🔗 Share this article

"Do you know when you'll be chatting with the band?" an inquiry arrives. "I wanted to ask if I can be their fourth member."

However, there remains one problem: I also desires to be Haim's fourth member. And we're in plentiful company. A host of famous admirers have openly petitioned for the position.

The evidence suggests a special quality is at play. Sisters Este, Danielle and Alana started their career doing sets at small eateries with their family. Today, they are repeated Grammy contenders.

In the tradition of the most iconic groups, they're a tight-knit gang. Their music videos frequently show them walking in unison down the avenues of Los Angeles. During performances, they perform with such pure happiness you inevitably think, "I wish to be a piece of that, too."

"How often on tour that fans came up to us and said, 'Seeing you perform, I picked up a drum kit'," remarks Alana, the youngest of the trio. "That is the greatest compliment. That's an award in itself. Our mission is accomplished if we can inspire young girls to form a group."

"And thus all gets an invitation to be the fourth Haim sister."

Award Recognition

The band have called into a break, where they're taking a pause after an lengthy tour in support of their fourth album, I Quit.

They're presently reeling from the news it's been in the running for Best Rock Album at the Grammys – with Haim the very first female band ever in contention for the trophy.

"I tune into the announcements every year, so it kind of feels like a surreal movie when your name is called," says Alana. "I had to call my sisters to say, 'Did I hear this right or am I imagining things'?"

The significance of the nomination isn't lost on the trio.

"We really set out to make a rock album this time, so it's a huge achievement," continues Alana. "However we're just appreciative for the women that came before us."

Emotional Upheaval and Humour

The record emerged from a time of transition. All three sisters ended up single, and the music explores that unique liminal space where you're glad to be free, but not yet ready to move on.

The lyrics detail endings and partings. The sisters desire love, but not the kind of love they've got. You can hear them figuring out in the moment who they are becoming.

"That's a perfect way of putting it, yes," agrees Danielle. "I Quit is kind of like a personal statement. You have to consciously practice shutting out the criticism and saying, 'I don't give what people think'."

Development of Music

That recent confidence required a different sonic direction – more raw and immediate than any of the music the band had done before.

For Danielle, who worked on producing the album, that began with the percussion.

"The drum sound is such a specific thing, and I care so much about it," she emphasizes.

"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the name of our memoir," laughs Alana. "I always say, our albums cannot begin until we find the perfect drum sound."

Anecdotes and Collective Camaraderie

The trio's honesty shaped the album's promotional campaign, where the sisters disclosed some of their romantic tales.

Someone left Este over a medical concern. Alana recalled a story of travelling to spend New Year's Eve with someone, only to receive a casual gesture at midnight.

"Experiencing these breakups, you just feel like there's no light," explains Alana. "So to be able to share those stories and have them tell you wilder stories, it's incredible."

An Assured Legacy

One can easily sense a change in the band. Now, Haim are more confident of their place in the industry.

They're top-billed acts, with chart-topping albums and an international following.

However Haim will forever be their primary commitment.

"Me and my siblings have been making music since I was four," concludes Alana. "It feels as if nothing else that we were supposed to do. And I'm really grateful we've reached this point and we're still going strong."