🔗 Share this article

"Any idea when you're speaking to the band?" an inquiry arrives. "My request was to ask if I can be their newest bandmate."

There is only a single issue: I also wants to be the Haims' fourth member. What's more, we are far from alone. Multiple famous admirers have openly coveted the role.

It's clear something is going on. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana started their path playing gigs at local delicatessens with their family. Presently, they stand as repeated Grammy contenders.

Similar to the greatest bands, they're a close gang. Their visuals often feature them marching in unison down the avenues of Los Angeles. During performances, they jam with such boundless exuberance you inevitably think, "I'd love to be a piece of that, too."

"The numerous instances on tour that audience members told us and said, 'After your show, I bought a drum kit'," says Alana, the youngest of the Haim siblings. "It is the ultimate honor. That's an award in itself. Our mission is accomplished if we can encourage others to make music."

"And thus everyone is invited to be the honorary Haim sister."

Award Recognition

The group are speaking from home, where they're resting up after an extensive tour in support of their new album, I Quit.

They're presently celebrating the news it's been nominated for Best Rock Album at the Grammys – with Haim the pioneering all-female band ever in consideration 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 immediately called my sisters to say, 'Did we just hear this correctly or am I imagining things'?"

The importance of the honor is deeply felt by the sisters.

"We really set out to make a rock album this time, so it's a major step," continues Alana. "But we're just appreciative for the female artists that came before us."

Heartbreak and Laughter

The record emerged from a period of transition. All three sisters were single, and the music explores that unique liminal space where you're happy to be free, but not entirely ready to move on.

The themes track endings and partings. The sisters want love, but not the relationships they've got. You can hear them working out in the moment who they aspire to be.

"That's a perfect way of putting it, yes," responds Danielle. "I Quit is like a slogan. You have to make an effort in blocking the criticism and saying, 'I couldn't care less what people think'."

Refinement of Style

That recent resilience required a new sound – more raw and powerful than anything the band had done before.

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

"Drums are such a detailed thing, and I am so passionate 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."

Stories and Shared Camaraderie

The trio's candor shaped the album's marketing, where the sisters revealed some of their dating horror stories.

Someone left Este over a medical concern. Alana shared 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 only darkness," notes Alana. "Therefore to be able to share those stories and have them tell you more outrageous stories, it's therapeutic."

A Confident Legacy

You can clearly sense a change in the band. These days, Haim are more certain of their position in the industry.

They're top-billed acts, with hit albums and an global audience.

Yet the band will consistently be their primary focus.

"We have been playing music since I was four," concludes Alana. "It feels as if no alternative that we were destined for. And I'm really fortunate we've reached this point and we're still going strong."