Chandra is a 4-piece pop-rock band from Bristol, UK consisting of frontman Chandra Nair, drummer Keith Jones, Bassist Chris Wong and guitarist Rock Chueng. They have been releasing music together since 2020 and aim to write about lyrical themes that are otherwise unaddressed in rock music. Their 2023 single “Pretty” tackles the beauty standard and undue prominence of beauty in our day to day lives.

A lot of music has lyricism that fits into the musical landscape of the song. “Pretty” on the other hard has very strong songwriting with an important message around which the sound is produced and designed. The electric guitar is juxtaposed with the flat and spoken-word like vocals. The percussion and rhythmic staccato strings back up the message without ever taking away the spotlight from the vocals.

The songwriting explores the pressure of the beauty standard that is placed universally and incessantly on people. I liked that the track starts off with the words “When we wake…” which reflects the primacy of being pretty in one’s psyche such that it stays with us from the moment we open our eyes; from morning to evening. The pressure is constant and in order to adhere to it, many unique parts of ourselves are hidden away which can be akin to giving parts of one’s soul up. The restraint makes everyone unhappy and it is high-time we went to war against it, we should be ourselves and that is what being pretty actually is say Chandra.

The group of people clapping and singing towards the end was a nice touch as it made the track feel like a movement with many people being joyous and demanding the abolition of the beauty standard. Makes sure to check out “Pretty” by Chandra here: