Alright, so: I’ve been feeling this band for a while now, but I haven’t gotten around to doing a formal “Introduucing…” post because I’m too busy being the absolute worst. Time to change that.
HAIM is a LA Valley-bred Jewish sister act, consisting of Este Haim, Danielle Haim, Alana Haim and drummer Dash Hutton, which sort of sounds like I’m reading off the names from my graduating class at Brandeis.
Though the group’s been getting Fleetwood Mac comparisons ever since their debut (which are entirely accurate), HAIM also brings in a distinctly rhythmic twist to their tunes, resulting in a unique blend of early ’90’s R&B-meets-classic rock brilliance. And given the R&B/nu-soul revivalism coming out from acts like Jessie Ware and Solange lately, it’s the perfect time for HAIM to make their move.
They’ve gone on tour with Florence + The Machine, Mumford and Sons, and most recently, they’ve won a spot on the BBC’s prestigious, almost-always-indicative-of-amazingness Sound of 2013, meaning the pressure to deliver is on in a big way. Lucky for HAIM, they’re only getting better.
HAIM’s already released a handful of songs, including their debut “Forever” off of 2012’s Forever EP, as well as the st-stuttering, brilliant rock’n’roll anthem, “Don’t Save Me.” (Video above.)
This week, the troupe’s released their new single: “Falling,” produced by one of my very favorites of the moment, Ariel Rechtshaid. (He’s the same genius who helped craft Sky Ferreira‘s “Everything Is Embarrassing” and “Lost In my Bedroom,” Charli XCX‘s “Stay Away” and Usher‘s “Climax,” among other faves.)
“Don’t stop, no, I’ll never give up /And I’ll never look back, just hold your head up/And if it gets rough, it’s time to get rough,” the girls call out in unison. It’s all one mesmerizing, genre-blurring swirl of warm beats, disco bass plucks, crashing drums and almighty, echoing vocals. There’s something very magical buried in the sun-soaked production, and slightly melancholy at the same time–not unlike last year’s big obsession, Frank + Derol.
The nice thing about HAIM is that they’re making “real” music (in the Pitchforkian/Legendtina sense, in that they are multiple instrument-playing, songwriting musicians who grew up in a musical home, surrounded by all things music.) At the same time, they’re putting out music that’s highly listenable and highly singalong-able with strong hooks and catchy beats–making HAIM digestible for fans of pretention-free pop and “authentic” enough to keep the snobs at bay.
Bottom line: I love HAIM. I’d say I’m going absolutely H.A.M. for HAIM at the moment, but that wouldn’t be very kosher.
“Falling” was released on February 12. (iTunes)
