The Hollywood Palladium in Ecstasy

On November 21st of 2021 my life completely changed. The day started off pretty regular, at the time I was working at a coffee shop on Melrose Ave and going to college online because of Covid regulations, but still spent majority of my time on the web making friends and discovering new music. Through this virtual exposure, a failed trip to LA that some friends from Arizona had planned landed me with some tickets to an Irish rock band's show that night. I really only knew as much as the music my Arizona friends had shown me but nonetheless found myself making my way to the Troubadour that night alone, unaware of the outcome to my one woman mission. To not bore you all, I'll cut my juicy little details of the night to my biggest achievement, meeting a girl who would turn my world upside down and guide me through the craziest year of my life.

Now you may be asking, why am I beginning this blog post with a 3 year old story that many of you might already know and others may now be curious about? The truth is that although I am a major nostalgic loser, this story somehow revisits me within every time that I get to see that band perform again. This weekend I had the greatest opportunity to see Inhaler live again for what seems to be like the 50th time, it is truly a set I will never get tired of experiencing. I have been lucky to see this band's shows from the beginning of their career, playing in rooms like the Troubadour and the Subterranean to now seeing them fill the Hollywood Palladium up. I found sitting in the VIP section much more appropriate at this time as I've become aware that while I toured in the past with the band, I had no sense of responsibility compared to the life I have now. Though I am aware that I am no longer eighteen, sitting upstairs and not connecting with the crowd below me gave me a bit of fomo, dragging Gigi down with me to dance along to Who's your Money On? and Dublin in Ecstasy, Inhaler's best songs (in my opinion).

What is this infectious feeling teenage girls have in seeing this band perform over and over again? I notice it a lot with the Inhaler fan culture through the years and I am not complaining when I say it feels like something straight of the movie Almost Famous. If I were to talk about the "Bandaids", or better known as the original girls who I got to form beautiful friendships in the past, I can assure you they're still around, making their rounds to different cities and though we are not all connected like we once were in the beginning of this ride along with the band. It is still fun to see a familiar face whenever attending these shows because like any other artist, Inhaler has obtained higher exposure meaning that newer crowds are normal to see. I, myself, have a very strong connection because this is a band I wanted to experience everything I could with. Through Inhaler I got to see the world itself and the beauty in music. I got to go to festivals like Lollapalooza and Outsidelands, exploring cities beyond just a normal family trip that girls at that age take, and absorbing everything I did not understand at eighteen that now I question at almost twenty-two.

The palladium might have been the only show I went to for this recent North America tour because as many of you guys know my life is not so flexible in the traveling aspect, but I enjoyed my only night right. I don't ask for much from the band but to just take me back to when reality was worrying about living in a city like Chicago at nineteen. I think too much on my past because I know that my current present is what will allow me a much more accessible future to the music industry, to experience more cities and shows beyond just the beauty that Inhaler has gifted me. That night while I sat at our booth next to Gigi, I allowed myself to appreciate everything that this band has put both of us through, that if it wasn't for the Arizona girls who couldn't make it to the Troubadour I wouldn't have sat at the palladium this weekend and perhaps I wouldn't even be writing this today. Inhaler was the gateway to my passion for music, friendships, and has created the most clearest vision of a profession I crave attaining more and more every day. There will eventually be an actual night where Gigi and I will experience Dublin in Ecstasy but for now, Hollywood will do it for us.