"Fucking relationships," Danielle Haim sighs on "Relationships," the deceptively straightforward lead single from HAIM's fourth album, I quit. It's a simple message of relatable exasperation that's hardly subtle, expertly priming the song for summer anthem status. "Relationships" instigated a series of single covers riffing on iconic pop culture moments: Nicole Kidman's post-divorce victory lap, an early-2000s sun-soaked Kate Moss, and, most recently, Gwyneth Paltrow precariously balancing on Brad Pitt circa '95.The Rostam Batmanglij-produced album takes that messy, referential energy even further, stitching together heartbreak and internet detritus into something surprisingly cohesive — and occasionally cathartic. In a recent interview with Spotify helmed by Kesha, Alana Haim explained that the ethos of I quit is "betting on yourself, and quitting the things that don't serve you anymore." This sentiment — certainly not a novel one, being at the crux of every "live your truth" Pinterest quote — lands hardest on the punchy, George Michael-sampling opener, "Gone," where Danielle comes out swinging with a quiet ultimatum. "Can I have your attention please / For the last time before I leave?" she asks, almost too calmly — only to rescind it a four-count later: "On second thought, I change my mind / Been in this graveyard all my life."Whether the California-born sisters are cruising through Malibu with the top down on the synth-washed shimmer of "Million years," or slipping back onto the dusk-lit, dancefloor melancholy that defined their debut, Days Are Gone, on "Spinning," they make every turn feel instinctive — as if guided by some invisible frequency only they can hear. HAIM's sound has always felt singular, and its echoes have been heard through the work of others since the band's debut. While I quit plays to that legacy, it falters in its attempt to evolve it.Its predecessor, Women in Music Pt. III, flirted with electronic experimentalism, but this record opts for a return to form, pulling back from the genre-blurring risks the sister trio have proven themselves capable of. Still, I quit doesn't feel like a retreat so much as a recalibration; a reminder that evolution isn't always loud.If Women in Music Pt. III cracked the door open, I quit stands in the threshold, taking stock of what's worth carrying forward. On the record's closer, "Now it's time," Danielle lands the final blow with a line that feels both jaded and freeing: "You never gave two fucks anyway." It's less a statement, more a sigh of relief.
Wavelength
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