The Wire

Single by HAIM

## *Days Are Gone* Chronology

"**The Wire**" is a song by American pop-rock band HAIM. It was released on August 9th 2013 in the United States and on September 22th 2013 in the United Kingdom through Polydor Records as the fourth single and serves as the third track to the band's debut studio album, *Days Are Gone*.

The song peaked at number 16 in the UK Singles Chart, and at number 25 in the *Billboard* Hot Rock Songs. The song also went platinum in Australia, and featured at number 11 in radio station Triple J's Hottest 100 Countdown of 2013.

## Background

In an interview with *Genius*, all three sisters expressed how stressed they were during the recording process of the song. Each sister said:

> **Alana**: I wish that we had like a video tape of every time we recorded The Wire. It would be like the craziest compilation of stress.
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> **Este**: It would also be the saddest, it would be like the saddest documentary ever.
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> **Danielle**: It would just be us just crying after every attempt.
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> **Alana**: Yeah. Um, The Wire we recorded over seven times.
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> **Este**: Every time it was just, just wasn't-
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> **Danielle**: Wasn't poppin'
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> **Alana**: Yeah. It was not poppin. Just, no one could really capture what we wanted. And it was just, and it's hard like by attempt number four you're kind of like "What else can I do?"
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> **Danielle**: I think where the problems lies that its like very major and it's a shuffle and you know-
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> **Danielle**: Kind of hard to make it. There's one mine record in it and it's just kind of hard to make it what we wanted it to be for some reason. But, I think we kind of struck a good balance of it being a little quirky, a little fun, but also like, have some cool production elements and I think, I think we were like, by the time we had this version, which took us like a month, we were like "You know what? This is it."
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If you would like to view the full *Genius* interview, click *here*.

## Composition

Musically, "The Wire" is set in the key of D Major with a tempo of 114 BPM and a Camelot of 10B.

## Critical reception

Upon it's release, "The Wire" received positive reviews from music critics and music publications.

Writing for *Pitchfork*, Carrie Battan wrote:

> "Haim, the trio of Los Angeles-bred sisters, are making some of the best power-pop out there right now. On "The Wire", another Ariel Rechtshaid-produced single they've been performing live for a while, they trade in the electro sheen of "Falling" for muscular guitar-pop, a huge hook and a breakdown with enough familiar clap-along power to propel Hillary Clinton into the Oval Office in 2016. "Always keep your heart locked tight/ Don't let your mind retire," they sing, leaving you with no choice but to concede to their breezy confidence."
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Writing for *Digital Spy*, Lewis Corner wrote:

> "'You know I'm bad at communication, it's the hardest thing for me to do,' Haim explain in the opening line of their new single 'The Wire', before they dump their BFs. It's barely been 12 months since the trio exploded onto the music scene and it seems they're already breaking hearts. Whether it's their flawless Hipstamatic image or their knack for a subtle groove, the three sisters have certainly made the masses stop in their tracks."
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> "'Does your imagination try to make you what you wanted to be?/ Because I'm sorry I do what I did, but it came naturally,' they later explain over juddering bass guitar and arena-worthy clap beats, before they propel into a swaying chorus that feels as timeless as Audrey Hepburn glamour, if not a little more kick ass. The final result is an addictive jam that's devoid of bulls\*\*t, so let this be a warning to you all; with Haim's star only getting brighter, prepare to have your heart broken a few more times yet."
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## Lyrics

**[Verse 1: Danielle Haim]**

You know I'm bad at communication

It's the hardest thing for me to do

And it's said it's the most important part

That relationships go through

And I gave it all away, just so I could say that

Well, I know, I know, I know, I know

That you're gonna be okay anyway

**[Verse 2: Danielle Haim]**

You know there's no rhyme or reason

For the way you turned out to be

I didn't go and try to change my mind

Not intentionally

I know it's hard to hear me say it

But I can't bear to stay in

I just know, I know, I know, I know

That you're gonna be okay anyway

**[Pre-Chorus: Danielle Haim]**

Always keep your heart locked tight

Don't let your mind retire

Oh, but I just couldn't take it

I tried hard not to fake it

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

**[Chorus: Danielle Haim]**

It felt right (Hey!)

It felt right, oh

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

It felt right (Hey!)

It felt right, oh

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

**[Verse 3: Alana Haim]**

No need to use your imagination

Try and make it what you want it to be

Because I'm sorry I did what I did, but

It came naturally

And I gave it all away just so I could say that

Well, I know, I know, I know, I know

That you're gonna be okay anyway

**[Verse 4: Este Haim]**

When I tried to keep myself together

After all the opportunities

I tried to stay true to you

And I tried to do what you wanted from me

And I gave it all away just to hear you say that

Well, I know, I know, I know, I know

That you're gonna be okay anyway (Hey!)

**[Pre-Chorus: Danielle Haim]**

Always keep your heart locked tight

Don't let your mind retire

Oh, but I just couldn't take it

I tried hard not to fake it

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

**[Chorus: Danielle Haim]**

It felt right (Hey!)

It felt right, oh

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

It felt right (Hey!)

It felt right, oh

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

**[Bridge: Danielle Haim]**

Always keep your heart locked tight

Don't let your mind retire

Always keep your heart locked tight

Don't let your mind retire, oh

But I just couldn't take it

I tried hard not to fake it

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

Ooh, yeah

But I just couldn't take it

I tried hard not to fake it

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

**[Chorus: Danielle Haim]**

It felt right (Hey!)

It felt right, oh

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

It felt right (Hey!)

It felt right, oh

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

It felt right (Hey!)

It felt right, oh

Oh, but I fumbled it when it

Came down to the wire, yeah, yeah, yeah

(Hey!)

It felt right, oh

But I fumbled it when it came down to the wire

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

**[Outro: Danielle Haim]**

Oh, no, no, no, no

It felt right (It felt right)

Oh, it felt right (It felt right)

It felt right

Oh, no, no, no, no

But I fumbled it when it

Came down to the wire

Yeah

## Music video

### Background

On August 12th 2013, 3 days after the song was released, the music video for "The Wire" was uploaded to YouTube.

### Credits

Director - *Jonathan Lia*
Executive Producer - *Jonathan Lia*, *Ryan Heiferman*
Editor - *Catherine Gionfriddo*, *Alexander Hammer*

## Other videos

If you would like to view the video gallery for "The Wire", click *here.*

## Trivia

* The song appears in the first episode ("Gone But Not Forgotten") of season two of *Bates Motel*.
* The song appears in the sixth episode ("Dissolution") of season three of *Revenge*.
* The song appears in the 2014 film *Vampire Academy*.
* The song appears in the first episode ("300") of season fourteen of *Criminal Minds*.
* The song appears in the trailer of the 2017 film *Home Again*.
* "The Wire" is HAIM's most popular song.
	+ The song is also their most streamed song on Spotify.

## References

1. ↑ https://music.apple.com/gb/album/the-wire-single/681930761
2. ↑ https://genius.com/Haim-haim-on-the-wire-annotated
https://tunebat.com/Info/The-Wire-HAIM/6golelYKuy85o3u0cxIxFK
4. ↑ https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/15784-haim-the-wire/
5. ↑ https://www.digitalspy.com/music/single-reviews/a515235/haim-the-wire-single-review/
6. ↑ https://www.digitalspy.com/music/single-reviews/a515235/haim-the-wire-single-review/
7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TffpkE2GU4
8. ↑ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8150884/fullcredits/?ref\_=tt\_cl\_sm
9. ↑ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8150884/fullcredits/?ref\_=tt\_cl\_sm
10. ↑ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8150884/fullcredits/?ref\_=tt\_cl\_sm