9 Christmas songs with Leeds links to put on your festive playlist - from post-punk to girl power
Why settle for the regular old Christmas songs this year when you can dive into some of the better, Leeds-centric songs for your playlist this season?
- Tired of the same old, traditional Christmas songs that seem to permeate the air this time of year?
- Why not skip what Spotify is telling you to check out and instead dig into these Leeds-centric acts and their offerings this Christmas?
- Here are nine songs that are on our Christmas playlist, from post-punk to a touch of ‘Spice’.
The Christmas period demands a soundtrack, but must that soundtrack be the same tired mix of Wham!, Mariah Carey, and Bing Crosby?
I say no - there’s enough of that while out shopping this season.
So let’s instead build a festive playlist that runs right through the season, from the melancholy quiet of Christmas Day through to the final, chaotic euphoria of New Year's Eve. The challenge? Every single track had to come from an act with deep roots in the Leeds music scene (with one scary exception to our rule.)
The resulting nine-track list avoids the saccharine and instead leans into the raw, urgent energy of post-punk, the swagger of indie-rock, and the joyous power of the dance floor.
So track down these cuts from The Wedding Present, Yard Act, Gang of Four, and the mighty Utah Saints as they offer the perfect dose of high-octane celebration and necessary cynicism for your holidays.
Here is your Leeds-centric festive playlist to do away with ‘It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas’ for the umpteenth time this year.
Your alternative, Leeds-centric festive playlist for 2025
The Post-Punk Cynical Weepie: The Wedding Present - The Loneliest Time of Year (2022)
'The Loneliest Time Of Year,' is a phenomenal example of how to make festive music that is both beautiful and brutally honest. It’s not just the sleigh bells and the acoustic melancholia; it's the texture of the performance. David Gedge's delivery is perfectly flat and world-weary, which completely undercuts the forced jollity of the season.
The guitars—that signature Wedding Present jangle —are present, but slowed down, wrapped in a blanket of yearning that evokes the quiet, slightly lonely walks you take between Boxing Day and New Year's Eve.
It was released late in their career, but it sounds like a track that could have been dug up from their seminal 'Seamonsters' era. It masterfully uses all the standard holiday tropes—the twinkling, the cold, the snow—but turns them into markers of isolation rather than warmth.
The Brindie-Pop Christmas Detour: Kaiser Chiefs - Northern Holiday (2007)
The song 'Northern Holiday,' which actually appears on their 2019 album ‘Duck’ (a later release, but possessing that classic Kaiser Chiefs DNA), is not just a holiday track; it’s an absolute sonic treat that captures their transition.
The rhythm is punchy, absolutely, but its foundation has a fantastic, irresistible disco beat—a true dance-rock stomper that carries all the joyful momentum of a Christmas Eve night out. Ricky Wilson's signature vocal style is there, full of energy and theatrical swagger, but the song is driven by a feel-good, positive energy that’s perfect for lifting the mood.
You hear that great, slightly absurd Northern wit in the lyrics—where they somehow manage to rhyme 'sandwiches' with 'foreign languages'—showing that blend of intellectual playfulness and mass-market fun that defines their Leeds legacy.
The Obligatory Spice Girls Song: Spice Girls - Sleigh Ride (1996)
It would be rude not to include an icon of Harehills. We are, of course, talking about the phenomenon that is Mel B—the original Scary Spice and our Leeds ambassador for Girl Power.
The track, 'Sleigh Ride,' is often forgotten because it was tucked away as the B-side to the enormous Christmas Number One single, '2 Become 1,' in 1996.
It’s a magnificent, brass-heavy cover that feels like an explosion of joy, but the real treasure is the unedited version. Before the radio edits cleaned it up, the track is bookended by the girls’ chaotic, brilliant giggling, chatter, and in-jokes. It’s a perfect, messy, communal sound—the absolute essence of Girl Power translated into festive pop.
The Spiky Post-Punk Chronicle: Yard Act - Fixer Upper (2020)
One for that lull period between Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve, Yard Act’s track, 'Fixer Upper,' is a masterpiece of observational, sardonic realism. It's built around one of James Smith's brilliant, conversational, spoken-word monologues, adopting the character of 'Graeme'—a deeply flawed, boastful man talking about gentrification and his cheap tastes.
The track perfectly captures that post-Christmas reality where the glossy façade of the holidays collapses, and you're left staring at the slightly frayed edges of life, broken resolutions, and perhaps that tacky 'prosecco o'clock' poster bought in the January sales.
It’s not festive, but it is deeply seasonal—the perfect soundtrack for reflecting on the year that was, complete with a wry, knowing smile.
The Power Pop Indulgence: The Cribs - Christmas (All Year Long) (2020)
‘Christmas (All Year Long)' is a classic case of taking a concept, removing all the sickly sentimentality, and adding raw, indie-rock energy. It was originally released as a very limited edition flexi-disc in 2020, accompanying a 'Cribsmas Jumper' pre-order, which is peak collector dedication!
The band themselves described it as going against the 'syrupy, sentimental route.' What you get instead is a huge, fuzzy stomper, complete with deliberately 'cheesy lyrics' and an over-the-top guitar solo; the sonic translation of that exhilarating moment when the drinks are flowing, and you’re celebrating with your closest mates.
The Indie Disco Stomper: The Pigeon Detectives - I’m Not Sorry (2007)
A true essential for the pre-midnight New Year’s Eve build-up, 'I'm Not Sorry' is the quintessential Leeds indie disco stomper, perfect for capturing the electric energy of the club scene that pulses throughout the city's festive season.
It's everything the post-punk era lacked in overt euphoria, packaged for a generation ready to explode onto the dance floor. When this track drops, you don't care that you're heading toward the New Year with a crippling hangover—you only care about that moment.
The Communal Dance Floor Banger: Utah Saints - Something Good (1992)
The beauty of Utah Saints' 'Something Good'—the sound of the city's rave pioneers—is how deceptively simple and instantly enormous it is. Jez Willis and Tim Garbutt, our own Leeds electro-evangelists, crafted this track entirely around a magnificent, instantly recognisable sample: Kate Bush's ethereal vocal.
It's the sonic embodiment of that explosive midnight feeling: the lights coming up, the sense of unity, and the promise of the new year. It starts with the driving, insistent beat of the club, builds through that incredible, sampled choir, and resolves into a massive, hands-in-the-air chorus. It bridges the industrial grit of the city with absolute dance-floor transcendence.
The Everybody Get Out Of My House Closer: Help! She’ Can’t Swim - The Dance Party Turned Into A Wake
Help! She Can't Swim's 'The Dance Party Turned Into A Wake' is the ideal sonic pivot from Utah Saints' euphoria. It captures the exact moment the party ends and the sheer, physical exhaustion and slightly bruised emotion of the festive season hit you.
The track is frantic, slightly unhinged, and deliberately raw, built on those sharp, post-punk guitars and shouted female vocals that embody the raw energy of the Leeds scene's indie-punk successors. It's a noisy, cathartic track that cuts through the sentimental fog.
A true 'post-mortem' anthem to signal the party is emphatically over, so everyone, go home, please!
Ready to start your alternative festive listening? If you are a Deezer user, you can bypass the digging and find the complete, nine-track playlist ready to go right now on the streaming platform for instant access to our essential Leeds-centric Christmas and New Year soundtrack.