CD of The Week

HAIM seem dislodged from time in more ways than one. Not only do they sport a sound lifted from the best Top 40 artists of various yesteryears (influences range from Stevie Nicks to Shania Twain), but their debut comes a good seven years after their formation, a veritable lifetime in the internet age. All the waiting and recording and waiting and re-recording pays off, however, as the California sisters' first full-length is a winning debut that feels as familiar and inviting as a visit with an old friend.

Produced by Ariel Rechtshaid of Vampire Weekend fame, Days Are Gone offers few surprises in its first half, as the trio basically recap their career to date with all of their previously released singles. At this point, perky pop rock gems like "Falling" and "Don't Save Me" have spoken for themselves countless times over. The first taste of new HAIM comes four songs in with the propulsive "If I Could Change Your Mind," which is well worth the wait and opens the curtains on those latent R&B and dance influences that the sister's have always hinted at. Transmission fave Jessie Ware even shows up to co-write and guest on the sublimely slinky title track.

Indeed, it's in the latter half of Days Are Gone that the years of hype and teaser singles payoff, as they've built up enough good will to stretch their sound to places that wouldn't be too fathomable at the time of their inception. The sisters manage to out-Yeezus Kanye on the wonderfully wonky "My Song 5" while the closer "Running If You Call My Name" echoes the ethereality of Kate Bush's Hounds of Love.

Not so much a bold new statement as a solid enforcement of their strengths and potential, Haim's debut proves that despite their lengthy inception period, their days in the limelight are far from gone.

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