4/5
Days Are Back.
2020. We're locked in a collective, quarantined, planetary pandemic, and Haim still manage to release their best record and album of the year, in-between giving Zoom dance tutorials, with their third titled, 'Women In Music Pt. III'. Spawning the successful singles, 'Summer Girl', 'Now I'm In It', 'Hallelujah', 'The Steps', 'I Know Alone', 'Don't Wanna' and 'Man From The Magazine'. Matching their definitive debut, with all due respect to the superb sophomore doubling-up of 'Something To Tell You's' 'Want You Back' and a 'Little Of Your Love' for your country showdown. Now, after headlining another summer festival in London, All Points to the ten-year anniversary of 'Days Are Gone' and some brilliant bonus tracks to match the deluxe edition. Not to mention amazing signed art cards, cassettes and green vinyl (shout out to my bestie like Este, Depa for getting me a signed copy of 'WIMPIII' for the best Christmas present ever) as the girls take to the deck chairs on the grass again to show that even though they've barely changed, they've never looked or been better. From Polydor to kicking down the door, the sisterhood has come from a family band to the Sunset Sound of touring with Taylor Swift. It's an epic era.
'Forever' like the formidable first single and mesmerizing music videos across the board. My favourite band is exactly that. Showing they can rock out and roll with the cool California nights. This best coast band have sung songs for the best soundtracks like 'Barbie' and even starred in movies themselves. Alana Haim generating Oscar buzz for her slice of 'Licorice Pizza', co-starring her family and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, who turned Haim music videos into actual movies themselves. But it all started when it came down to 'The Wire'. Or the 'Falling' of 'Don't Save Me' balling out on-court for the Laker fans (could I love them any more?). One of Pitchfork's '100 Best Albums Of The Year So Far', telling us 'If I Could Change Your Mind', before giving us the A$AP Ferg rap remix of 'My Song 5' and a hilarious Ricki Lake like talk show video with SNL's Vanessa Bayer as "Dallas Murphy". The iconic leather-clad big-three summoning a higher power as they bring their hands together for the bridge of, "If you want to see me, baby please/Been holding for on eternity/Say you only want me/Missing you never led to much of anything/If you wanna know, if you wanna show me/Everything’s what it seems, seems to be/Held by a thread/Tried to forget/I-I’ll never let it go/Honey, I’m not your honey pie." You're damn right!
San Fernando Valley and 1970s classic Americana motored music that culminated in a classic CD that began with four strong singles like a Killer 'Hot Fuss' coming out of the cage. The sweet sing-a-long of 'Honey & I' was no slouch either, as this cool groove of an album flowed like the Pacific for your syrup off a spoon slow Sunday in Cali'. The title track was terrific too. But it was the "heat, heat, heat" of 'Go Slow' that really stopped us in our tracks. This track singing, "I know/I'm giving in and believing every lie/For now the moon is night/I turn off the light/And you shook up the foundation (go slow now)/With your intimidation (I know)/Oh, when you turn away now." All before the classic closer 'Running If You Call My Name' offered hope for the hurt and a clear path to stardom for these Valley girls. Even though the sobering 'Let Me Go' breaks you up boldly and beautiful ("Get me out, give me in/I gave you everything I could give/You tried to take, you tried to make it/But take all everything you can't break/If you go so easily/Go on, get out, when you leave") like the curtain yearn of 'Night So Long' in the 'Days Are Gone' follow-up.
Japanese and UK editions of this legacy making album have offered us brilliant bonuses before, but now we have eight wonders on a double-disc to celebrate its decade birthday. The Cyril Hahn remix of 'Don't Save Me' is a cool groove, whilst the Cerrone Funk remix of 'If I Could Change Your Mind' switches up the tone. Giorgio Moroder's 'Forever' is gorgeously everlasting, but it's the 'Falling' remix by Duke Dumont that really takes the birthday cake. It 80s perfectly sounds like something out of the beginning and reprise end of a classic John Hughes movie. The demo bones of 'Go Slow' carefully and surely show you how the sisterhood of Haim put these classic records together forever in their garage, but it's the original bonus tracks that are truly outstanding, brought to bear here. "Forgiveness...is that all you want from me" Danielle sings with Fleetwood Mac inspiration on a standalone pre-album single that would have been 'Better Off' making the final cut like it did in the Great British release for an act who have just blew out the candles twice in the Big Smoke, last month. But as the door shuts to the drum beat and hand claps, it's the epic 'Send Me Down' that's an absolute anthem with the "woah, oh" oh's". All before we hit the 'Edge' of glory like Gaga for the true treasure of a hidden gem. "You were my own/The memories hold/They're overgrown/But now I know/There's no climbing over" are perfectly poised, beautiful broods. One that show in another decade the 20th anniversary is going to be a thing of legend. These days of future past are going to last. Far from gone. TIM DAVID HARVEY.
Playlist Picks: 'Better Off', 'My Song 5', 'Edge'.
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