Everyone is Encouraged to Be the Additional Haim Bandmate.
"Do you know when you'll be chatting with Haim?" a text reads. "My request was to ask if I can be their newest bandmate."
However, there remains a single issue: The sender also desires to be the Haims' additional sibling. Furthermore, we are in plentiful company. A host of famous supporters have openly petitioned for the role.
The evidence suggests a special quality is happening. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana started their path performing shows at neighborhood delis with their parents. Presently, they stand as repeated Grammy hopefuls.
In the tradition of the best groups, they're a inseparable gang. Their videos repeatedly show them marching in harmony down the roads of Los Angeles. In concert, they perform with such boundless joy you inevitably think, "I wish to be involved in that, too."
"The amount of times on tour that fans came up to us and said, 'Seeing you perform, I bought a bass'," says Alana, the youngest of the Haim siblings. "It is the biggest honour. That is recognition in itself. We have succeeded if we can inspire people to form a group."
"Therefore anyone is invited to be the fourth part of the family."
Award Milestone
The band are speaking from a break, where they're taking a pause after an extensive tour in promoting their latest album, I Quit.
They're currently processing the news it's been shortlisted for a top rock honor at the Grammys – with Haim the pioneering female band ever in consideration for the trophy.
"I follow the announcements every year, so it kind 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 dreaming'?"
The importance of the accolade resonates with the sisters.
"We really set out to make a rock album this time, so it's a major achievement," says Alana. "But we're just grateful for the pioneers that came before us."
Heartbreak and Candor
The record was born from a period of transition. All three sisters were single, and the music captures that odd transitional period where you're relieved to be free, but not yet ready to move on.
The lyrics track breakups and goodbyes. The sisters want love, but not the kind of love they've got. You can hear them working out in real time who they are becoming.
"That's a perfect summary, yes," agrees Danielle. "I Quit is essentially a slogan. You have to consciously practice blocking the criticism and saying, 'It doesn't matter to me what people think'."
Refinement of Sound
That newfound resilience required a different sonic direction – more organic and immediate than anything the band had done before.
For Danielle, who worked on producing the album, that began with the percussion.
"The drum sound is such a detailed thing, and I am so passionate about it," she emphasizes.
"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the title of our book," jokes Alana. "I always say, our albums don't start until we find the perfect drum sound."
Anecdotes and Collective Camaraderie
The band's honesty inspired the album's rollout, where the sisters revealed some of their personal tales.
One man ended things with Este over a medical concern. Alana told a story of travelling to spend New Year's Eve with someone, only to receive a friendly slap at midnight.
"During these heartbreaks, you just feel like there's no hope," explains Alana. "Therefore to be able to find humor in those stories and hear others tell you wilder stories, it's therapeutic."
A Secure Future
One can easily sense a change in the band. Today, Haim are more certain of their position in the rock pantheon.
They're festival headliners, with hit albums and an global following.
Yet Haim will always be their primary commitment.
"Me and my siblings have been playing music since I was little," says Alana. "It's like nothing else that we were supposed to do. And I'm really fortunate we've gotten here and we're still making music."