Making his return to Reading & Leeds 2023, Bakar caught up with NME just after he smashed the main stage to discuss his love of indie, connection to his fans, new single 'Right Here, For Now' – and what to expect from his new album 'Halo'.
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00:00 (crowd cheering)
00:02 - Hi, I'm Andrew Trendall, you're watching NME.
00:07 We're here on the final day of Red Inn Festival 2023
00:11 with Bacar.
00:12 - Yo, how are you?
00:13 - I'm knackered, mate, how are you?
00:15 - I'm kind of knackered myself, yeah.
00:17 - Well, Bacar's just come fresh from the stage
00:20 and that looked nuts, man.
00:23 - Thank you so much.
00:24 I had a lot of fun, yeah, it was fun.
00:26 - 'Cause I reckon this is your, like, what,
00:27 fourth Red Inn Leeds now?
00:29 - Yeah, third or fourth, yeah.
00:31 This is like, it always feels like a home festival.
00:33 - Yeah.
00:34 - And that's what I like, I like that it's at the end
00:36 of summer 'cause it always, we go, like,
00:37 do all these other festivals in Europe and America
00:40 and stuff and then come back to a good, nice home reception.
00:44 - Big Yorkshire pudding.
00:45 - Yeah, yeah, exactly.
00:47 - Do you feel like a veteran now?
00:50 - Of this festival, yeah.
00:51 But it still feels like we're in our infancy, though,
00:53 'cause it's like, you know, like,
00:56 it's almost like they probably made us do the rounds
00:58 to, like, get to the main stage, but it's okay, yeah.
01:02 - Yeah.
01:03 - I do, in a sense, yeah.
01:04 I don't know if I feel like a veteran,
01:05 but I definitely feel like we have a deep connection
01:07 with this festival, for sure.
01:08 - Yeah.
01:09 I know you're a big rock fan, and this obviously used to be,
01:11 like, a lot of your heroes have, like, played that.
01:14 Do you kind of feel that kind of,
01:16 that legacy before you step on stage?
01:18 - Yeah, for sure.
01:19 It's such a, like, I mean, I come here when I was, like,
01:21 super young, when I just finished my GCSEs,
01:23 we come to Red Inn and watch Foals.
01:26 And, like, that was, like, a big thing for me.
01:28 Like, I remember seeing them play, so, yeah,
01:31 in, like, one of the big tents.
01:33 And so that was big for me, and we just played
01:35 the same festival somewhere else.
01:36 We've been playing loads of festivals, me and Foals,
01:38 and I just got to meet them recently the other day
01:41 in Brussels or something like that.
01:43 And I was just saying that,
01:44 I was saying the same thing to them, just, like,
01:46 so cool that, like, I get to share the stage with them.
01:48 So, yeah, man, big deal playing Red Inn, for sure.
01:51 - Future Foals collab, make it happen?
01:53 - Oh, I'd love to, but honestly,
01:54 I just like watching their growth,
01:55 and I just think that they've aged so amazingly
01:59 and shown so many, there's so many bands in the UK
02:02 that don't really, like, get to, like,
02:05 they don't carry on in the right way for me.
02:07 But the Foals have done it incredibly,
02:10 shown everyone how to, like, do, you know,
02:12 along with Monkeys as well, but, like,
02:14 Foals is just a little bit, like, left of center, though.
02:16 - Yeah. - That's why I like it.
02:18 - And, like, I said, that crowd was absolutely insane.
02:21 I don't know what I'm pointing out there.
02:22 (laughing)
02:23 Out there, that crowd out there was absolutely insane.
02:25 I mean, like, how would you describe
02:27 your connection to your fans?
02:28 - Deep, yeah, deep, man.
02:32 We've got a deep connection, like,
02:33 they've just been with me, like, from the start,
02:36 and just, like, you know, like, even,
02:38 you saw it, like, even, like, a song like Small Town Girl,
02:41 it's, like, it's not, like, a massive because, you know,
02:44 like, it's, like, it's just, like, a deep cut,
02:46 but, like, I don't know how many people out there,
02:49 but they all knew the words to, like, a song like that.
02:50 So, it just, it's just a great connection, man,
02:53 and I feel like I've grown with them,
02:55 they've grown with me, and, like,
02:57 it's like a friendship at this point, yeah.
02:59 It feels great.
