Three years after Fine Line, a new Harry Styles era arrives with open arms. In March, Styles announced his forthcoming third album, Harry’s House. The record is seemingly named after the Joni Mitchell song “Harry’s House / Centerpiece” off 1975’s The Hissing of Summer Lawns; Styles is an avid Joni Mitchell fan who once tracked down her dulcimer maker, and after the announcement, Mitchell’s official Twitter account wrote “love the title” to Styles. Since then, Styles has headlined two nights at Coachella, but has otherwise stayed relatively quiet. Only one single was released in anticipation of the album, the synth pop Tiktok hit “As It Was,” which boasts an ambitious video. The album itself is similarly low-key, with Styles celebrating all things domestic across 13 breezy tracks.
In between running Pleasing, a beauty brand that specializes in nail polishes, and promoting his upcoming film roles, Styles will take up residency at five venues across North America for a number of nights. So, welcome to Harry’s House—slip off your shoes, and relax on a trendy sofa. Here are some things to know about the new album.
Harry brings the pop
While Styles’ 2017 debut celebrated classic rock and Fine Line embraced ’70s nostalgia and excess. Harry’s House favors a poppier sound with plenty of synthy ’80s moments and some indie pop touches. The clearest successor to “Watermelon Sugar”’s high-fructose sensuality is trumpet-heavy opener “Music for a Sushi Restaurant,” which sounds intentionally chintzy and louche as Styles scats. There’s also the A-Ha jangle of “As It Was,” the hip-thrusting “Cinema,” and the ’80s slickness of “Daydreaming.” And contrary to its spiky title, “Little Freak” is all soft synths as Styles loses himself in the memory of a past relationship.
Free man in Los Angeles
Harry’s House is, appropriately, an album about domesticity. As Styles told Better Homes & Gardens, the pandemic put his life on pause for the first time in a decade. After some self-reflection, he “realized that that home feeling isn’t something that you get from a house; it’s more of an internal thing.” That said, much of the action on Harry’s House revolves around physical spaces. Wine is tossed back in the garden; cocaine, among other things, is consumed in the kitchen. “Keep Driving” catalogs a laid back L.A. lifestyle filled with edibles, swimming pools, and, confusingly “life hacks going viral in the bathroom.”
Just let me adore you
Styles has long been reluctant to share much about his personal life, but here he opens the windows and lets a little bit of light pour in. “Cinema,” along with the broken camera on “Late Night Talking” could refer to Styles’ partner, actress and director Olivia Wilde, but his lips are sealed. “Satellite” is all about the gravitational pull of desire, while on “Daylight” he aspires to be a bluebird in order to fly to a faraway love. If this sounds a bit vanilla, Styles gets a little risqué on “Cinema”: “If you’re getting yourself wet for me, I guess you’re all mine.” I guess so!
Guess who’s staying at Harry’s House
Harry’s House reunites Styles with Kid Harpoon and Tyler Johnson, his main production team since his 2017 debut. These 13 tracks were recorded at a handful of studios in Los Angeles, England, and beyond. John Mayer lends his shredding skills to “Cinema” and “Daydreaming”; Dev Hynes, who joined Styles for a leather daddy rendition of “Watermelon Sugar” at the 2021 Grammys, plays the cello on “Matilda”; Tobias Jesso Jr., the indie troubadour turned Adele songwriter, co-wrote “Boyfriends,” which also features Ben Harper on guitar.
“Daydreaming” also features a sample of the Brothers Johnson’s groovy 1978 hit “Ain’t We Funkin’ Now,” which was produced by Quincy Jones. And that little voice at the top of “As It Was”? That’s a voice memo from Styles’ goddaughter Ruby Winston, the child of Ben Winston, an executive producer on Styles’ buddy James Corden’s The Late Late Show.
More songs about food
From “Cherry” to “Kiwi” to “Watermelon Sugar,” Styles always seems to be hungry…for something…in his songs. Here’s what’s on the menu at chez Harry this time:
- “Green eyes, fried rice, I could cook an egg on you” - “Songs For a Sushi Restaurant”
- “A bottle of rouge, just me and you/1982 - “Grapejuice”
- “Maple syrup, coffee, pancakes for two/Hash brown, egg yolk/I will always love you” - “Keep Driving”
- “Red wine and a ginger ale” - “Little Freak”
- “Make your tea and your toast” - “Matilda”
- “Moka pot Monday” - “Keep Driving”
