Outgrowing Harry Styles: A New Era (kind of)

It’s been a few weeks since Harry Styles officially released his fourth studio album Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally (or KISSCO for short) on March 6th, and, frankly, I am disappointed. A lot of other fans are too, but some enjoyed the album, with many critics claiming it’s his most mature, cohesive, and best work yet. I think the opposite. 

I noted in my previous article that Styles may be taking KISSCO in a different direction. Still, his past work tends not to have the most profound lyricism nor a very original, unprecedented concept. I said I was predisposed to the feeling that KISSCO would likely follow similar patterns, and in part, I was right, though the critic and fan reception seems a bit more split once again.

KISSCO received generally favorable reviews from music critics. However, they share some of my sentiments, with The Australian's Geordie Gray complimenting the production but criticizing Styles' voice, which he believed was his biggest strength and was not highlighted enough. Gray goes on to say that he believed KISSCO ultimately failed as a dance music album, writing that it adopted the signifiers of various dance music styles without adopting any of their quirkiness; something I’ve noted previously seems to be a theme in his music. Consequence's Paolo Ragusa says something similar, writing that the KISSCO could have gone further in an "unhinged" direction. Shaad D’Souza wrote for Pitchfork, “In his four years away, the flamboyant and intriguing gobbledegook of 2022’s Harry’s House has become sadder and less defined,” and that “..the noncommittal emptiness of Kiss All the Time is hard to love.”

Fan reception has been more complimentary. On Reddit, one fan said that KISSCO (like his previous music) is “...such a grower and [they] have grown to love it…,” which I can relate to, as a lot of the tracks I was initially indifferent to, have grown on me, like “American Girls,” “Taste Back,” “Pop,” “Season 2 Weight Loss,” and “The Waiting Game.” One said that they felt all the momentum Harry was building came to “a grinding halt with Coming Up Roses,” and thought that “...removing Coming Up Roses altogether and moving Paint by Numbers to the end would really clean up the album's flow.” Although I strongly disagree with removing Coming Up Roses, I do agree with the sentiment that it doesn’t quite fit with the rest of KISSCO (this view has been shared by other fans, too). Another said that it was “...a no skip album that upon first listen I thoroughly enjoyed.”

Several perspectives on TikTok align more with my view. One reviewer in particular, WillTalksMusic, states that not only does KISSCO not have an original sound, but it’s also unclear where Styles was drawing from vocally. Which is true; besides a couple of moments in “Coming Up Roses,” the lyrics aren’t exactly piercing, only barely scratching the surface. Styles’ emotions within those tracks are not sustained throughout or evident, as Will agrees, stating that “these instrumentals could have been filled out by…anybody, there’s not a singular moment on this record where Harry feels irreplaceable.” He also mentions popular artists like Chappell Roan, Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, and Sabrina Carpenter for their individual personas/personalities, which are always present in their music and performances, further elevating their brands. Will notes that it’s “interesting that they’re all women that had to carve out a lane for themselves in pop music…Harry did have a lane at a certain point. But what is it now?...the only woman that could get away with this level of effort commercially is Taylor Swift.” This perspective does bring popular parallels to light, as those who do not like this album have called it Styles’ Life of a Showgirl.

Harry Styles for KISSCO promo

To form my own impartial opinion, I listened to KISSCO multiple times and tracked my thoughts. The first time I listened was a couple of days after its release, and, initially, the work was a bit of a snoozefest. A lot of the tracks follow the same patterns of “Aperture” in their slow gratification, and almost all of the songs are bass-heavy. I wrote it was “Similar to ‘Music For a Sushi Restaurant,’ except it’s the whole album.” Needless to say, I was not very impressed the first time around. However, a track I liked immediately upon hearing it was “Coming Up Roses.” I found it to be a huge departure from any of Styles’ previous work, and the string instrumental break was extremely poignant. I believe it was the best on the album (and maybe one of the best in his whole discography), which I found ironic: the track least like KISSCO’s concept was the best. 

Which brings me to my next point: there are not many disco songs on this album. Other than “Dance No More,” which is just (once again) an inspired and more modern version of a disco song from Styles, there aren’t really that many “dance” songs. One fan stated upon listening, “I’m halfway through. Where is this ‘disco’? I’ll update if I find it…” But to be fair, he did say “Disco, Occasionally.”

