Inhaler – 5 tracks from one of Ireland’s great indie hopes

Inhaler are one of the brightest sparks in the emerging wave of current Indie acts.

 

Limit that same scope to a purely Irish consideration, and they’re arguably the most critically and commercially successful band in that category.

 

Fresh from the release of their second full-length LP Cuts And Bruises, the Dublin band is staring down the barrel of an extensive world tour. This includes sold-out dates across the US in the first half of the year and more again spanning Europe in its second half.

 

With 1.6 million+ monthly streamers on Spotify alone, it’s fair to say the band are among the biggest in the country.

 

So, how did we get here? Let’s take a deep dive into 6 tracks that helped establish Inhaler as an indie tour-de-force.

It Won’t Always be Like This

1. Inhaler’s first official single arrived in 2019 in the form of ‘It Won’t Always Be Like This’.

Even now, coming up on four years since its initial release, it’s an interesting time capsule, a marker for the band’s evolution to date. Lead vocalist Elijah Hewson, in an interview with WWD, said “Our generation doesn’t really listen to genres of music anymore. It’s really personalized. I think we’re just a reflection of that.”

While the band may have undergone significant sonic change since the release of ‘It Won’t Always Be Like This’, it did firmly begin the vein of massively successful releases which the band has masterfully maintained to this day. The single earned significant radio play in Ireland and the UK, culminating in the band being featured in BBC’s Sound of 2020.

My Honest Face

An anthemic indie anthem right to its core. ‘My Honest Face’ was the lead single from Inhaler’s debut album It Won’t Always Be Like This. The album topped the Irish album charts, with the LP being among the fastest-selling Irish albums of 2021 domestically, surpassing Picture This’s This Life In Color.

 

Abroad, the album (and its scintillating lead single) performed admirably, with the former hitting the number 1 position in the UK Album Charts, making Inhlaer the first Irish band to do that with their debut LP in 13 years.

Totally

A golden b-side from the band’s debut LP, ‘Totally’ was, and remains, a fan favorite. The band found its momentum momentarily usurped by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, with touring obviously grinding to a painful halt.

 

However, they continued to pick up accolades in the meantime, including becoming the fastest vinyl-selling new band of the 21st century. Thankfully, the pandemic abated and the band were touring the US are early as March of 2022.

These Are The Days

‘These Are The Days’ was the first eager fans of Inhaler heard of what would go on become the band’s second LP Cuts And Bruises.  The single is decidedly more nuanced, and lushly arranged than any of the material featured on the band’s first outing – a testament to the sonic evolution the band had undergone during the pandemic. Speaking on the band’s songwriting ethos for the new record to NME, Hewson says “our thing is, ‘Why can’t we make pop music that is also authentic?”.

Love Will Get You There

Cuts And Bruises was released on February 17, 2023. It’s championed by the stunning ‘Love Will Get You There’. A mid-temp, high-energy soaring single which feels totally beyond the reach and scope of the band’s early material.

Proof that Inhaler are continually gathering momentum and climbing the ladder of recognition, 2023 sees the band set for support slots for Arctic Monkeys in Europe and Harry Styles at Slane Castle.

 

Author: Luke Sharkey