Best Music Artists from Leeds
Get to know some of the most exciting acts to come out of the Leeds music scene...
Leeds is one of the UK's most important hubs for music, with plenty of inspirational artists and bands born in the city.
Perhaps not as celebrated as Manchester or Liverpool, there is still a rich musical history to Leeds with a vibrant ecosystem of venues, clubs and music industry ventures keeping the scene alive.
From the scratchy post-punk of Gang of Four and the electronics of Warp Records' Nightmares on Wax to the Kaiser Chiefs and their rabble-rousing indie rock and more, there's a great seam of talent if you scratch the surface.
As ICMP looks to launch its undergraduate music courses in Leeds in September 2025, we celebrate ten of the best artists and bands to emerge from Leeds.
English Teacher
English Teacher are an indie outfit who formed back in 2020 but have already achieved much in the short time they've been together.
Featuring the talents of vocalist Lily Fontaine, guitarist Lewis Whiting, drummer Douglas Frost, and bassist Nicholas Eden, the group's sound pushes the worlds of dream-pop and psychedelia together via spiky lyricism and smart songwriting.
Their first single - 2021's 'R&B' - saw Fontaine interrogate her position in the world of indie rock as a mixed-race woman. Ever since, the band's stature has been soaring with their brilliant debut album. 'This Could Be Texas', winning the Mercury Music Prize in September 2024.
Scritti Politti
Formed in Leeds by frontman and chief songwriter Green Gartside during the late seventies, Scritti Politti were labelled as post-punk but the band's sound is far trickier to nail down.
This is partly due to their elusiveness, with the band gigging infrequently and only releasing five albums over the course of their career, including their Rough Trade debut, 'Songs to Remember'.
Green has been dubbed "the brainiest man in pop" and has been politically active since he was a teenager when he formed a branch of the Young Communists.
This influence has fed into his lyrics while he has been the only constant with Scritti Politti. He's also broken cover to guest on various songs with the Manic Street Preachers, Kylie and Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip.
However, there has been no new Scritti Politti LP since 2006 and their fifth record, 'White Bread Black Beer'.
The Kaiser Chiefs
Led by frontman Ricky Wilson, the Kaiser Chiefs are one of the biggest bands to come from Leeds. Originally forming as Parva, the group struck gold in 2004 with a new name and fresh approach. Their debut single 'Oh My God' only initially reached 66 in the charts but kickstarted the buzz surrounding the band with the re-release ending up in the top ten.
Other hits from their debut album 'Employment' included 'Everyday I Love You Less and Less', 'I Predict a Riot' and 'The Modern Way'.
The band's journey has seen them take many twists and turns, including Ricky Wilson becoming a judge on 'The Voice' TV show from 2013 to 2016 while their latest record, 'Kaiser Chiefs' Easy Eighth Album', was produced by Nile Rodgers.
In 2025, the Kaiser Chiefs will be celebrating 20 years since the release of their debut record with a huge homecoming gig at Temple Newsam in Leeds.
Gang of Four
Gang of Four formed in Leeds in the late seventies and were one of the most important post-punk outfits.
Coalescing around the classic line up of singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham, they released their influential debut album, the spiky guitar, dub-influenced sound of 'Entertainment' in 1979. Political commentary, punk and funk all came together in their classic tracks 'At Home He's a Tourist' and 'Damaged Goods'.
An important influence on different bands including Franz Ferdinand and REM, the group has lived through different incarnations with Andy Gill enjoying huge success as a music producer too.
The original line up hit the road between 2004 and 2006, then Gill took the band further without singer Jon King. Gill sadly passed away in 2020 and the group has been back on the road with Slint's Dave Pajo on guitar. They plan to do a celebratory farewell tour in 2025 to mark the 45th anniversary of their debut.
Nightmares on Wax
Hip hop, sound systems and breakdancing were the foundations of Nightmares on Wax, the musical vehicle for producer George 'DJ E.A.S.E' Evelyn. Brought up in Leeds, the debut studio album, 'A Word of Science: The First and Final Chapter', was released on Warp Records in 1991.
It was the next two subsequent records that transformed the status of Nightmares on Wax into an era-defining act. 1995's 'Smokers Delight' and 1999's 'Carboot Soul' encapsulated the sound of trip hop and downtempo and helped create a genre.
