Sun, Salt, and Seattle Sound: Candlebox Shines at Boardwalk Rock

by Dave Parsons

On Sunday, May 18, 2025, Boardwalk Rock had reached about the midway point of the final day.  The sun was starting to relent by the time Candlebox took the stage at 4:45.  There is something different about the ocean and the sand at that change of the day.  After an emotional set by Dorothy, about 200 yards down the sand, a large number of them were making the trek to join the large throng that camped out at the Thunder anchor stage all day.

Candlebox opened with a question.  Don’t you feel it too? …. And, the crowd seemed to lean and take it all in.  For a band known for alt-rock, this opening with a soft song was bold.  The next song, Change, has the chorus, I can’t stay the same… and the crowd responded, and make-shift dance floors in the sand appeared.

Born in Seattle’s post-grunge scene, Candlebox emerged in 1993 with Superunknown. They had hits with Far Behind and You,” painting a landscape out of heartbreak and substance issues.  They split in 2000, reformed in 2006, and in 2023, released the CD Fearless Love, and went back on tour. 

It was easy to see that many in the gathering had that original batch of CDs from the early 1990s.  They sang along with every word, feeling every note.  During Elegante, cell phones came on, setting the mood.  Arrow brought all the feels, and Cover Me prompted another sing-along. Cover me when I run…

Proceeding into the next song, they said: We’d like to give a shout out to some friends of ours who couldn’t play for you guys tonight.  Our brothers from other mothers, the 3 Doors Down boys.  Of course, our friend Brad is fighting for his life right now. Brad, we love you… And they launched into a 3 Doors Down cover of It’s Not My Time.  But Candlebox didn’t just play a cover.    The song’s lyrics cut deep, and the crowd sang with clarity that mattered.  ‘Cause it’s not my time, I’m not going…There’s a fear in me, it’s not showing…This could be the end of me, and everything I know, I won’t go. Candlebox and all the other bands who did a 3 doors down song showed just how much the rock community is a family.

Heading for the end of their set, Candlebox seized the moment with Far Behind.  Phones bobbed to capture clips of this for remembrance. Older fans closed their eyes and mouthed the lines. I didn’t mean to treat you so bad… Candlebox closed their set with You.  By this time, the golden hour from the sun started to filter in.  There was a parent holding a toddler, her older sisters in sundresses, and dad fist-pumping the chorus.  It was a collective picture that you hold in your mind like the final chord of the song that the band let ripple until it stopped.

Setlist Candlebox at Boardwalk Rock, Ocean City, MD – May 18, 2025

1. Don’t You
2. Change
3. Elegante
4. Arrow
5. Cover Me
6. It’s Not My Time (Brad Arnold/3 Doors Down tribute)
7. Far Behind
8. You