Hot-Take Reactions to Harry Styles's 'Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally.': Indie Sleaze That Isn't Indie or Sleazy │ Exclaim!
We're living in a very different world now than we were when Harry Styles won Album of the Year for Harry's House at the 2023 Grammy Awards — and yet, don't you have an eerie sense of déja vu? The former boybander is back and no longer bald, ushering in a new era with an instructive new album: Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally.As evidenced by the artwork and the press photos accompanying the album campaign, Styles is doing what the pop machine demands by reinventing himself once more. Gone are the flowy blouses, baggy jeans and sequin-laden shoulder pad numbers; he's now dressing like a substitute teacher might in the peak era of indie sleaze. Don't be surprised if people are wearing T-shirts over blazers and skinny jeans to his tour.This fixation on the aesthetics of the pop star's fourth solo album is the only fitting way to introduce some Exclaim! staffers' hot takes while listening to Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally. — wherein Styles is dedicated in his pursuit to reheating James Murphy's nachos with no toppings. Below, find our Slack conversation with our reactions to the record's depiction of realizing you should be at the club.That's What Makes You DutifulKarlie: I can probably speak for the majority of us when I say that I was introduced to Harry Styles because of One Direction. I was a late-to-the-party 1D fan — as in, I got into them the month they broke up (RIP). I would say Harry's solo career was the one I followed the closest after the split. It wasn't really because he was my favourite 1D member or anything, but because he seemed to be taking off the most, and it was impossible to escape him.Megan: I had many friends who were, but I was never a One Direction person myself. I enjoyed some of their songs — and stand firm that "Stockholm Syndrome" is the best in their catalogue, I will hear no arguments otherwise — but couldn't really get into the Directioner sauce. However, I've been a casual fan of Styles's solo music. There have reliably been songs on each project he's put out that I've liked! I'm not sure if I could say any have stuck with me in life-changing ways, but he's got three pretty solid records to his name coming into Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally.Karlie: "Stockholm Syndrome" is peak. I've recently re-added "No Control" and "Fireproof" to my spring 2026 playlist again from that same album.Megan: Oh yeah, those ones were fun! Looking back, I think I probably listened to cuts from Styles's self-titled the most in the years following that release, but "As It Was" from Harry's House was a decent single that I certainly didn't mind hearing every time I walked into a mall or something for a couple years there.Karlie: I thought his self-titled solo album was good! His second album, Fine Line, was okay, but I feel bad for every retail worker who was subjected to "Watermelon Sugar" all the time. I was at karaoke last night and someone did a very moving cover of "Falling" — I hope they can get through whatever they're going through.Megan: Speaking of decent singles, "Aperture" continues the "As It Was" legacy. While it's notably LCD Soundsystem-lite, I think it at least commits to that sound quite wholeheartedly. As for the rest of the album... I don't think I can say the same!Karlie: I didn't really care for Harry's House, aside from the singles I didn't find it memorable at all. I remember listening through it once when it came out and deciding that that was enough. I thought "Aperture" was okay, but I honestly wished I was just listening to LCD Soundsystem instead. Which is how I felt while listening to the entire album today.Megan: Yeah, "Aperture" isn't anything revelatory, but it signalled an organic evolution of his sound to be had on the record. Like, who can say they're surprised that Harry Styles followed-up the synth-heavy Harry's House by leaning deeper into electronica? The results, however, make it feel like that maybe wasn't the most fruitful path for him to take. Megan: Either that, or he just really has found his true passion in being marathon runner and music has fallen to the wayside. Our 30s can take a turn.Karlie: Agreed. It just doesn't feel like his heart's really in it. Predictable All the Time. Enjoyable, Occasionally. Karlie: I can only think of a couple of tracks on Kiss All the Time that I thought were standouts on the first couple listens, and even then they felt very safe. I want him to surprise me!Karlie: I liked the synth work on "Taste Back," and I thought "Carla's Song" was a decent closer. I felt like there was a bit more urgency on that last one.Megan: In so many ways, I think he's become an utterly unsurprising artist. When you start out in the world's biggest boy band, going solo is an opportunity to kind of do whatever you want. His debut felt genuine, like it was a reflection of the type of guitar-forward rock