Music: Haim
The sound of LA comes to our town in the form of Haim at the Brighton Dome
Following a series of LA based studio sessions with premier league producers Ariel Rechtsaid (Major Lazer, Vampire Weekend, Usher) and James Ford (Arctic Monkeys, Florence & The Machine, Simian Mobile Disco), San Fernando Valley sisters HAIM have emphatically taken all the strengths of their live shows and transformed their songs into nuggets of golden pop.
Beginning the year as the BBC Sound of 2013 winners, and off the back of two limited edition EPs and a handful of sold-out UK live dates, HAIM holed themselves up in the studio and spent the next few months perfecting a record that was arguably one of the most hotly anticipated in recent years. Days Are Gone is a record that wrestles with that early live potential and fully realises it, showcasing the breadth of their collective and individual talents. Having performed live together on stages from a very early age, it’s that innate understanding of each other’s musicianship that acts as both the strength and catalyst behind everything the band do.
Rather too much has been made of the band’s R&B influences, and there have been misplaced accusations of being Joni Mitchell sound-a-likes, but Days Are Gone is actually a guitar-fuelled, West Coast pop album,
Regarding the Joni Mitchell comparisons, Danielle has said: ‘I think that just comes from the fact that we have middle-parted long hair… I don’t really hear it in our music.”
HAIM have spent the past 18 months relentlessly touring the globe, including a well-received visit to Glastonbury Festival, and a friendship with Primal Scream, whom they performed as backing singers for part of their gig.
AS I write this, HAIM are preparing for the annual Brits, a nomination for Best International Group, alongside the likes of Arcade Fire and Daft Punk. The trio of sisters – Alana, 22; Danielle, 24 and 27-year-old Este – may have hit the big time in the UK but have struggled for success in their native America. “Maybe someone will see us after we play this show,” recalls Danielle. “But then after like hundreds of shows in LA, playing for no one, we were like, “Oh, shit”
Brighton Dome, Concert Hall, Friday 7 March, 7.30pm, £16.50
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