All Fans is Invited to Join as the Extra Haim Sisters Member.
"When are you chatting with the Haim sisters?" a text arrives. "I wanted to ask if I can join as their fourth member."
There is only a single issue: I also wants to be Haim's newest recruit. And we're far from alone. A host of famous admirers have publicly begged for the role.
The evidence suggests a special quality is going on. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana launched their musical journey playing gigs at neighborhood delis with their family. Presently, they stand as repeated Grammy Award contenders.
In the tradition of the greatest groups, they're a inseparable trio. Their videos often show them walking in sync down the roads of Los Angeles. During performances, they perform with such unfettered joy you inevitably think, "I'd love to be part of that, too."
"How often on tour that audience members told us and said, 'Seeing you perform, I picked up a guitar'," says Alana, the youngest of the Haim siblings. "That is the biggest honour. That's an award in itself. We have succeeded if we can motivate people to make music."
"And thus everyone is invited to be the next member of Haim."
Historic Recognition
The band are speaking from home, where they're resting up after an extensive tour in for their fourth album, I Quit.
They're right now processing the news it's been nominated for best rock album at the Grammys – with Haim the pioneering all-female band ever in contention for the award.
"I follow the announcements every year, so it almost feels like The Truman Show when your name is read out," explains Alana. "I had to call my sisters to say, 'Did I hear this correctly or am I hallucinating'?"
The significance of the accolade is deeply felt by the sisters.
"We really set out to make a guitar-driven album this time, so it's a significant step," adds Alana. "But we're just grateful for the female artists that inspired us."
Heartbreak and Candor
The project emerged from a period of emotional upheaval. All three sisters were single, and the music captures that unique transitional period where you're happy to be free, but not quite ready to start anew.
The lyrics detail departures and partings. The sisters want love, but not the kind of love they've experienced. You can hear them working out in the moment who they are becoming.
"I love description, yes," agrees Danielle. "I Quit is essentially a slogan. You have to consciously practice ignoring the noise and saying, 'It doesn't matter to me what people think'."
Evolution of Sound
That newfound confidence required a different sonic direction – more raw and immediate than any of the music the band had done before.
For Danielle, who co-produced the album, that started with the percussion.
"The drum sound is such a detailed thing, and I focus so intensely about it," she states.
"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the subject of our book," laughs Alana. "I've said it, our albums won't commence until we find the ideal drum sound."
Anecdotes and Collective Humor
The band's honesty shaped the album's rollout, where the sisters disclosed some of their personal misadventures.
One man ended things with Este over a medical consideration. Alana told 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 heartbreaks, you just feel like there's no light," explains Alana. "So to be able to find humor in those stories and have them tell you more outrageous stories, it's therapeutic."
A Confident Legacy
It's not difficult sense a change in the band. Today, Haim are more confident of their standing in the music world.
They're festival headliners, with successful albums and an international fan base.
However Haim will always be their top priority.
"We have been playing music since I was four," shares Alana. "There is no other path that we were destined for. And I'm really thankful we've gotten here and we're still kicking."