A long-time fan trying to figure out whether Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally. is genuinely good, or if bias plays a role.
I have been a fan of Harry Styles ever since I was 11 years old when I first saw him singing ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ on The X Factor. At one point I had around fifty One Direction posters on my wall…I know, it was a bit much.
I saw them twice in concert, I stayed up to watch their 7-hour livestream for 1DDay, and I even sent a picture of myself to be in the Four deluxe album sleeve (which I have no recollection of sending).
So when a new Harry Styles album gets released, I do not approach it like a normal person. I approach it like someone whose brain is slightly wired to think that this man can do no wrong. This is why his 4th studio album Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally. has raised a big question for me.
Do I actually like the album because it’s good, or do I like it because it’s Harry Styles and I would probably praise him if he released 50 minutes of silence and called it experimental? This is more of a fan in crisis than a music review, that’s what Rolling Stone is for.
Harry Styles as a timeline
For many people around my age, Harry Styles isn’t just a singer. He is how we measure parts of our teenage years. He is a timeline.
The X Factor video diaries, music video releases, new albums, concerts attended, Zayn leaving the band, their ‘hiatus’, Harry cutting his hair, his first solo Sign of The Times, Fine Line, Harry’s House, Love on Tour. These moments gave us really important memories. We remember where we were, who we were with, what year of school we were in, and which versions of ourselves existed at those times.
All those memories add up, which make it quite difficult to judge his album. When you have been a fan of someone for so long, it becomes harder to separate the joy you feel from your memories of them and also being able to listen to their work with unbiased ears. So, even before I pressed play, I wanted to like it.
First listen: Mostly bops, and some skips
For context, I listened to the album in the car driving to college. I had the volume turned up way too loud, but I wanted to fully immerse myself into the album.
I will categorise the songs into a very legitimate and professional manner below:
- Absolute bops: Aperture, American Girls, Ready, Steady, Go!, Are You Listening Yet?, Pop, Dance No More and Carla’s Song.
- Not a bop but I liked: Coming Up Roses and The Waiting Game.
- Not for me, personally: Taste Back, Season 2 Weight Loss and Paint By Numbers.
Overall, it’s a yes from me. The energy. The vibes. All I could think about was how fun Together, Together will be.
However, there are also songs that I tried to like. But why do I feel like I need to ‘try’ like them? I repeatedly listened to those three songs thinking, “Maybe on the next listen I’ll like it more.” Honestly, I only listened to them because I wanted to like the whole album. I wanted to have a reason to give Harry full credit after not releasing an album in nearly four years.
But the thing is, I would not ‘try’ so hard to like the songs of any other artists, so why him?
Does being a fan ruin your objectivity?
I think that being a long-term fan of anyone does change something in your brain.
This sums it up pretty well:
You don’t listen like a critic. Instead, you listen like someone who already has an emotional history with the artist.
I think that you become more patient, more forgiving and more willing to give a song more chances just because you hope that you will finally like it.
I think this is what happened with me. There were songs that I immediately liked without even hearing the whole thing. But, there were others that took a few listens. Instead of telling myself that a song just wasn’t for me and moving on, I would replay it because “maybe I just haven’t understood it yet.”
This can mean that I’m either just really trying to connect to the music and appreciate it fully, or that I need to cop on because it’s not that serious.
The internet has differing opinions
I was interested to see what other fan reactions were to see if they had similar opinions as me. However, it seems that the internet is very divided about whether this is his best or worst album yet.
There are people who are really enjoying his new sound:
But there are others who are confused about the hype that people are giving it:
So…do I actually like the album, or am I just biased?
I think the answer is both.
Yes, I am very much biased. I will always give Harry Styles more chances than I would give other artists. I will always want and hope to love every new album. I think this is what happens when you are a fan of someone for over 15 years.
But genuinely, I really do enjoy the album. Not every song will be on repeat, but there are more songs that I do like than I don’t. I’ve had the ones I do enjoy on repeat because I want to listen to them, not because I feel like I have to.
Maybe my biased side is what keeps me listening in the first place, but the songs that I can’t get out of my head is what makes me really like this album.
So no, I am not a neutral listener. I never was, nor ever will be. But, maybe being a fan after all this time is not about objectivity. Maybe it’s about memory, loyalty and sometimes defending a song that everyone else seems to dislike.
If all of that makes this a biased ‘review’, then I will happily be biased.
If you haven’t listened to the album yet, do yourself a favour and listen on Spotify or watch his One Night in Manchester on Netflix where he performs the whole album plus some songs from his past albums. Enjoy!
