Everyone is Encouraged to Join as the Additional Haim Bandmate.
"When are you chatting with Haim?" a message pops up. "I was hoping to ask if I can join as their newest bandmate."
There is only one problem: The sender also longs to be Haim's newest recruit. Furthermore, we are in plentiful company. Multiple high-profile admirers have also petitioned for the honor.
One thing is obvious an irresistible appeal is going on. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana launched their career performing shows at neighborhood delis with their family. Today, they are multi-time Grammy Award nominees.
In the tradition of the greatest bands, they're a tight-knit gang. Their visuals frequently show them marching in harmony down the avenues of Los Angeles. On stage, they jam with such unfettered exuberance you inevitably think, "I wish to be part of that, too."
"The amount of times on tour that fans approached us and said, 'After your show, I got a bass'," remarks Alana, the most junior of the trio. "That is the biggest honour. It is a prize in itself. We've done our job if we can inspire people to make music."
"So anyone is invited to be the fourth member of Haim."
Grammy Recognition
The group have called into home, where they're resting up after an extensive tour in support of their new album, I Quit.
They're currently celebrating the news it's been shortlisted for best rock album at the Grammys – with Haim the pioneering all-female band ever in the running for the award.
"I follow the announcements every year, so it sort of feels like a surreal movie when your name is called," notes Alana. "I immediately called my sisters to say, 'Am I hearing this right or am I imagining things'?"
The importance of the nomination resonates with the band.
"We deliberately set out to make a rock record this time, so it's a major milestone," adds Alana. "But we're just thankful for the women that came before us."
Personal Turmoil and Laughter
The album came out of a time of transition. All three sisters found themselves single, and the music inhabits that odd transitional period where you're happy to be free, but not quite ready to start anew.
The lyrics follow endings and partings. The sisters seek love, but not the relationships they've got. You can hear them determining in the moment who they are becoming.
"I adore way of putting it, yes," agrees Danielle. "I Quit is essentially a mantra. You have to consciously practice ignoring the noise and saying, 'I don't give what people think'."
Development of Style
That recent resilience demanded a new sound – more unpolished and powerful than anything the band had done before.
For Danielle, who helped produce the album, that began with the drums.
"Drums are such a detailed thing, and I focus so intensely about it," she emphasizes.
"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the title of our biography," laughs Alana. "I always say, our albums won't commence until we find the perfect drum sound."
Stories and Shared Laughter
The trio's honesty fueled the album's marketing, where the sisters shared some of their personal tales.
Someone 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 only darkness," says Alana. "Thus to be able to laugh at those stories and have them tell you wilder stories, it's therapeutic."
A Secure Legacy
It's not difficult sense a change in the band. These days, Haim are more assured of their position in the industry.
They're festival headliners, with successful albums and an global fan base.
But the band will always be their top focus.
"We have been performing since I was four," shares Alana. "It feels as if no alternative that we were supposed to do. And I'm really grateful we've reached this point and we're still going strong."
