Inhaler – ‘Open Wide’ review: blissed out guitar anthems from a band coming into their own

7 February, 2025

inhaler open wide review

Inhaler have always dealt in swaggering guitar anthems. 2019’s breakout single ‘It Won’t Always Be Like This’ was a feisty, arena-sized belter, while their 2021 debut album of the same name saw their youthful defiance delivered over radio-friendly riffs. Things got even grander with 2023’s ambitious ‘Cuts & Bruises’. It’ll come as no surprise to anyone then that Inhaler’s third album, ‘Open Wide’, is another joyful collection of pop-rock bangers – but a sleek, evolved version of what’s come before.

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Lead single ‘Your House’ warned us that Inhaler weren’t playing it safe this time around. Backed by a gospel choir and flirting with glam rock, the band readily switched out grubby guitar riffs for lush synths to create something deliciously playful. The rest of ‘Open Wide’ is just as spirited. As vocalist Eli Hewson told NME last year, “it feels very relaxed, free and intentional”.

And it does feel like Inhaler have come into their own with ‘Open Wide’. Opening track ‘Eddie In The Darkness’ is a rumbling guitar anthem, but it’s swiftly followed up by the sprawling electro-pop of ‘Billy (Yeah Yeah Yeah)’ while the disco-tinged ‘Even Though’ is an ’80s-inspired party-starter that’s made for dancing. That smirking groove continues through ‘Concrete’, while ‘X-Ray’ sounds like The Smiths gone folk rock, as Inhaler merrily play with genre.

There are still plenty of moments on ‘Open Wide’ where Inhaler tap into the chaos of muddy fields. Yet, rather than the swirling fury of the mosh pit, tracks such as ‘Still Young’ and ‘A Question Of You’ are made for boozy chant-alongs with your arms around a loved one. Blissed-out closing track ‘Little Things’ keeps that communal energy going to the very end.

Then there’s the title track, which might be the best song Inhaler have ever written. In the past, the band have stayed away from stadium rock to help avoid comparisons with U2 (Hewson’s dad is Bono) but they don’t hold back on this twinkling, turbo-charged tune of hope through tough times. The heartfelt song comes sandwiched between the equally tender ‘Again’ and ‘All I Got Is You’, creating gorgeous vulnerability you can scream along to.

Throughout ‘Open Wide’, Inhaler display a powerful confidence that’s impossible to resist. Comforting, cathartic and heaps of fun, it’s the sort of record that sounds brilliant on headphones but will really come to life, say, as the sun sets on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage.