It’s safe to say that Harry Styles is no longer the boy he was at the beginning of his career, and he’s made this fact clear with his latest album—Kiss all the time. Disco, Occasionally. While listening to it, I could have sworn that two entirely different men created this and Harry’s House. Styles’ transformation from an arena-ready, car karaoke, squealing-with-your-besties genre has been stark, surprising and, for some of us, a little disappointing. 

As expected of a global superstar, Styles has left nothing to be desired in terms of quality with his foray into modern disco dance-pop. While the album feels less applicable for lively performances, it’s rhythmic experimentation (“The Waiting Game”), heavy bass (“Are You Listening Yet?”, “Carla’s Song”) and dancefloor electronic shimmer (“American Girls”) get your toes tapping on first listen. Whilst there were a few tracks in Harry’s House that hinted at the artist’s shift to a new synth-heavy destination, such as “Cinema and “Daydreaming”, I don’t believe fans were quite ready for such a dramatic change. 

The album’s melancholy mood is highlighted within each song, indicating a distinct shift away from Styles’ boy band origins. As much as he remains a global heartthrob, it’s clear that he is making an effort in this album—as well as in his latest fashion choices and toned-down attitude in interviews—to encourage his long-time fans to see him as the man he’s grown into.

This new shift in Style’s career, despite being technically sound, does raise some concerns for his fans who have followed his solo career beginnings founded in pop-rock. In changing his genre, Styles’ sacrifices the two key components of his music that provided his initial global appeal: approachability and playfulness. The album lacks the warmth of his usual artistry. If Harry’s House felt like a wink and a kiss on the cheek, Kiss all the Time feels like a whirlwind night out where your friends party around you while you watch the ceiling spin—a loneliness to which many can relate. I was particularly disappointed that there was not one truly stripped-back acoustic track for me to fall in love with—an element in previous albums which provided a woody and homey warmth. The eleventh track, “Paint By Numbers”, came close, but I found it oddly less sincere than “American Girls” which incorporated a particular piano riff I’m sure diehard Styles fans (like myself) would recognise on first listen. 

It feels as though the album carries a heavy weight on its shoulders—not unlike Styles himself. Styles’ absence from the industry in recent years seems to have wiped a level of whimsy from his once joyous personality. This has been particularly evident in his transition from innocent and childlike costumes on the Love on Tour stage to the baggy trousers and tie he wore performing at the 2026 BRIT Awards. Unlike his previous albums, it’s incredibly unromantic and instead serves as a reflection on Styles’ career with one particular notion poignantly clear—his hidden apathy to fame.

With this album, Styles is riding a popularity wave as pop trends shift further away from the moody and atmospheric tunes of the late 2010s and towards a heavier influence from electro-pop. Whilst the lockdown era of the early 2020s greatly popularised bedroom pop, indie, pop-rap, some emo revival and TikTok hits, disco has been growing in the background. With its beginnings brought on by artists like Dua Lipa, whose album Future Nostalgia incorporated high-energy dance tracks reminiscent of the 70s movement, and now being pushed by Styles, I wonder if the disco resurgence and its four-on-the-floor beats and funk-reminiscent baselines will hold until the end of this decade.

So, long-time fans, if you haven’t already listened, be ready to be surprised and musically persuaded. If this synth-dominant disco-pop had me (a diehard classic rock fan) dancing along after the first listen, it’s sure to catch you as well. Its gloomy secrets scream for attention and will have you picking apart lyrics in seconds, deciphering Styles’ last couple years away from the spotlight and uncovering his personal transformations as a global artist. Enjoy the change Styles has brought, after all, it might be here to stay.