"While on hiatus, Styles rediscovered himself both alone and in crowds, fixating on long-distance running, family, and electronic music. He trained for marathons after reading Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami's memoir What I Talk About When I Talk About Running; he had a blast watching LCD Soundsystem in Madrid and Brixton and Radiohead on their 2025 reunion tour; he did what David Bowie also did around 30 and decamped to Berlin to obsess over synthesizers."
"His latest work treasures motion in both its study of dance music that straddles the 20th and 21st centuries and its gentle tug away from pure pop. The result is a zanier and livelier ride than the cloistered and predictable Harry's House."
"Harry's House was fashionably late to a wave of artists attempting to revitalize adult-contemporary music. Styles's lanes - the sleek male pop vocalist, the possible rock icon - are now brimming with contenders."
Harry Styles took a break from his relentless career trajectory in 2023 following his Grammy-winning album Harry's House and extensive world tour. During this hiatus, he pursued marathon training inspired by Haruki Murakami's memoir, attended electronic music concerts, and spent time in Berlin studying synthesizers—mirroring David Bowie's creative retreat at a similar age. At 32, Styles has released his fourth album, Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally, which represents a departure from his previous adult-contemporary sound. The album explores dance music spanning the 20th and 21st centuries while maintaining structural coherence, offering a more dynamic and experimental direction compared to the predictable nature of Harry's House.
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