[Reaper16]

10. Haim – Days Are Gone





I didn’t expect to like this album at all. It has plenty of red flags: a sudden wave of hype, a faux-indie sensibility (they are a major label band), and a sound seems entirely a nostalgic throwback. Surprise, surprise: the hype is deserved, it is catchier than any other pop album this year, and they aren’t JUST a throwback group. You can probably tell from the album art that Haim is inspired by 90s music. Indeed, they sound just like Wilson Phillips filtered through early 90s R&B. Add a healthy dose of Fleetwood Mac, and you’ve got a recipe for delicate melodies. These three sisters don’t just look backwards at influences though. There’s just enough understanding of modern hip-hop production to add interesting wrinkles to things. Listen to album opener “Falling,” which adds this final, heavy layer of rap drums to the mix on the final verse and chorus. Or take “My Song 5,” which throws down heavy, distorted backing vocals and massive bass swells. Mostly, I don’t have to think about these things. The songs just capture me from the start. The delicate, wordy vocal lines and hooks. The jangly guitars. The smart percussion. I love these pop songs. I love this album. I’m kind of pissed at myself for putting another pop album above Beyonce’s, but it is what it is.