have released a string of well-received singles - 'Violet State of Mind', 'Darla' and 'Sudocream Queen' and many more. 

With a headline tour under their belt alongside appearances at the Reading and Leeds Festival, the band are building up a serious amount of steam for 2025. Energy, anger and activism are pillars of their sound - which are both shaped by the playing of Eliza and Grace. Keep your eyes and ears on a group going places fast. 

Find out more | Photo credit - Misha Warren

¡Forward Russia!

During the 2000s, ¡Forward Russia! were an exciting musical force to emerge from Leeds, mixing up dance, punk and riotous emo energy. 

From 2004, they were a whirlwind of a band that released their debut record, 'Give Me a Wall', in 2006. 

Many of the group's early tracks were named by numbers while they burned brightly, splitting two years after its release before reforming again for live shows in 2013.

In their review, the Guardian said: "¡Forward, Russia! might just be the most seductive, enthralling and brilliantly ludicrous band to come chasing after Bloc Party's coat-tails. While hometown heroes Kaiser Chiefs are content to be the new Blur, ¡Forward, Russia! are the deviant offspring of Joy Division and At the Drive-In." 

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Hannah Trigwell

Alt-pop and songwriting craft come together in the music of Hannah Trigwell. Initially beginning her career as a busker in Leeds, Hannah's beautiful music has led to several sold-out international tours, garnered over 300 million streams and achieved numerous top ten international hits (including two number one singles in Laos and Vietnam).

Outside of her melancholy songwriting take, Hannah has also written a book - 'Making It Happen: How to Sustain a Career in the Music Industry' has become a go-to manual for aspiring artists and creatives. 

As Derek Silvers, CD Baby Founder, said: "Making It Happen brilliantly addresses not just the logistics but the inner mindset needed for success in music. A must-read for every serious musician."

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Girls At Our Best!

Girls At Our Best! were a post-punk band formed in the late seventies who burned brightly for three years before splitting. 

Born out of the ashes of previous band, The Butterflies, the foursome - Judy "Jo" Evans, guitarist James "Jez" Alan, bassist Gerard "Terry" Swift and drummer Chris Oldroyd - reappeared with a new name and their influential debut single, 'Warm Girls/Getting Nowhere Fast'. The release endeared them to Rough Trade and John Peel who booked them for a session. 

The group released their debut album, 'Pleasure', in 1981 before splitting a year later. 

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Pulled Apart by Horses | James Brown 

Alt-rock band Pulled Apart by Horses formed in 2008 and were signed by Transgressive a year later after garnering a cult following in their home town of Leeds. 

The group released their self-titled debut record in 2010 to great acclaim and landed tour support slots with the likes of Muse and Biffy Clyro. 

Guitarist James Brown (pictured above) was at the musical centre of the group until 2022 when he left to focus on his solo endeavours (and replaced by Robert John Lee).

Pulled Apart by Horses continue to perform live and release music with their latest album 2022's 'Reality Cheques'. Brown has also maintained his creative output, releasing solo material and composing for visual media. 

Find out more | Photo credit - Launchpad

Vessels 

Vessels formed in Leeds in the 2000s and have been pushing the sonic envelope ever since, blurring the lines between post-rock and techno with ever increasingly sophisticated records. 

The band travelled to Minneapolis in the US to record their debut album, 'White Fields and Open Devices', with producer John Congleton who had previously worked with fellow post-rock artists Explosions in the Sky and This Will Destroy You as well as Modest Mouse

Their third album - 'The Great Distraction' - was released in 2017 and saw them collaborate with John Grantand Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips. Martin Teff is the guitarist at the core of their sound. After a hiatus, the band are back rehearsing and preparing to perform live...

Find out more | Photo credit - Vessels Facebook