#maybe that as intended as a contrast too idk but the wistful watercolor mood was the overall aim

[septembersghost]

Review:

The title of Harry's House came before the actual album did, inspired by Hosono's House, the debut album of wildly influential Japanese pop singer Haruomi Hosono. Styles had heard the record during a visit to Japan and become enamored with the idea of naming an album "Harry's House", and more specifically building an album around the metaphor of a "house" representing his internal mind. Written and recorded primarily through 2020 and 2021, Harry's House is a product of Styles' pandemic musings, a collection of songs about love and life that all feel distinctly nostalgic. Even the happier tracks on the album carry notes of wistfulness, at times making it hard to tell whether a song is about a breakup or a current love.

Sonically, Harry's House moves beyond the 70's rock of Styles' first two albums and embraces the synths starting to emerge in Fine Line. The album is light and airy, with folk and funk influences adding a whimsical feel to the indie-pop of most of the songs. The opener, "Music For A Sushi Restaurant", welcomes us in with enthusiastic horns, and the groovy "Daydreaming" gives us a sample from The Brothers Johnson's "Ain't We Funkin' Now". It's a charming deviation from the often heavy-handed imitation of past artists on his early albums; while you can still see older music's influence on Styles he seems to be letting go of his need to be seen as a "serious" artist, and the result is a pleasant blend of pastiches that no longer feel like they're trying too hard.

Where Harry's House excels is also where it falters; it's good in a comfortable way, an easy listen made easier by the fact that there isn't anything quite innovative about it. Styles is taking other genres and sounds and presenting them to an audience that might not be aware of them in a pleasant, palatable way; that in itself is a talent, and one he has always been good at. But that is not something that will make you remembered. Harry's House is a good album. Harry Styles is a good artist. But it's clear he desires iconicism, wants his name up there with his idols, and for that you need more than just good music and great stage presence.

Sonically, Harry's House is great, boasting catchy melodies and strong production. The lyrics are where we see Styles start to stumble; they're cloyingly vague, giving the listener enough information about him to contract their own idea of him, but not enough to ruin whatever that idea may be. It's the same vagueness Styles has perpetuated throughout his entire career, keeping himself aloof enough to build mystery and let fans project their own fantasies of what they want him to be. But it's frustrating when that same aloofness extends past his interviews and media presence into his art. Harry's House feels at times like you're hearing about someone's life through whispers on the street; while you can piece together an idea of what's going on you still don't understand who they truly are.

The best written song on the album (and coincidentally, the only one with a female songwriter) is "Matilda", a lovely ode to leaving behind a family that mistreated you. "You don't have to be sorry for leaving and growing up" Styles croons over a bare guitar melody, in a voice that seems to insist he understands. While his lyrics can get jarringly cringey at points in the album ("cocaine/side boob/choke her with a sea view" in Keep Driving, "you hide the body all that yoga gave you" in Little Freak, and other trope-y descriptions of his female lovers that aim for sexy but land at awkward) it's moments like this that show his potential as a songwriter. He can articulate personal thoughts well when the song isn't necessarily about himself, but when writing about his personal life his desire for privacy hedges his lyrics into vague statements.

Despite the vagueness of a lot of the lyrics, there are snapshots of intriguing concepts throughout the album: "Harry you're no good alone/Why are you sittin' at home on the floor?/What kind of pills are you on?" Styles sings in "As It Was", the lead single and another highlight of the album. The mental health struggles and implied substance abuse issues seemingly referenced add a lot more dimension to his character, and would be a very interesting thing to explore, but they're never mentioned again. He hints at cracks in his idyllic life but gets too scared and shies away from fully discussing them. You can tell he wants to be vulnerable, and tell that even sharing what he's already shared about himself is a struggle, but at some point the lack of substance shifts from making Styles seem like a private person to making him seem like someone who just doesn't have anything interesting to say.

I think a lot about this quote from Styles' interview with Zane Lowe: "I think sometimes, with therapy as an example, you open a bunch of doors in your house that you didn't know existed. You find all these rooms you get to explore." Harry's House let the listeners into Styles' house, and in his mind that meant rummaging through these rooms with him. In reality, the rooms were roped off; the listeners could glimpse inside but see nothing more than a quick tableau of his life. You might be in Harry's House but it's a guided, polished tour, with everything you see still obsessively curated

This is something from reddit that explained my thoughts on album perfectly

while i do feel a closer and more real/human connection to the record than this review does - "Even the happier tracks on the album carry notes of wistfulness" this point especially is probably where i make a particular connection - this was an interesting read, thank you for sharing it!