🔗 Share this article

"When are you interviewing the band?" a text arrives. "My request was to ask if I can become their newest bandmate."

There is only a single issue: The sender also wants to be the Haims' additional sibling. And we're in plentiful company. Multiple celebrated admirers have publicly petitioned for the role.

One thing is obvious something is happening. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana started their musical journey doing sets at local delicatessens with their family. Today, they are repeated Grammy Award nominees.

In the tradition of the best groups, they're a tight-knit trio. Their videos repeatedly feature them striding in unison down the roads of Los Angeles. On stage, they play with such pure exuberance you find yourself thinking, "I want to be involved in that, too."

"The amount of times on tour that fans told us and said, 'After your show, I picked up a bass'," remarks Alana, the youngest of the trio. "That is the ultimate compliment. That is recognition in itself. Our mission is accomplished if we can inspire young girls to form a group."

"Therefore everyone are welcome to be the next member of Haim."

Grammy Recognition

The group are connecting from a break, where they're resting up after an extensive tour in support of their latest album, I Quit.

They're presently reeling from the news it's been shortlisted for a top rock honor at the Grammy Awards – with Haim the very first female band ever in the running for the prize.

"I follow the lists every year, so it sort of feels like The Truman Show when your name is read out," notes Alana. "I had to call my sisters to say, 'Did I hear this right or am I dreaming'?"

The significance of the nomination resonates with the band.

"We deliberately set out to make a guitar-driven album this time, so it's a huge achievement," adds Alana. "Yet we're just grateful for the pioneers that came before us."

Emotional Upheaval and Candor

The project was born from a phase of personal change. All three sisters ended up single, and the music captures that odd liminal space where you're happy to be free, but not quite ready to let go.

The themes detail endings and goodbyes. The sisters desire love, but not the specific love they've experienced. You can hear them determining in real life who they want to be.

"That's a perfect way of putting it, yes," says Danielle. "I Quit is kind of like a personal statement. You have to consciously practice ignoring the criticism and saying, 'I couldn't care less what people think'."

Development of Music

That recent toughness required a fresh approach – more organic and immediate than any of the music the band had done before.

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

"Percussion is such a nuanced thing, and I care so much about it," she says.

"'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."

Experiences and Shared Camaraderie

The band's candor inspired the album's marketing, where the sisters shared some of their dating tales.

One man left Este over a health concern. Alana told a story of travelling to celebrate 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," explains Alana. "Therefore to be able to share those stories and have them tell you wilder stories, it's therapeutic."

An Assured Future

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

They're festival headliners, with successful albums and an worldwide audience.

However Haim will forever be their top priority.

"My sisters and I have been playing music since I was a young child," shares Alana. "There is no other path that we were supposed to do. And I'm really grateful we've gotten here and we're still making music."