Music Critic Aurelia Loth reviews HAIM’s new single ‘Relationships’, signalling a new era for the band
HAIM is back and better than ever with their new single ‘Relationships’. Soon to be the song of the summer, ‘Relationships’ combines HAIM’s blissful pop funk sound which we know, and love, with introspective lyrics exploring the weird and uncomfortable moments at the end of a relationship.
The three sisters (Este, Daniella, and Alana) began working on the song on a flight to Australia in 2017. Now, seven years later ‘Relationships’ is finally available for streaming. The cover art is inspired by paparazzi shots of Nicole Kidman embracing her newly single status after her divorce from Tom Cruise. The band called Kidman’s expression an ‘overwhelming embrace of [being] single’ which perfectly aligns with the song’s themes.
“While ‘Relationships’ feels unmistakably HAIM, it also signals a new era for the band
It’s been five years since HAIM’s last release with Women in Music Pt. II dropping in 2020. While ‘Relationships’ feels unmistakably HAIM, it also signals a new era for the band, pairing melancholy lyrics with an irresistibly funky, earworm-worthy melody. The song opens with a spoken-word section that seamlessly transitions into its hypnotic chorus:
Wasting time driving through the East Side
Doing my thing cause I can’t decide if we’re through
Well, are we?
And if we are – what we gonna do?
‘Relationships’ is a unique listening experience, thanks to its strangely cyclical structure. The final, repeated lines – ‘f***ing relationships’ – fade back into the spoken-word intro, creating a dizzying, round-and-round effect that mirrors the confusion and frustration of love gone wrong. The song’s structure reflects its subject matter: the disorienting nature of whirlwind romances, the rapid blur of beginnings and endings, and the lingering uncertainty of a breakup. HAIM captures this perfectly with the line:
When an innocent mistake / turns into seventeen days
The meditation on morality – ‘why do I have a guilty conscience? – pulls the listener back into that same relentless refrain, ‘f***ing relationships’, and so, the cycle begins again. Full of contradictions like ‘I think I’m in love / But I can’t stand f***ing relationships’, the song’s melancholy tone is undercut with both sadness and sarcasm. This layering of emotion is credit to the band’s songwriting and ability, crafting a song that makes you want to dance and cry at the same time.
“The song’s melancholy tone is undercut with both sadness and sarcasm
If you thought the song couldn’t get any better, the dreamy Drew Starkey stars as Danielle’s love interest in the music video. The visuals are just as intoxicating as the track, flashing between clips of the pair getting dressed, partying in nightclubs, and ultimately packing up their relationship. A classic HAIM production, the video is simple yet powerful, with Alana and Este acting as voices in Danielle’s head.
‘Relationships’ is a great tune to walk down the street to, and as all HAIM fans know, fashionably strutting the streets of Los Angeles is one of the bands best qualities. Hopefully ‘Relationships’ is the start of a new HAIM era with more music to come, and maybe even a tour at some point in the future if we’re lucky!
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