James Walsh & Ben Ottewell in Leeds

James Walsh is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known as the lead singer of Starsailor, the alternative-rock band formed in Wigan. His voice and songwriting feature on the albums Love Is Here and Silence Is Easy, and on songs including “Good Souls,” “Alcoholic” and “Four to the Floor.” His solo work includes the album Turning Point. James Walsh fronted Starsailor when the band supported the Rolling Stones on European dates of the A Bigger Bang Tour. He later toured under his own name in clubs and theatres, performing solo material alongside songs from the band’s catalogue. At these concerts, James Walsh sings and plays guitar.

Ben Ottewell is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known as one of the three lead vocalists in the alternative-rock band Gomez. The group formed in Southport in 1996, and its debut album, Bring It On, won the Mercury Prize. Ottewell’s solo records include Shapes & Shadows, Rattlebag and A Man Apart. In 2018, Ben Ottewell toured with Gomez for the 20th anniversary of Bring It On, performing the album in full. The group returned to the album-in-full format for its 25th-anniversary concerts in 2023. His solo concerts center on his voice and acoustic guitar, drawing on his own records and the Gomez catalogue. He has also toured in a two-songwriter format with fellow Gomez member Ian Ball. With Gomez, he performed at Glastonbury Festival and V Festival.