music he was likely listening to at the time. When he rebranded for Fine Line, it all of a sudden kind of became about him wearing some ridiculous outfit or another? But there was still some fun Laurel Canyon-y stuff and funk touchstones on that record, I remember "Sunflower, Vol. 6" being a bit of a hyper-fixation song for me at one point. I think what I'm getting at is he kind of just got flattened into following the trends for Harry's House, and Kiss All the Time feels like more of the same (same but different).Megan: "Aperture" kind of made me think it would be way more house, and could potentially aspire to giving me the feeling of listening to the Rapture's "House of Jealous Lovers" on repeat, as per my indie sleaze wont. But it's so emotionally and dynamically flat! For example, I don't hate the simplistic bedrock of "American Girls," but it feels like such a mood-killer after the opener. The synth pads kind of pick up the second verse, but overall this is just a slightly bouncier version of chill lo-fi beats to study/relax to with listless vocals.Karlie: I agree. Like, I know what Harry Styles's next record is going to sound like already. I think this is my biggest gripe with him personally is that he's one of the biggest pop stars in the world, he's touring nonstop and selling out these massive residencies, but I just find him boring! Both his artistic persona and his music are just very predictable to me, so I really don't understand the hype around him. His fans have an almost Taylor Swift-like mentality, and it just doesn't make sense in my brain — what's there to be so excited about? That 1D nostalgia is working overtime.Megan: That's the thing that bothers me too, because this man should know that he can literally do whatever he wants and be fully embraced, no matter how out-there it was. There's a cult-like devotion to him and he seems to have no desire to take artistic risks despite that huge safety net.Karlie: Yeah, unfortunately I feel like the feather boas have overstayed their welcome.The Nights Are Changing Too Fast (or Not Fast Enough?)Karlie: I would love to rearrange the tracklist for this album. The way the upbeat songs are kind of sprinkled throughout in a seemingly arbitrary way didn't work for me.Megan: I totally agree about the sequencing! What the actual fuck, this feels like a playlist made by someone with no sense of flow or the most mid-tempo DJ set ever.Megan: "Ready, Steady, Go!" should be the second track. I like the bass on that one, and it would carry the momentum worked up on "Aperture" over instead of just killing it immediately with "American Girls."Karlie: Agreed! I liked the bass on that one. I will say, I do appreciate that this album wasn't super ballad-heavy, I found that really tiring on Harry's House and on a lot of recent pop records in general. However, that does make the lack of gusto on the "disco" tracks on Kiss All the Time even more disappointing to me.Megan: "Season 2 Weight Loss" is so weird to me, because 1) what on earth is this title? And 2) it kind of feels like an interlude with how drifty and far away his voice is in the mix. I think there's actual potential here, but the chorus is so lacklustre until that little pseudo-beat drop.Karlie: I kept waiting for something to happen on "Season 2 Weight Loss." I'm reading the lyrics to try and see what he means by that title and I'm not getting anything.Megan: Not to sound like Exclaim! Editor-in-Chief Alex Hudson, but I feel like a few of these BPMs being bumped up might make a difference. [Editor's note: every song in the world should be sped up by 20 bpm. Not just on this album, but across the board.] Like the "Pop" chorus isn't bad — I like the guitar — but the verses just slump away into nowhere.Megan: "Dance No More" sounds like it would be a Fine Line B-side, and that's maybe because he actually seems to be having fun on this one. It matches the weird outfits and the weird photos of him in the weird outfits.Megan: Did you see the Twitter discourse about that one song people think is about Olivia Wilde? It was a whole thing a day or two ago; I think The Guardian's review referred to "Paint by Numbers" as being about their breakup.Karlie: Interesting! I fear that song kind of blew over me during my first listen.Megan: I'm not sure I interpret the lyrics the same way as that reviewer, because "Holdin' the weight of the American children whose hearts you break" could certainly be about the pressure he probably feels from his fan base. The line about him not even being 33 seems more likely.Megan: Considering this "lore" feels very Swiftian so I apologize for that, but it also does reflect the remarkable similarity between their respective stans — many of whom I'm sure overlap. At least this isn't as bad as The Life of a Showgirl?Karlie: The bar is in HELL!Karlie: Compared to Showgirl, this just won a Pulitzer Prize.Megan: I can't wait until somebody asks James Murphy what he thinks of it.For Modern Pop Heartthrobs, Style > SubstanceKarlie: It's interesting listening to this one after