I couldn’t breathe.
A singular boba had shot into my windpipe via enlarged turtle killer/budget poison dart shooter and would not budge. Without anyone around, I was alone in my defense of life and had to power up to my final form as a last resort in order to save myself. However, even after I had entered Ultra Instinct, I couldn’t seem to dislodge this squishy pearl of death from my throat by physical means. “Could this be the end?” I thought, as I write this.
Then, as my hope for a full, happy-ish life dwindled and childhood flashbacks of family and friends began to take over my vision, I thought to myself…what if there were some magical vibrations that could dislodge the demonic sphere of tapioca from my trachea? What if there was some invisible force that could save me from sure death? What if there was some sort of…
Ok, yeah you get it. And this life-saving, throat-clearing song is called “Now I’m In It”.
Lyrically, you may think this song is about a breakup/screwup of some sort but its message really comes from an internal conflict within. Danielle Haim provides the following statement on the song:
“now i’m in it is about going through it.
a depression. not leaving the house type of shit. for my sisters and i, there have been times in our lives where we have felt like we are stuck in a dark hole. this track speaks to that emotion.
the track is chaotic- like my mind when i’m spiraling. fast-talking to myself- words jumbled up. heartbeat racing. these times are hard to forget and even harder to work through. after being constantly on the go the past couple years, i didn’t wanna stop and deal with some shit. also, every day my sisters and i feel so fucking lucky that we get to do this for a living!!! it seemed like stopping and dealing with these emotions would be letting everyone down. but every time I’ve been depressed- it takes me accepting that I need help, to start to get out of it. it’s gotten a little easier as i have gotten older to recognize the symptoms and remind myself that when this happens, i need to seek help. (shout out to my therapist!!) anyway, we all know it’s important to talk about this stuff. this one poured out of us. take care of yourself. be nice to yourself. and thank the ones around you that help u everyday. hope this helps anyone who is in it right now ❤️“
Musically, and by that I mean the melodies, instrumentation, etc., there’s this mind-racing, shortness of breath-inducing anxiety generated by a never-ending barrage of 1/8th notes traded between different guitar and bass voices. The vocal melodies themselves add to this with mostly choppy phrasing and breathy timbre. Accompanied with scattered vocal chops and seemingly simple drums, this track begs to be replayed without concern for burnout. I won’t go too much deeper but they control the energy incredibly well as any professionally produced track should.
If you want more HAIM, check out their hits “The Wire” and “Want You Back”. If you want to see how amazing they are at collaborating, look at anything they’ve made with Vampire Weekend. If you’re interested in learning more about their story, Rolling Stone does a great job.
So whether you’re “in it” by feeling down more than usual or “in it” by way of boba inhalation, HAIM aims to let you know you’re not alone. Until next time, thanks for looking at my words!
✌️‘n Carrots,
eace