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Few artists are able to find colossal fame once in their career, but with Harry Styles, Harry Styles proved that the star power he found with One Direction was just the beginning for him. Harry Styles left behind high-powered bops like "What Makes You Beautiful" and "Best Song Ever" and leaned into more of a soft-rock vibe powered by incredibly introspective lyrics, fleshed-out instrumentals, and a certain level of humanity that we were never really able to see from Harry when hidden behind the One Direction hysteria.
Stand-out tracks: "Sign of the Times" "Kiwi"
My favorites: "Two Ghosts" "Ever Since New York"
Opening this album with "Meet Me in the Hallway" is Harry's acoustic, ghostly reminder that this isn't One Direction anymore; it's pining and definitively repetitive "I gotta get better" opens the album with the clear message that this album will be about personal growth. The second track, Harry's solo debut single "Sign of the Times," is in my opinion still one of his best-written songs both lyrically and instrumentally. This song almost feels like an ode to growing older and realizing how far you've already come, and the instrumental push and pull of stripped-back verses and dramatic, building choruses mimics that growing process beautifully.
"Two Ghosts" is another stunning track that's composed to sound like a slow-dance love song, but really tells the story of two people falling apart from one another. I don't pick up on any instrumentation in pared-back "Sweet Creature" besides acoustic guitars and beautifully-layered harmonies, resulting in a very real, sincere love letter. "Only Angel" is maybe the best-produced song on this album, starting with cinematic hidden audio that cleverly transitions into a classic, unflinching, upbeat rock song. The only song that could upstage the previous track is "Kiwi," which is audacious in every way-- from the scream-singing of "'I'm having your baby, it's none of your business'" to the delicious electric guitars-- this one is a heck of an intentional attention grabber.
The closing act of Harry Styles begins with my personal favorite "Ever Since New York." This song is best paired with a self-pondering walk through Central Park in the fall-- it's simplistic but effective in conveying the complexities of feeling disconnected from yourself and the world around you. "From the Dining Table" is a stunning conclusion to this project-- it's another pared-back, acoustic, heartwrenching letter to a lover who's drifting away. Closing the album with "comfortable silence is so overrated/why won't you ever say what you want to say?/even my phone misses your call, by the way" is so painstakingly human and romantic, which perfectly sums up the entire story of Harry Styles.
The entirety of this album is instrumentally dynamic and incredibly vulnerable, solidifying without a doubt that Harry Styles is a rock star in his own right in every sense of the word.
AM I OBSESSED?
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