by Sam Wolstenholm
No introduction should be necessary when it comes to Harry Styles. The former One Direction member (I promise I will not mention that trigger for the rest of this review) released his third solo album, Harry's House, on May 20th 2022. I thought his first two albums were both surprisingly good. It took me some time to appreciate them, so I decided to give this one some time too. You'll see how that worked out. It seems as though Harry has taken a more mature approach to his sound here. It is still pop music, but it's more soulful and stripped down overall. It isn't as bright or catchy as his past projects, and that pairs well with the personal themes of love and loss (really, there's a lot more nuance than that) all over this thing. Now it's time to walk through the front door into Harry's House.
This is weird. I like weird, but this is all over the place weird. I can't understand all the words he says in this song, but I also don't think that matters much. When you're eating in a sushi restaurant, you're not listening to the lyrics of the music playing. Admittedly, I am not terribly experienced in sushi restaurant music field. However, I think this is a cool song with cool sounds. There's a couple drum fills that are the big, epic Phil Collins stuff that lead into a simple but powerful horns section. I appreciate the sonic creativity here. The song itself doesn't exactly make me feel anything though. I'm not relating to lyrics like "if the stars were edible, and our hearts were never full, could we live with just a taste?". Granted, he gets points for originality there. I'm also not sure how I feel about his "scooby doo bop"s. It sounds...interesting. If it works for you, great. That part doesn't for me. I like the song overall though.
Now this is more relatable of a song, and that's kind of been one of the best things about Harry's music on his first two albums. There's a funky undertone to this track, and that is done through a straightforward drum beat and a nice keyboard synth (which kind of sounds like horns). Usually, I'd comment on a bass line, but there really isn't anything special about this one. I think that works to this song's advantage though. There isn't much here in terms of switchups throughout the song. It's kind of just a song. Not a bad song, but a song.
3. "Grapejuice"
Nice and breezy. This song is pretty lowkey, but it has a lot of cool sounds in it. I'll point it out here, but it applies to a lot of this album: I have no idea what a lot of the sounds are. They're clearly not live instruments, but they almost play like them. He's got a good ear for creating an atmosphere in a song, even if they aren't complex or anything. I'm not a huge fan of how his voice sounds on the verses, but it gets better for the cute, catchy chorus. I'm pretty sure he's singing about both a woman and alcohol (wine, specifically) here. He's comparing the two as they both make it easier for him to get through the day (or whatever troubles he's struggling with at the time). It's actually both really sweet and unhealthy. I guess the title of the track makes a lot of sense then. I'm not sure how popular all of the songs on this project are, but this one might be my dark horse pick.
4. "As It Was"
Yes. Yes. Yes. I loved this track as soon as I heard it after it was released as a single. It's sad, relatable, and catchy. That's Harry fucking Styles. The fast drum beat keeps the song moving (and, in turn, keeps my foot moving too) and pairs really well with the lead synth. This synth is dreamy and playful. It'll make you want to dance and cry at the same time. I've been informed that this song is about dealing with the divorce of his parents, but I feel like audiences can interpret it to fit their unique situations. He's always been good at writing songs like that. This song screams vulnerability, which is one of the bravest things you can do as a person. I love it. I know it was the single and is probably the most popular on the album, but it's either my favorite or second favorite on the project. Oh, and watch the video too if you haven't already. There are a lot of cool visuals.
5. "Daylight"
Ehhhhhh I think this song is kind of dull actually. There's that huge instrumental shift with the big drums and heavy synths, but it contrasts too much with the rest of the song in my opinion. The lyrics are also just not it. "If I was a bluebird, I would fly to you. You'd be the spoon. Dip you in honey so I could be sticking to you". Just...no. Harry here is talking about getting high all night with somebody, and he's actually upset that the sun comes up. I get it. This is one of those songs where a dark theme hides behind a bright sound. Unfortunately, I'm not quite into the sound. It's okay, but there isn't anything special going on at all.
What a title, huh? This one has actually grown on me, especially after I read and contextualized the lyrics. Not to get too personal, but I am reminded of a certain part of my life where I feel like I could have written this song too. It captures a bittersweet feeling I have always had trouble expressing. The instrumental here is dominated by Harry's vocals with an acoustic guitar playing in the background. There are other sounds too, but the stripped down music makes this song beautiful. This is actually a really good song. Don't let the title make you think anything negative about it before you actually hear it. It's a term of endearment in this case, and Harry is more upset with himself than anything. He's admitting flaws. He's being vulnerable again. This track at this point in the album has given me a good idea about the album title. I'll explain this more later, but for now I'll just say he's letting us in.
7. "Matilda"
This is an even softer version, instrumentally, of the last track. There is an acoustic guitar plucking the whole time. Honestly, I didn't love that part of this song at first, but it takes a backseat to his vocals pretty quickly. That is especially true when it drops out completely for the chorus. It's a catchy chorus too. This is a song about reassurance and safety. It's the "it's okay" song. The "it's not your fault" song (semi-related sidenote: if you haven't seen Good Will Hunting, do it). It is a beautiful ballad that will hit you right in the gut if you are a young person trying to figure out what you're truly doing with your life. This is my other favorite song on Harry's House, and I may even consider it my dark horse too.