02:59 - And we've been living with new single
03:01 Right Here For Now for a couple weeks now,
03:02 which is an absolute banger.
03:04 - That was my favorite song to play today.
03:06 - Yeah, yeah. - Yeah.
03:06 - I mean, what can you tell us about, kind of,
03:08 the inspire behind that and where that came from?
03:10 - The song is, like, I mean, I think for the halo,
03:12 we just wanted to, like, almost, like,
03:14 go back to our real true indie rock roots
03:16 and just try and make the best versions
03:17 of those songs that we can
03:18 and just have fun while doing it,
03:20 and Right Here For Now was one of those.
03:22 We actually made it in New York in Electric Lady,
03:24 and, you know, it's all live, like,
03:26 it's a return to us just, like,
03:28 going all live on songs and still the basics,
03:31 though, not trying to, like, do too much, you know?
03:33 Just, like, drums, a guitar, and a vocal, pretty much.
03:35 That's what that song is.
03:37 So, yeah, man, I love it, and it feels fresh,
03:38 you know what I'm saying?
03:39 Especially in the context of, like, 2023,
03:41 just feels so fresh, you know?
03:43 - And we're a couple of weeks away from Halo now.
03:46 I mean, lyrically, and what's the record dealing with?
03:50 What can you tell us about the character of that album?
03:52 - Yeah, like I said before, it was, like,
03:53 we proper wanted to make music in the light for Halo.
03:57 So that was a big deal, just, like,
03:59 trying to go to these environments.
04:02 We made a lot of it in houses, in Airbnb,
04:05 just while we were traveling.
04:06 We were on the move a lot while we made this record, so.
04:08 So I hope that you get that comes across.
04:11 You know, I think it does come across on the record.
04:13 You just feel this, like, there's a movement to it.
04:15 There's an urgency to it.
04:17 Yeah, it's like a lived experience, so.
04:19 Yeah, I'm really excited for everyone to hear it.
04:21 - And lyrically, just inspired by life last couple years?
04:24 - Lyrically, I don't really change, you know?
04:26 Like, lyrically, I just carry on explaining
04:31 what's going on in my life,
04:32 and what's going on in my friend's life, and yeah.
04:35 So lyrically, it's kind of more the same,
04:37 except I've got better, I guess,
04:38 at writing songs, I think, yeah.
04:40 - Nice.
04:40 And what's the rest of the year look like for you?
04:42 Are you gonna see On The Road?
04:43 - Oh my God, yeah, the rest of the year's just On The Road.
04:45 Yeah, the rest of this year's just On The Road,
04:47 where, like, even after this, I think in a couple days,
04:50 we go to Dublin, play another festival,
04:51 and then there's another couple festivals,
04:53 and then I go, and then I'm off to Australia
04:57 to do a tour there, my first tour in Australia,
05:00 come back from Australia, and then do a UK, Europe tour.
05:02 So yeah, I think the rest of this year's just shows,
05:05 shows, shows, so it'll be amazing for people
05:07 to come and catch us wherever we are.
05:09 - Amazing.
05:10 And in the immediate future,
05:11 straight after this interview, what are you gonna do?
05:12 Are you gonna go out and see some music, Yorkshire Pudding?
05:14 - No, it's Carnival back home, man,
05:15 so I'm going back to London,
05:18 see my friends.
05:19 I don't know if I'm gonna make it to Carnival today,
05:22 but I'm gonna go home, chill out,
05:24 and then maybe go out later,
05:25 but yeah, man, it's Carnival in my city,
05:27 so I gotta go see what's going on.
05:30 - You're not gonna go sample
05:31 any of Reading Festival's amazing cuisine?
05:32 - I wish, no, no, no, I wish,
05:34 'cause I got friends playing, you know?
05:36 My friend Lance C. Foe is performing this evening.
05:39 I just saw Foucher, Steve Lacey's performing later.
05:43 These are all people I'm not a fan of,
05:45 that I love, like you said, Foe's performing,
05:46 but I wish I could stay around,
05:50 but I can't, unfortunately,
05:51 but that's why I'm saying,
05:53 but my band are, you know what I mean?
05:54 Loads of my friends that come with me are like,
05:56 "Oh, boy, we're gonna stay,"
05:57 and so yeah, that's wicked.
05:59 - Sweet, have a great day, Bacuff.
06:00 - Thank you, man, thank you so much.
06:02 [BLANK_AUDIO]