Climbing - leo hc

leo hc - Taken by Ved Keshe

I recently had the pleasure of taking a peak behind the scenes with Leo HC, a determined virtuoso at the start of a promising musical career, discussing everything from his new single ‘Climbing’ to the re-incarnation of folk music; and there is much to be uncovered from beneath his powerful tranquility and melancholic harmonies.

Having grown up in the musical hub of Manchester, the gift that really does keep on giving, Leo told me that he started getting into music when he was seven. Beginning his musical journey at such a young age, building years of knowledge and experience in such a culturally rich city has allowed him to develop a real maturity that shows through not only in his music but also through his independent approach to crafting it. By the time Leo moved to Sheffield for university he had begun writing and recording what would become his debut album We Don’t Talk Like We Used To, released in November 2024, The closing track of the album, ‘Lovers Hilltop’, he told me, “was the first song I ever wrote.” Leo made no compromises when it came to the production of the album, having written, recorded, produced, mixed and mastered everything single handedly - very impressive. His inspiringly independent DIY approach doesn’t end there and I believe is best showcased by what he described as a homemade pop-filter (the mesh fabric cover for a microphone) constructed from “a sock and cardboard.”

Leo's latest single is no exception to this. Coming straight from the heart, ‘Climbing’, released August 2025, was once again constructed solely by the man himself, this time displaying a more ambitious handling of melody and timbre - though executed to no lesser standard. Layered backing vocals, all performed by himself, melt together, producing harmonies even more moving than his previous work, seamlessly swallowing you into the mix; a testament to his masterful production abilities.

Beyond his solo work, Leo told me that he never really saw himself joining a band as he was “put off the idea” of collaboration on account of the abundance of egotistical musicians. However, when he first saw the shoegaze outfit that his friends were forming he said he “was desperate to join.” Despite starting out with the intention of having an all-girl lineup, he was adopted into the band as a guitarist and has since made up 25% of Junk who, at barely a year old, have made quite the name for themselves, performing at sold out venues across the country. Although, while the Sheffield band have quickly built an admirable reputation, Leo explained that “with Junk, it all hit us at once,” meaning that his own music ended up taking a back seat. Leo told me that he’d ideally like to find a balance between the two, in a way that would allow him to give as much of himself to both as he can.

From delicate, acoustic folk to ethereal shoegaze, I was keen to learn how Leo lended himself and his influences to each of the differing genres and playing styles. “Using a pick is the difference between Junk and my own music,” he explained, dropping the pick to play fingerstyle for his own songs. Leo mentioned that he’s always preferred picked guitar parts as opposed to strummed ones, opting to reflect this in his own playing. He referenced bands such as DIIV and Dinosaur Jr., namely J Mascis, who have served as key sources of inspiration for his guitar playing in Junk and which he has carried over into his own music.

You could perhaps notice some of the cross-overs between Leo’s work in Junk and his latest single. ‘Climbing’ creates a familiarly entrancing atmosphere with its soothing fingerpicked acoustic guitar and the vocal harmonies that texturally glue the song together. And I couldn’t go without mentioning the slide guitar that closes the song, adopting snippets of the lead vocal melody and beautifully transforming them into a hypnotic solo that doesn’t suffer from being unnecessarily complex, soaring exposed above the fingerpicked guitar below it.

Aside from the inspirations for his guitar playing in and out of Junk, Leo also brought up other folk artists such as caroline (band, not person) and Naima Bock. He accredits his employment of the aforementioned vocal layering to caroline who use similar techniques in their music, stacking choral harmonies to add depth to chords. Beneath these harmonies, Leo cites Naima Bock as a source for lyrical inspiration; reflective and confessional, often grand in their scale and metaphoric symbolism yet deeply personal. However, perhaps dissimilarly to Bock’s music, Leo described his songs and his writing process as musically lead rather than lyrically. He told me that “the music always comes first” and takes priority over the lyrics which are often shaped around the melody. We discussed how this approach is typically uncommon when it comes to other, more traditional, folk music which usually values storytelling, having the lyrical message as the driving force of the song.

But Leo went on to mention that he also believes that for too long “people weren’t pushing boundaries” of folk music, and to some extent it did feel as though, until recently, the genre had grown stale, working itself into an undynamic niche. But Leo believes that forward thinking artists such as Dijon and Mk.gee are working folk attributes back into popular music with a more modern and unique outlook on the genre and its conventions. He also brought up recent critically acclaimed releases Heavy Metal by Cameron Winter and Forever Howlong by Black Country, New Road; two greatly celebrated albums which both have prominent folk foundations at their core. As Leo suggests, these artists, among others, are not only encouraging the evolution of folk music in a more modern setting, but they’re also pulling it out from its niche and exposing new, younger audiences to it.

Quiet, warm and acoustic, ‘Climbing’ captures all the charm of traditional folk music, needing no frills to showcase Leo’s evident musical talent and unique taste. Much like caroline’s music, the use of human voice as an instrument that is integral within the mix lends itself to this more traditional folk aesthetic, coming across as very direct and personal. I feel that the song’s delicacy and minimalism contribute to making a fresh and completely individual product of all that came before it.

In the more immediate and foreseeable future of folk music or, more specifically, the future of Leo HC’s musical career, there is much more to come. Outside of consistent gigging at a variety of venues in and around Sheffield, Leo is working on some new music that he told me he is very excited about. More grand and ambitious than anything he’s produced before, the newest song that he’s been working on experiments with new arrangements and ideas for Leo and will be his first time opening the recording process up to others. But in the meantime - ‘Climbing’ is out now on all platforms!