🔗 Share this article

"Any idea when you're interviewing the Haim sisters?" an inquiry arrives. "My request was to ask if I can join as their newest bandmate."

There's just a single issue: The sender also desires to be the Haims' newest recruit. And we're not alone. A host of high-profile supporters have openly coveted the position.

It's clear a special quality is happening. The siblings Este, Danielle and Alana launched their path playing gigs at neighborhood delis with their parents. Today, they are repeated Grammy Award hopefuls.

Like all the most iconic ensembles, they're a close trio. Their videos often show them marching in sync down the avenues of Los Angeles. On stage, they play with such unfettered joy you inevitably think, "I'd love to be involved in that, too."

"The amount of times on tour that audience members came up to us and said, 'Seeing you perform, I got a bass'," remarks Alana, the youngest of the trio. "It is the biggest compliment. That's an award in itself. We've done our job if we can inspire young girls to form a group."

"And thus all gets an invitation to be the next part of the family."

Grammy Nod

The band are connecting from their homes, where they're resting up after an extensive tour in promoting their fourth album, I Quit.

They're right now reeling from the news it's been shortlisted for best rock album at the Grammy Awards – with Haim the pioneering female band ever in consideration for the prize.

"I watch the nominations every year, so it almost feels like a surreal movie when your name is read out," says Alana. "I had to call my sisters to say, 'Am I hearing this correctly or am I hallucinating'?"

The weight of the accolade isn't lost on the band.

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

Personal Turmoil and Candor

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

The lyrics detail breakups and farewells. The sisters desire love, but not the relationships they've had. You can hear them figuring out in the moment who they aspire to be.

"I love way of putting it, yes," agrees Danielle. "I Quit is like a mantra. You have to actively work on blocking the criticism and saying, 'It doesn't matter to me what people think'."

Development of Music

That newfound confidence called for a new sound – more raw and immediate than anything the band had done before.

For Danielle, who worked on producing the album, that was founded on the drum sound.

"Percussion is such a detailed thing, and I am so passionate about it," she says.

"'Journey of the drum sound' will be the name of our memoir," jokes Alana. "I've said it, our albums cannot begin until we find the right drum sound."

Stories and Shared Camaraderie

The trio's openness fueled the album's rollout, where the sisters revealed some of their dating horror stories.

One man broke up with Este over a medical concern. Alana recalled a story of travelling to spend New Year's Eve with someone, only to receive a friendly slap at midnight.

"Experiencing these setbacks, you just feel like there's no light," notes Alana. "Therefore to be able to share those stories and hear others tell you wilder stories, it's incredible."

A Confident Legacy

You can clearly sense a evolution in the band. Now, Haim are more assured of their place in the rock pantheon.

They're major draws, with successful albums and an global following.

Yet the band will always be their primary commitment.

"Me and my siblings have been playing music since I was four," says Alana. "It's like no alternative that we were meant to do. And I'm really grateful we've reached this point and we're still making music."