Harry-Style-kiss-all-the-time-disco-occasionally-
Good, but not very good! After three intense, intense listens, what I'm left with is a sense of suspension.
From his fourth solo album, “Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally.”I was expecting the final blow, the definitive work. Not that there is a lack of brilliant sonic insights, but there is a constant “meh” that hovers between the songs.
Perhaps the marketing emphasis that accompanied the whole wait for the album incredibly raised my expectations, leading me to think that “Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally.” could become the perfect album of Harry's discography and of the pop of this decade.
It is surprising that, despite its title, the album does without the immediate bangers that have marked his career, such as As It Was or Watermelon Sugar.
The atmosphere is relaxed, post-club, more dawn than night.
Of course, there is no shortage of sonic intuitions and they hit hard. There are above average songs, like American Girlswell built and super listenable; there is room for the breakbeat of Season 2 Weight Lossan essay on paranoid architecture, with those suspended choirs and synths that envelop you like a synthetic fog, while Ready, Steady, Go! features a bass that seems to emerge from a White Stripes drawer and crosses Italo-disco with synth in the end.
Alongside these moments, Styles allows himself more intimate edges: orchestrations that embrace the voice in Coming Up Rosessinger-songwriter acoustic accents in Paint By Numbersphrasings reminiscent of funky and Prince in Dance No More or Robbie Williams in Are You Listening Yet?.
But other traces are lost in moods rather than in substance: Taste Back, The Waiting Game, Pop they flow pleasantly but quickly evaporate from the memory.
Closes Carla's Songperhaps my favourite: dark, suspended, where Styles' voice floats on light electronics and a vaguely wave rhythm (the drums and bass have an almost post-punk appeal).
On a lyrical level, the artist often remains cryptic. Sometimes you find yourself searching for meaning and then you give up, letting the words slide over the groove and rhythm without ever taking center stage.
An elegant and refined pop album, capable of raising the level of his repertoire without making a definitive impact. It's a cool and experimental Harry Styles, but without drawing thunderous applause — or maybe this is just my opinion after three listens. We'll see what happens over time! Success is assured and the top of the charts all over the world guaranteed!
SCORE: 7.75
THE VOTES OF OTHERS
The Independent (UK) – Rating 8.00
Rolling Stone – Rating 8.00
Clash Music – Rating 8.00
Consequence – Rating 7.50
The Telegraph (UK) – Rating 6.00
The Guardian (UK) – Rating 6.00
TO LISTEN NOW
American Girls – Ready, Steady, Go! – Carla's Song
TO BE SKIPPED IMMEDIATELY
Nothing. The album listens perfectly. Pop essence!
