The World Are Invited to Join as the Fourth Haim Sisters Member.
"Do you know when you'll be interviewing the band?" a message pops up. "My request was to ask if I can become their fourth member."
However, there remains one problem: The sender also longs to be the Haims' newest recruit. Furthermore, we are far from alone. Several celebrated fans have also petitioned for the position.
It's clear a special quality is at play. Sisters Este, Danielle and Alana started their career performing shows at local delicatessens with their parents. Now they're multiple Grammy contenders.
Similar to the most iconic groups, they're a inseparable unit. Their music videos often feature them walking in sync down the avenues of Los Angeles. In concert, they perform with such boundless exuberance you find yourself thinking, "I'd love to be part of that, too."
"The amount of times on tour that audience members approached us and said, 'After your show, I got a bass'," states Alana, the most junior of the trio. "That is the greatest compliment. It is a prize in itself. We have succeeded if we can inspire young girls to make music."
"So anyone is invited to be the honorary Haim sister."
Grammy Milestone
The band are speaking from home, where they're resting up after an lengthy tour in for their fourth album, I Quit.
They're right now reeling from the news it's been in the running for a top rock honor at the Grammy Awards – with Haim the first female band ever in the running for the award.
"I watch the lists every year, so it sort of feels like an out-of-body experience when your name is announced," says Alana. "I immediately called my sisters to say, 'Did we just hear this right or am I hallucinating'?"
The weight of the nomination isn't lost on the band.
"We really set out to make a rock record this time, so it's a huge achievement," adds Alana. "But we're just thankful for the female artists that came before us."
Personal Turmoil and Laughter
The project came out of a time of transition. All three sisters found themselves single, and the music captures that strange in-between place where you're glad to be free, but not quite ready to start anew.
The themes follow endings and goodbyes. The sisters desire love, but not the relationships they've had. You can hear them working out in real time who they want to be.
"I love way of putting it, yes," says Danielle. "I Quit is kind of like a personal statement. You have to make an effort in blocking the noise and saying, 'I don't give what people think'."
Refinement of Style
That recent toughness called for a fresh approach – more organic and powerful than anything the band had done before.
For Danielle, who helped produce the album, that began with the drums.
"Drums are such a detailed thing, and I am so passionate about it," she states.
"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the name of our biography," quips Alana. "I always say, our albums don't start until we find the ideal drum sound."
Stories and Collective Laughter
The trio's candor inspired the album's promotional campaign, where the sisters revealed some of their personal misadventures.
One man ended things with Este over a health concern. Alana told a story of travelling to celebrate 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. "Thus to be able to share those stories and have them tell you wilder stories, it's therapeutic."
A Confident Future
You can clearly sense a shift in the band. Today, Haim are more assured of their place in the rock pantheon.
They're festival headliners, with hit albums and an international audience.
However the band will consistently be their primary priority.
"We have been making music since I was four," shares Alana. "There is no other path that we were supposed to do. And I'm really fortunate we've made it and we're still kicking."
