All Fans is Encouraged to Join as the Fourth Haim Sister.
"Do you know when you'll be speaking to the band?" an inquiry pops up. "I wanted to ask if I can be their extra sister."
There's just a single issue: I also desires to be Haim's newest recruit. Furthermore, we are in plentiful company. Multiple high-profile admirers have publicly petitioned for the position.
One thing is obvious a special quality is going on. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana launched their path doing sets at small eateries with their family. Presently, they stand as repeated Grammy contenders.
Like all the most iconic bands, they're a close gang. Their music videos repeatedly show them striding in sync down the roads of Los Angeles. On stage, they perform with such pure joy you inevitably think, "I want to be part of that, too."
"How often on tour that audience members told us and said, 'After your show, I bought a bass'," says Alana, the most junior of the trio. "That is the biggest compliment. That is recognition in itself. We have succeeded if we can motivate young girls to start a band."
"And thus all gets an invitation to be the honorary member of Haim."
Grammy Milestone
The band have called into their homes, where they're resting up after an extensive tour in support of their fourth album, I Quit.
They're right now celebrating the news it's been shortlisted for best rock album at the Grammy Awards – with Haim the very first all-female band ever in the running for the prize.
"I watch the lists every year, so it kind of feels like an out-of-body experience when your name is announced," notes Alana. "I immediately called my sisters to say, 'Did I hear this correctly or am I imagining things'?"
The significance of the nomination isn't lost on the band.
"We deliberately set out to make a rock record this time, so it's a significant milestone," continues Alana. "Yet we're just thankful for the women that came before us."
Personal Turmoil and Candor
The project was born from a phase of emotional upheaval. All three sisters ended up single, and the music inhabits that odd liminal space where you're glad to be free, but not yet ready to move on.
The lyrics detail endings and goodbyes. The sisters want love, but not the relationships they've got. You can hear them figuring out in real life who they want to be.
"That's a perfect summary, yes," says Danielle. "I Quit is like a personal statement. You have to actively work on ignoring the noise and saying, 'It doesn't matter to me what people think'."
Development of Music
That recent toughness required a different sonic direction – more raw and powerful than anything the band had done before.
For Danielle, who helped produce the album, that was founded on the percussion.
"The drum sound is such a nuanced thing, and I am so passionate about it," she says.
"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the name of our memoir," jokes Alana. "I always say, our albums won't commence until we find the ideal drum sound."
Stories and Collective Laughter
The trio's candor inspired the album's promotional campaign, where the sisters disclosed some of their romantic tales.
One man left Este over a health concern. Alana shared a story of flying to spend New Year's Eve with someone, only to receive a casual gesture at midnight.
"When you're going through these setbacks, you just feel like there's no light," notes Alana. "So to be able to share those stories and have them tell you wilder stories, it's therapeutic."
A Confident Path
One can easily sense a shift in the band. Today, Haim are more confident of their position in the rock pantheon.
They're top-billed acts, with chart-topping albums and an worldwide following.
But the band will always be their number one priority.
"My sisters and I have been making music since I was a young child," concludes Alana. "It feels as if no alternative that we were meant to do. And I'm really thankful we've reached this point and we're still kicking."
