Harry Styles: Redefining Pop Stardom with ‘Kiss All The Time’
“I’ve no more tricks up my sleeve,” Harry Styles sings on “Aperture,” but for those who’ve followed his career, that sentiment feels hard to believe. The song itself marks a bold turn towards pulsating dance music, a move that feels both surprising and perfectly logical considering the synth elements that began creeping into his 2022 album, Harry’s House. And judging by the trajectory of his career so far, the rest of March 6th’s Kiss All The Time. Disco Occasionally promises to be just as innovative.
As Rob Sheffield discusses with host Brian Hiatt on the latest episode of Rolling Stone Music Now, Styles has spent his first three solo albums carving out a unique space in the pop landscape. Since artists like Justin Timberlake, and even going back to New Kids on the Block, many white-boy pop singers have built their charts success on interpretations of contemporary R&B – often with varying degrees of authenticity. However, Styles, rooted in the rock-infused sound of One Direction, has consistently drawn inspiration from diverse sources.
From the Brit-pop, classic rock, and indie influences of his debut album to the Laurel Canyon explorations of Fine Line, and the Eighties and funk-infused uptempo tracks on Harry’s House, Styles has consistently defied expectations. By deliberately sidestepping current trends, he’s actually created new ones. In the four years since his last release, several artists have begun to follow in his footsteps.
Sheffield draws a parallel to the situation faced by up-and-coming artists like Fabian and Bobby Vee when Elvis Presley entered military service in 1960. “They all filled the void while Elvis was in the army,” Sheffield explains. “And they knew once Elvis got his discharge papers, it was gonna separate the boys from the men, so to speak. We would see who was going to stay a pop star and who was just taking up Elvis’s lane while Elvis was marching and drilling and getting addicted to speed pills.”
Deconstructing “Aperture” and the Future of Styles’ Sound
The discussion also delves into “Aperture,” with Sheffield identifying echoes of Talking Heads and Depeche Mode, alongside influences from Chicago house and Detroit techno. (Styles himself cited LCD Soundsystem as a key inspiration, which aligns with Sheffield’s observations.) A notable shift in perspective is evident in the lyrics, which focus on a collective experience, embodied in the dance-floor chant of “we belong together.” Sheffield describes it as a song about “a multiplicity of voices gathering on the dance floor.”
Ultimately, “Aperture” can be seen as a challenge to those attempting to emulate Styles – a gauntlet thrown down, daring them to keep up. The song also subtly references Leonard Cohen’s famous line – “there is a crack, a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in” – in its central imagery. “It says a lot about Harry’s musical ambition,” Sheffield notes, “that you can make people think of Leonard Cohen in this really electro song about hitting the dance floor.”
Listen to the full discussion on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to gain deeper insights into Styles’ discography, upcoming live shows, and more.
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