Introducing… Haim (Interview)

“We love the sun, and the beach. It’s such a big part of our upbringing we cannot help but be influenced by it…” - Este Haim, Haim.

While it may not keep many of us up night, we do, at last have an answer to the question of what Fleetwood Mac would sound like if they ditched the blokes and hired a fancypants studio hand to give them a modern RnB sheen. As bizarre as that may sound, at a time when the 70′s soft-rockers seem as popular and relevant as ever, Haim – with their rootsy, sun-kissed rhythmic pop – have never made more sense.

Consisting of three San Fernando Valley sisters (and an unnamed mister), the girls – Este, Danielle, and Alana Haim – learnt their chops playing in Rockinhaim, a classic rock band fronted by their musical parents, who reunite for “one gig a year”. With the ‘rockin’ behind them, the trio stumbled upon a sound that while unique enough, sounds exactly what wonky popstars should sound like 2012.

The title track of their recent Forever EP is a good starting point, mixing trebley guitars with big beats, handclaps and polished vocal harmonies courtesy of a childhood “listening to so much music that its hard for us to stick to just one vibe in a song.” They’re not wrong either. Songs shift in shape with little or no warning, while opposing genres are begrudgingly mashed together.

With the EP’s three tracks proving to be all they want to release at the moment, the girls have spent time in the UK, wowing audiences at Brighton’s The Great Escape in May, and have one eye on “finishing up the record” after some summer slots with Mumford & Sons. Before that, we spoke to Este Haim about making friends with the UK, loving the sun and showing people a good time.

Let’s get to know each other. Could you tell us a bit about yourselves?

Este: We’re a sister band from the San Fernando Valley! We love watching Americas funniest home videos and drinking slurpees.

You guys absolutely killed it at both SXSW and The Great Escape. How does it feel to be getting such strong, positive reactions after just one EP?

It’s exciting! We just want to show people a good time and put on the best shows possible.

You’ve recently been over in the UK playing a few shows and doing promo. How have you found the UK so far?

We’re in love with it. Its hard not to be. We’ve made some really good friends in London. Now it’s onto the rest of the UK!

You cover Fleetwood Mac in your live set and make music that is distinctly west coast. Is there something about the sun that can’t help but seep into a bands output?

I think the weather definitely has an effect on us. We love the sun, and the beach. It’s such a big part of our upbringing we cannot help but be influenced by it.

So, what’s the story with Rockinhaim, and when and why did you lose the ‘rockin’?

We just lost the rockin in the name. Rockinhaim still plays 1 gig a year. And we probably always will.

Was the mashing together of the rootsy and the rnb a deliberate thing? Was there ever a conversation about it?

It just sort of happened that way. its the way we write songs and its the melodies we want to hear. We listen to so much music that its hard for us to stick to just one vibe in a song.

Who else are you digging at the moment?

We are loving Jai Paul right now. We also just made a summer playlist with songs from our friends FRIENDS and Electric Guest. They’re both great.

What are your plans for the rest of the year? Any news on an LP?

We’re hopping on tour with Mumford and Sons this August, and then finishing up the record!

The Forever EP is out now.