we did those Bruno Mars Hot Takes last week. We both have very similar takeaways from both albums and their artistry, and how we both find them to be unchallenging and predictable.Megan: You're right and you should say it! I think the main difference is I feel like there is that spark of promise in Harry where he could do something unexpected. I don't feel that with Bruno, and his albums are less frustrating for it (and I like less songs on them)!Karlie: That's a really good point re: the spark of promise. I literally just said earlier that I think I know what the next HS album will sound like, but I will still probably tune in when that happens in the hopes that it will be different.Megan: The other thing that Harry and Bruno have in common is that, when they're able to lock in, they can churn out a hell of a pop hit! That's what brings us back, time and time again, even when we're not surprised. Because a good pop song doesn't have to be surprising, although one might convincingly argue that it's best when it is.Karlie: I think what people really like about HS is that everything about him feels like an "event." Similarly Swift, there's incentive to dress up, to fit his branding, to spread the good word to poor unsuspecting people. I think that's pretty rare for a lot of modern pop stars who are men.Karlie: Like, Benson Boone is a joke to most people, but Harry somehow still gets this response.Megan: He's like a fun bisexual guy who isn't actually bi but will still kiki with you!Megan: Right? There's always another world out there — existing within the same one that we inhabit, somehow — where some people actually do like Benson Boone.Karlie: Sorry to any genuine Benson Booneheads reading this.Megan: You matter.We Can't Afford to Belong Together, ActuallyMegan: I feel like we can't not talk about the outcry over the ticket prices, and the hypocrisy of the "Aperture" refrain literally being "We belong together" — there's one of those posters a couple of blocks from my place despite the fact that he's not coming to Toronto!Karlie: Wasn't it announced that he was supposed to not use dynamic pricing for his tour this time? That must've been a nasty surprise for his fans trying to get seats.Megan: Yeah, I'm still not sure what happened there. Ticketmaster said he had opted out of dynamic pricing, but it was still used! And the prices were so out of control — but it's all cool and fine because he's donating $1 per ticket to charity, guys.Karlie: We need to de-normalize having to sell your kidney and both arms to get concert tickets, man.Megan: The thing is, people will do it! Repeatedly! I think we should start boycotting.Megan: I also think his angle of doing these residencies instead of a typical tour is interesting... and I'd think it'd be cheaper without having to have the stage sets be put up and taken down as much, or paying for shorter hotel stays, etc.Karlie: He's always been a residency guy, which is interesting. He's been recently quoted saying that he thinks it makes for a better live show, since he doesn't have to travel.Megan: I think it would be much easier on both the artist and the crew. But it's probably worse for the fans! A lot more instances of having to travel themselves, etc.Karlie: Which is interesting, because he's fine charging his fans 10 billion US dollars to attend his shows. Sure, it's their choice to travel out, but it just doesn't seem sustainable.Megan: It's not! The whole thing seems very artist-first, which I appreciate to an extent but like... the fans should come first at some point, right?Karlie: Especially if his whole schtick is belonging together and treating people with kindness.Disco Doesn't Happen to People Like Me Very OftenMegan: Okay, what would you rate Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally. out of 10?Karlie I think I'd give this album a 5/10. I didn't hate my time with it, but I think I'll totally forget about it by tomorrow.Megan: It's interesting comparing this to the Bruno Mars album, because I didn't really like a single song on it but I think I had a more enjoyable, less-frustrating time with it than Kiss All the Time? Even though I like "Aperture" and elements of songs like "Ready, Steady, Go!" and "Pop"? Yeah, I'd probably have to go with a 5 too.Megan: If the Olivia Wilde lyrical inspiration is true, it seems like he had a somewhat-belated awakening that he shouldn't have been trying to co-parent her kids in his 20s, he should've been at the club! Unfortunately, the club he's crafted here kind of sucks, and I can't afford the cover anyway.Karlie: I think this album's biggest crime is how muddied and overall monotone it all is. I didn't feel the urge to kiss any time, or go discoing once.Megan: I feel like it's a gross misuse of the term "disco," honestly.Karlie: This is the most disco he can take before getting scared.Megan: As an infamous strobe hater, I can kind of respect that! But also no, no I can't.Karlie: Disco occasionally? More like disc-no, not at all.Megan: I'm going to listen to "Dance Yrself Clean" now.
