All Fans is Welcome to Join as the Fourth Haim Bandmate.
"When are you interviewing the band?" an inquiry arrives. "I was hoping to ask if I can become their fourth member."
There's just a key snag: I also longs to be Haim's additional sibling. Furthermore, we are far from alone. Several famous admirers have publicly begged for the position.
It's clear a special quality is going on. Sisters Este, Danielle and Alana launched their career performing shows at neighborhood delis with their family. Now they're multiple Grammy hopefuls.
Like all the most iconic groups, they're a close gang. Their music videos frequently show them walking in sync down the streets of Los Angeles. On stage, they jam with such unfettered joy you inevitably think, "I'd love to be a piece of that, too."
"How often on tour that fans approached us and said, 'Seeing you perform, I got a bass'," remarks Alana, the most junior of the Haim siblings. "That's the greatest honor. It is a prize in itself. We have succeeded if we can motivate people to form a group."
"And thus anyone gets an invitation to be the next Haim sister."
Award Recognition
The band have called into their homes, where they're taking a pause after an major tour in for their latest album, I Quit.
They're presently reeling from the news it's been in the running for a top rock honor at the Grammys – with Haim the very first female band ever in the running for the prize.
"I follow the nominations every year, so it almost feels like an out-of-body experience when your name is read out," explains Alana. "I immediately called my sisters to say, 'Did we just hear this correctly or am I hallucinating'?"
The significance of the nomination is deeply felt by the band.
"We really set out to make a rock album this time, so it's a major achievement," says Alana. "However we're just appreciative for the women that paved the way."
Personal Turmoil and Laughter
The record was born from a time of emotional upheaval. All three sisters were single, and the music captures that strange liminal space where you're relieved to be free, but not entirely ready to let go.
The themes track departures and partings. The sisters seek love, but not the specific love they've had. You can hear them working out in the moment who they aspire to be.
"That's a perfect description, yes," agrees Danielle. "I Quit is essentially a mantra. You have to consciously practice shutting out the noise and saying, 'It doesn't matter to me what people think'."
Evolution of Sound
That recent confidence demanded a fresh approach – more raw and powerful than any of the music the band had done before.
For Danielle, who worked on producing the album, that began with the drums.
"Drums are 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," jokes Alana. "Our motto is, our albums cannot begin until we find the ideal drum sound."
Stories and Collective Laughter
The band's candor fueled the album's marketing, where the sisters revealed some of their personal horror stories.
Someone broke up with Este over a medical consideration. Alana told a story of flying to spend New Year's Eve with someone, only to receive a high five at midnight.
"When you're going through these setbacks, you just feel like there's no light," says Alana. "Thus to be able to laugh at those stories and hear others tell you wilder stories, it's incredible."
A Secure Future
It's not difficult sense a change in the band. Today, Haim are more certain of their place in the industry.
They're major draws, with hit albums and an international fan base.
However the sister act will consistently be their primary focus.
"We have been playing music since I was a young child," says Alana. "It feels as if nothing else that we were supposed to do. And I'm really thankful we've reached this point and we're still making music."