Bono’s son Elijah Hewson’s Band Inhaler entered 2023 as indie’s brightest rising hopes. It was only 18 months ago that they became the first Irish band to top the UK album charts with their debut album in over a decade; ‘It Won’t Always Be Like This’ also became the fastest-selling debut album on vinyl by any band this century.

With upcoming shows this year with Arctic Monkeys and Harry Styles, and a second album that furthers their sonic vision and charisma, they feel like shoe-ins to become festival headliners and arena-dwellers in the very near future.

Elijah Hewson opens up on performing with Arctic Monkeys and Harry Styles

2023 will see them support Arctic Monkeys on a full European tour and play alongside Harry Styles at Dublin’s legendary Slane Castle.

“It still isn’t really resonating that we’re doing it,” Hewson says of the upcoming Monkeys shows while speaking with NME. “But they’re the most lovely and welcoming guys, so we’ve just got to try and be the best band we can.”

“We’re searching for better leather jackets as well,” Keating laughs. “It’s hard to not feel like a child when you’re around them,” he adds, reflecting on the chance to head on tour with a band so formative in Inhaler’s musical education.

Like the Monkeys, Inhaler put stock into rockstar cliches to a certain extent, but are resolute to not allow them to compromise their vision. Like Alex Turner, they also have Hewson, an impossibly cool, swaggering frontman.

The band took their opportunity across 2022’s festival season to become keen observers, soaking in all manner of sets from across the genre spectrum to feed back into their own performance. Featuring with Arctic Monkeys, Inhaler supported at a handful of 2022 gigs and they also admired at the exquisite, smooth, sultry psych of Khruangbin, the crossover hardcore crunch of Turnstile, the Aussie groove of Parcels, Radiohead side-project The Smile and Primal Scream’s evergreen genre-blending.