I just play for myself, so I'm not sure if I consider myself an "artist"...but I do feel I have my own style after playing for a few years. I focus almost exclusively (as in I don't really play lead) on chord progression and everything implied in that. I am a sucker for a weird chord or something played just a bit differently. Throw in some effects and it gets even better. I get really self conscious in my ability sometimes, but occasionally I hang out with someone who can shred and they can't play the patterns I come up with...that always makes me happy. Basically, if I was in a band and I had full control I would be making a weird blend of guitar based shoegaze electronica.
My style constantly evolves with my mood, environment, what I'm listening to the most of at the time, and my improving technical ability. Just play what comes to you and don't worry about it too much. It's too easy to compare yourself to your favorite bands and even though you may be inspired by them, you won't ever come close to them. The way I try to think of it is, maybe a lot of my favorite artists didn't want to make music the way they did. Maybe Jimi Hendrix really wanted to play Bhangra...he just happened to be great at guitar and expressed himself best with that. Who knows.
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Confusion will be my epitaph...
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