All Fans Are Welcome to Be the Additional Haim Sister.
"Any idea when you're interviewing Haim?" a message reads. "My request was to ask if I can become their fourth member."
However, there remains a key snag: The author likewise wants to be the Haims' additional sibling. What's more, we are in plentiful company. A host of celebrated admirers have openly petitioned for the role.
It's clear a special quality is happening. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana started their musical journey doing sets at neighborhood delis with their parents. Now they're multiple Grammy Award contenders.
In the tradition of the best bands, they're a close unit. Their visuals often depict them marching in sync down the streets of Los Angeles. In concert, they perform with such pure joy you find yourself thinking, "I wish to be involved in that, too."
"The numerous instances on tour that young girls came up to us and said, 'Seeing you perform, I bought a drum kit'," says Alana, the youngest of the Haim siblings. "That is the biggest compliment. It is a prize in itself. We've done our job if we can inspire others to form a group."
"So anyone gets an invitation to be the honorary Haim sister."
Award Nod
The group are speaking from a break, where they're resting up after an extensive tour in support of their latest album, I Quit.
They're presently processing the news it's been shortlisted for a top rock honor at the Grammy Awards – with Haim the pioneering all-female band ever in the running for the trophy.
"I follow the announcements every year, so it sort of feels like an out-of-body experience when your name is called," notes Alana. "I immediately called my sisters to say, 'Did we just hear this correctly or am I imagining things'?"
The weight of the honor resonates with the band.
"We deliberately set out to make a guitar-driven album this time, so it's a huge milestone," continues Alana. "However we're just thankful for the female artists that inspired us."
Personal Turmoil and Laughter
The record was born from a period of transition. All three sisters ended up single, and the music inhabits that odd transitional period where you're happy to be free, but not entirely ready to move on.
The lyrics detail breakups and goodbyes. The sisters seek love, but not the kind of love they've experienced. You can hear them working out in the moment who they want to be.
"That's a perfect description, yes," agrees Danielle. "I Quit is like a personal statement. You have to consciously practice blocking the noise and saying, 'It doesn't matter to me what people think'."
Evolution of Music
That developed confidence required a new sound – more raw and immediate than any of the music the band had done before.
For Danielle, who co-produced the album, that was founded on the percussion.
"The drum sound is such a detailed thing, and I care so much about it," she says.
"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the name of our biography," jokes Alana. "I've said it, our albums cannot begin until we find the right drum sound."
Experiences and Collective Humor
The trio's openness fueled the album's marketing, where the sisters shared some of their dating horror stories.
Someone ended things with Este over a medical concern. Alana told a story of flying to spend New Year's Eve with someone, only to receive a friendly slap at midnight.
"Experiencing these setbacks, you just feel like there's no hope," says Alana. "So to be able to find humor in those stories and have them tell you more outrageous stories, it's so amazing."
A Confident Path
It's not difficult sense a change in the band. Today, Haim are more confident of their place in the industry.
They're top-billed acts, with successful albums and an worldwide audience.
Yet the band will consistently be their primary commitment.
"We have been playing music since I was a young child," shares Alana. "There is no alternative that we were meant to do. And I'm really fortunate we've gotten here and we're still going strong."