On a second listen, this is not really a disco or dance album, despite how much Styles is trying to push that image. Outside of its concept, KISSCO’s production and musicality are good, but the lyricism falls short, and the song structure is pretty formulaic. This has been a recurring criticism of Styles’ work in the past (that I’ve also mentioned before), and I think it’s supported by what Geordie Gray mentioned for The Australian. Styles can easily adapt new styles and genres of music, but he can never fully commit, only ever halfway there, with going through the motions. It made me think of his recent performance at the Brit Awards, where, on February 28th, Styles performed “Aperture”, and was considered his first time performing heavily choreographed dance moves in a live setting, where he “... channeled the movement-heavy music video for the….performance….surrounded by dancers wearing black shades and T-shirts with snails on them.” The response to this performance has been a bit divided, with one commentator saying, “This is his best performance yet,” and another saying, “This was horrible.”

This brings me to another important point: at the end of the day, music is subjective, so the opinions of critics, fans, and listeners alike will differ. Aduke, a small artist on TikTok talking about the Brit Awards performance, mentioned that “You could just be mediocre as a white man they’ll eat that [...] up,” meanwhile, another commentator stated that “we need more male artists leveling up their game like this, female artists have set THE bar.” Which one is it? On one hand, we have several people (besides Aduke) admonishing the choreography and concept. On the other hand, we have people applauding Styles for the performance, considering it a way for him to level up to the current Pop girls running the scene and break out of his shell.

I think, when it comes to the performance itself, it truly depends on the person you’re talking to and whether they get it. Some people just aren’t into aerobics/Zumba, and that’s fine. Overall, it makes me wonder about how much we’ve let Harry Styles get away with, especially when it comes to how he presents himself. And although criticism of his image isn’t new (especially when it comes to his clothes), it did have people talking for quite some time. I can’t help but think back to Aduke and Will’s comments about the amount of work others have had to put into their craft and image, while Styles sort of remains stagnant. Flamboyant jumpsuits and dresses were all the rage a few years back, but now that it seems Styles has dropped that act, I think some people are less than satisfied with the lack of substance behind the shiny exterior. And maybe I am too. Although I am glad he ditched the Dorothy costume. 

On the third listen, I began to appreciate KISSCO a bit more, especially “Carla’s Song,” my second favorite track on the album. Despite my initial reservations, I have grown to like KISSCO a little more and more each time. But I still can’t bring myself to love it. However, while I was at it, I decided to take a trip down memory lane and re-listen to his previous albums to get a better sense of whether I was really going crazy, thinking that we’re supposedly changing through eras. However, the music still hasn’t really changed much. 

Since then, I’ve concluded: Harry Styles just doesn’t really do it for me anymore. I think not only has the pop scheme changed in the four years since he’s gone, but so have I. Four years ago, I was in high school, listening to Harry’s House on repeat, with “Daylight” being the track I replayed the most. Now, after re-listening to that album, I do not care for most of the tracks, including “Daylight.” Things change, tastes change, and just as we expect and understand an artist to change and evolve, so does the listener. Today, I find myself going back to Harry Styles more often and appreciating Fine Line more. These were albums that I remember took me many re-listens before I began to like them when I was younger; now I revel in those tracks almost immediately (although a big part of it could also be nostalgia). But when it comes to the synth-pop direction that Styles has taken since 2022, I am unmoved.

Styles’ music tends to make me listen multiple times to enjoy it more, and although I think this may be the case here, I believe this is the weakest album in his whole discography. I am among many fans who are disappointed that this is his comeback after four years, but that’s not to detract from the many who are happy with this album. When it comes to critiques, I think there’s a lot of truth to the claim that Styles is risk-averse and conventional, usually hiding behind style rather than substance, and taking on new personas, but never fully committing. But I also think that many of the problems I have with KISSCO lie within me rather than in the work as a whole. There’s room for improvement for Styles for sure, but I don’t think he is a lost cause. I’ve evolved a little more, and I hope that one day, Harry Styles does too.