Evelyn's most recent work, 'Shout Out! To Freedom', features Greentea Peng, OSHUN, Shabaka Hutchings, and Haile Supreme and was released to great acclaim in 2021. To mark the 25th anniversary of 'Carboot Soul', Nightmares on Wax performed a special live event at London's prestigious Royal Albert Hall.
Soft Cell
The template for electronic synth pop in the UK was created by duo Marc Almond and Dave Ball. Soft Cell secured three top ten albums and six top ten singles, including 1981's all-conquering 'Tainted Love', while setting the benchmark for acts including the Pet Shop Boys and Years & Years to follow.
The pair struck up a creative bond that was first forged in the art department of Leeds Polytechnic in 1977 and with their iconic debut album release, the seductive bedroom-based electronica of 'Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret'.
The duo has continued to tour alongside their numerous side projects with Soft Cell performing a huge sold-out show before 20,000 fans at London's O2 in 2018. They continue to write, record and perform live.
The Wedding Present
The Wedding Present, led by their chief songwriter and the one constant David Gedge, have always sat outside of the mainstream ever since they formed in the mid-eighties.
A band closely linked to the C86 scene, they have refused to play the music industry game, yet have still managed to land nearly 20 top 40 hits, an achievement that is testament to their music and dedication of their devoted fanbase.
The band have released nine studio albums to date with their most recent - 2023's '24 Songs' - a collection of double A-side seven inches singles they released the previous year. The record featured an additional five bonus tracks including one with the group's original guitarist Peter Solowka.
As John Peel once said: "The boy Gedge has written some of the best love songs of the 'rock 'n' roll' era. You may dispute this, but I'm right and you're wrong!"
The Sisters of Mercy
Leeds was the birthplace of The Sisters of Mercy, a goth rock institution led by frontman Andrew Eldritch and his drum machine, Doktor Avalanche. Eldritch is seen as the so-called 'Godfather of Goth' with the group enjoying huge success during the eighties and influencing industrial and electronic sounds.
The group released three albums - 'First and Last and Always' (1985), 'Floodland' (1987), and 'Vision Thing' (1990) - with various changes in the band's personnel.
The Sisters of Mercy then stopped being a recording entity after their third album due to a fall-out with their label.
However, the band have continued to adhere to a relentless touring schedule which continues to take them all over the world.
alt-J
Leeds university was where the members of alt-J - Joe Newman (guitar and lead vocals), Thom Sonny Green (drums) and Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboards and vocals) - first met and came together to make music back in the 2000s.
Their success for their intricate and meticulously put together indie pop has been astonishing. Debut album, 'An Awesome Wave', was released in 2012 and won the British Mercury Prize. Their second album, 'This Is All Yours', was released in 2014, and received a Grammy nomination while reaching number one in the UK. Their fourth and most recent record, 'The Dream' , came out in 2022 to huge critical acclaim.
According to the band, the album is “where true-crime inspired stories and tales of Hollywood and the Chateau Marmont rub shoulders with some of the band's more personal moments to date”. To date, the band has sold over two million copies of their albums and their songs have been streamed over two and a half billion times.
The Mekons
The Mekons are one of a number of political punk bands formed in Leeds in the wake of the race riots of the late seventies alongside the likes of Delta 5 and the Expelaires.
Launched initially as an art project, the band has been led by Jon Langford who aimed to inject their chaotic sound with country and folk musical energy. Innumerable line-up changes, musical shifts and record labels have all followed but the band are still going strong, still looking to break down the barrier between artist and their audience.
Although Langford now lives in the US, they band celebrated their 40th anniversary with the Mekonville festival near Ipswich in 2017 with both the current line-up and the re-united original 1977 lineup performing.
Take the first steps in your music career with ICMP
We've been developing and delivering contemporary music education for over 30 years – longer than any other music school in the UK. With a proven track-record, countless music industry connections and unrivalled access to facilities, it's easy to see why hundreds of students choose ICMP each year.
To completely immerse yourself in your music career, chat with our friendly Admissions Team via email enquiries@icmp.ac.uk or give them a call on 020 7328 0222.
Find your course
We've been developing and delivering contemporary music education for over 30 years – longer than any other music school in the UK. With a proven track-record, countless music industry connections and unrivalled access to facilities, it's easy to see why hundreds of students choose ICMP each year.
To completely immerse yourself in your music career, chat with our friendly Admissions Team via email enquiries@icmp.ac.uk or give them a call on 020 7328 0222.
