CANDAR. ARE A BAND IN MOTION

Fresh off the back of Boardmasters 2026 and a summer of hard-hitting, high-energy shows, North Devon alternative rock duo Candar. are building serious momentum. With Glastonbury, sold-out London and Dublin shows, and support slots alongside Bôa, The Entitled Sons and The Commoners already under their belt, the duo are proving themselves as one of the most exciting live acts on the UK circuit.

But for Candar., it’s still early days. With new music being written, more shows on the horizon and back-to-back hometown and London headline shows coming up, the duo are focused on one thing: keeping the momentum going.

1. You’ve just come off the back of Boardmasters 2026 and a run of seriously high-energy shows. What is it about playing live that brings out the best in Candar., and what do you want people to feel when they walk away from one of your gigs?

Boardmasters was really a dream come true. This summer has been filled with gigs, and playing live is our favourite part of being a band. Having the opportunity to try out all the new stuff we have been writing is a super valuable part of the writing process for us.

Being a duo and feeding off each others energy creates a really intimate but explosive experience for us and hopefully the fans too. We don’t shy away from being loud and putting on a show, and want people to leave our shows with the same energy and passion for live music that we have.

2. You’ve grown up in a small surf village in North Devon, with the chaos of the sea playing a big part in shaping your sound. How much does your hometown and coastal upbringing influence the music you make?

I think beautiful places like North Devon attract creative people, and so growing up there, we were surrounded by amazing musicians and creatives who really inspired us to get out playing music from a young age. Being in a more isolated place also means being cut off from the mainstream, so we always made the kind of music we wanted to listen to rather than following a specific trend or scene.

3. Your sound pulls together everything from Wolf Alice and AC/DC to Chappell Roan and Royal Blood, while still feeling completely your own. How do you approach writing and shaping that mix of heavy alternative rock, huge melodies and unexpected influences?

Our writing process always involves an aspect of spontaneity, normally stemming from a jam and developing an idea with guitar and drums in a live practice room or soundcheck. Depending what sort of mood a song is giving, we usually craft lyrics and melodies to suit it. We listen to so many different types of music, so it is easy to not stay in any one particular channel or feeling. The only box we put ourselves in is how we are limited to two of us playing guitar, drums and vocals. Just because we write a bluesy rock riff doesn’t mean the other elements of a song will conform to that as well.

4. You’ve already played Glastonbury and Boardmasters, supported Bôa, The Entitled Sons and The Commoners, and sold out rooms including The 100 Club and Whelan’s Dublin. Looking back at that run of shows, is there a particular moment that made you realise Candar. was really starting to take off?

Honestly, we still think it is really early days for us. We’re lucky we have worked ourselves into these really cool live opportunities, but there is so much more to learn. We have a small but amazing fan base and our aim is to grow the Candar community around the music. It always feels like our last show was our best one. Every show is better than the last in its own unique way. It’s very cool seeing strangers front row singing our songs back to us.

5. You’ve got both a hometown and London headline coming up on August 29th and 30th, alongside plenty of new music in the works. What can fans expect from Candar. for the rest of 2026, and how big are you prepared to make this next chapter?

As I’m sure you are familiar with, for us it is all about the baby steps. We’re sticking to writing loads and playing live, but we’re always brewing studio time and new releases behind the scenes. It is very exciting. Playing Braunton and London on back to back nights has lined up really great. They’re even more special in that both shows are raising money for two cool charities. War Child and MADRE. The next chapter is deffo one to stick around for and get involved in. Come hang out and say hi at a show.