Inhaler – Open Wide Review

Ditching a sound that suits them in pursuit of some new noise is a bold move. Cuts & Bruises may stand tall as Inhaler at their best, but there seemed to be a lack of satisfaction internally which spurs the band into this new movement. Open Wide, their second single and title of their third album, tries to build on the optimistic but plainer, broader sound heard on Your House. These are not the out-there charmers building on the vibrant memories of their youth but a separation from it entirely. Stepping out of their comfort zone into the bleak end of winter, Inhaler finds there is little out there for them. Open Wide proves it, with the Kid Harpoon production clanger an early death call for this third album effort. Those tepid waters proved amicable on Your House, but another drop of it feels like too much, yet too little, from a band tipped as a big shift.  

They are swept up by the waves of unchanging form. Instead of doubling down on those previous album powers they seek a simpler sound. Open Wide, their second single, gives them that. Their soft shift into a club-like beat is a fascinating choice. From one niche to another. They sound unsettled still, floating through a very everyday sound. Catchy guitar rock with a pop edge to it is nothing new, nothing to be excited by. But those who are sticking with their faith in Inhaler will not be disappointed. Open Wide may be an empty shell of a love story but at least frontman Elijah Hewson writes with that steady, charming character. The error comes in the collaboration with Harpoon. That is not to say his efforts elsewhere are short of quality, not at all, but his foray into indie-adjacent music feels underwhelming.  

Inhaler chases a new form while keeping their foot in the doorway of their old sound. This straddling of two genres does not work. You cannot have the lighter tones work with a heavier message, few can do it well and Open Wide certainly highlights the stripped-back, plainer motions. Passable pop-like works from Inhaler feel like a real letdown given what they released the last time around. An underwhelming piece but the instrumentals have a continuously lush appeal to them, the fades and production quality are slick. Therein lies the problem. Inhaler should be sharpening those edges they showed they had, the gutsy, staggered tones of something like Dublin in Ecstasy are removed.  

Open Wide is a little indifferent but it plays around with the pop function at least a little. Disappointing not because of anything right or wrong, but because fans and listeners should know what came before it. Their shift remains confusing, Open Wide remains a track trying to crack through but it remains smothered as lead single Your House does. Inhaler still has something, a truth and brutal beauty to their experiences can still be found if you listen in hard enough. It just feels harder to gauge when it is hit with a barrage of new production noise, most of it unnecessary to the wider narrative and instrumental charms the band once had a firm grasp on. They let it loose in a daring chance for change, but all they do is align themselves with a sound already well into its existence.