8. "Cinema"
Harry tries here to make a sexy, groovy track. I don't really think it works that well. There's a fairly basic beat with a funk bass line. The guitar break three quarters through the song starts an instrumental build-up that is underwhelming at best. It's slow, and the chorus isn't exciting enough to warrant it. Honestly, maybe I just dislike how he says the word "cinema" a billion times. It is what it is, but I'm not a big fan of what it is on this track.
I'm kind of having trouble with this one. It really seems to be by-the-numbers. There's a catchy, poppy melody that repeats quite a bit. The chorus is emphasized with horns to make it sound bigger (and it does). It's not too deep lyrically. Nothing really stands out. It's surface level stuff. The energy is the only thing that makes this one unique at all. I love his passionate singing and screaming. It's fun, yea, but it isn't anything crazy.
10. "Keep Driving"
Unique and peaking my interest, this beats runs at a 12/8 time sigiature (I had to look that up to be sure). It's a nice step away from the simplicity of the last song. As is the case for many of the tracks here, there are plenty of cool sounds. It's the looped guitar over the drum beat that just makes this one an interesting listen. Paying attention to the lyrics also open up quite the little narrative. "Driving" in this case is a metaphor for their time spent together. They're living this life of both good and bad choices, but they're doing it together. "A small concern with how the engine sounds. We held darkness in, withheld clouds. I would ask, 'should we just keep driving?'" Yes, there are problems, and they are both aware of them. However, they are contemplating the idea of just moving forward anyway and ignoring the "small concerns" and focus on the good things. That's honestly unhealthy and could end with the car breaking down (get the metaphor?).
11. "Satellite"
This falls victim to the basic pop song problem in my opinion. I get it Harry, you're a satellite going round and round. You're both distant and constant. I don't think it's a particularly unexplored concept, and the word "satellite" just sounds weird to me here. There isn't anything terribly catchy going on. Nor is there a super interesting beat to distract me from the lyrics. It's not exactly bad, but I don't feel like I know Harry any better with this one. A lot of the transitions and beat changes also sound forced to me. It sounds like he had the main beat and chorus but didn't know what else to do to make the song longer, so he decided to just do a bunch of random stuff. This is one of the weaker tracks.
12. "Boyfriends"
Well, shit. Thanks for calling me out, Harry! I'm only half kidding. I'll talk about the song first, then I'll talk about why I said that. This kinda fits with the sound of "Little Freak" and "Matilda" as far as the music and song structures go. It's a ballad-like sound with Harry singing over acoustic guitar. He also brings out some fantastic melodies and layers his vocals to create some nice harmonies. I think that may be my favorite direction (no pun intended) he takes on this album. It sounds less like young pop music and more mature. It works really well with his voice and allows the narratives to shine a bit more. This narrative is something else too. He could be reflecting on his own behavior as a boyfriend, but it seems as though he's putting himself in the shoes of the boyfriend's partner. He's calling out and recognizing how men can be in relationships and how it affects their partners. The thing about it is he's pretty much completely right. He's empathizing with the ones affected by this behavior as best he can. As a man and a former boyfriend, I can see myself in this song...like a lot. At the time, I had my reasons for it all. I didn't think I was doing anything wrong. I tried my best to be communicative, but I didn't go about it the right way. I acted selfish in order to hide my real insecurities, and it ended up hurting the people I loved. Granted, relationships are two-sided, and I was always trying my best to balance all parts of my life. It was tough to see it from outside my shoes no matter how hard I tried. This song really just hits these points on the head and more. I think more men need to hear this song because it almost forces some tough reflection.
This is kind of a weak closer in the grand scheme of things. Not a bad track when it comes to its production, but it's pretty basic overall. The lyrics do nothing for me as half of them are just the title over and over again. He's singing well, but there's nothing grabbing my attention here. I guess I'd say this one is good enough as an album closer, but not good enough to make the playlist. It gets the job done.
Overall
If you didn't get it by this point, Harry Styles is letting us into his house with this album. This means he is opening up. Letting us into his personal space. He's always had personal songs, but this album takes it to a whole new level. I think it's to its benefit too. Really, I take this album to be about maturity (in more ways than one). He is singing about more mature topics from a experienced point of view. The sound of this project is less playful and more serious. I feel almost like I went through a therapy session after reviewing this, and that's a good thing. It also is mature in that it gets better with every listen. There isn't too much here that sticks with you after the first listen. However, the more you explore his house, the more you will find. If you didn't like this album the first time or two you listened to it, I encourage you to give it another try (especially if you enjoy Harry's other projects).
An 7.9 is a good score. Honestly, it can even go up from there in the future. What's holding it back is some of the filler tracks. I enjoy this album for how vulnerable and personal it gets, but not every song meets that mark. I can look past that if the music is spectacular. Unfortunately, that isn't always the case here. I can see people getting bored listening to some of these tracks, especially if they aren't trying to pay attention to the lyrics. Again, this one takes some getting used to, but it's worth it in my opinion.
7.9/10
If you've read my review, I assume you already have heard Harry's House, so I want to hear what you think. What'd I miss? Did I tear apart your favorite song? Or give too much credit to one that doesn't deserve it? Any questions or comments? I'd love to respond. Feel free to drop review requests too! I will strongly consider them.
Peace and love.
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