Harry Styles released his fourth studio album, “Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally” on March 6th, 2026. This was the former One Direction star’s first album in four years, sparking excitement about his return to the studio from fans across the globe.
The music community knows that Harry Styles is capable of writing major pop hits and upbeat “songs of the summer,” while also acknowledging his emotional versatility and vulnerability through tracks such as “Sign of the Times” and “Fine Line.” Catchy tunes like “As it Was” and “Watermelon Sugar” found quick stardom, with “As it Was” nominated for three Grammy Awards in 2023, including Song of the Year, and “Watermelon Sugar” won Best Pop Solo Performance in 2021 at the 63rd Grammy Awards. Both songs are pop-driven and upbeat (with “As it Was” slightly more nostalgic) and are known by most people who have turned on a radio in the past five years.
“Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally,” however, really emphasizes the “disco occasionally” part of the title and favors more reflective, intimate and emotional lyrics compared to Styles’ previous album, “Harry’s House.” While some fans and critics are disappointed by this shift in Styles’ music production, it really shouldn’t come as a surprise. On Oct. 16, 2024, Styles’ former One Direction bandmate Liam Payne tragically passed away at the age of 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina. Styles began to creep away from the public eye, favoring a private lifestyle filled with a renewed focus on health and running. In fact, Styles has been featured in the popular magazine, “Runner’s World” numerous times and raced both the Tokyo and Berlin Marathons.
Understanding these key events in Styles’ life explains his shift to an intimate lyrical style polished off with high-energy instrumentals, possibly reflecting a theme of keeping it publicly together while struggling with life’s unprecedented misfortunes.
Keeping all of this information in mind, here are four tracks from Styles’ new album that deserve appreciation.
“American Girls”
“American Girls” is by far one of the catchiest songs on the album, but it still humbly reflects on Styles’ experience watching his friends get married while he debates his own loneliness. In an interview with Apple Music 1’s Zane Low, Styles said, “I watched my three closest friends get married and actually seeing them trust in something and risk something to find something truly fulfilling that isn’t as like shiny and on paper as exciting.” Lyrics from the chorus are etched into my brain and run around my mind everywhere from in class to out and about with friends. “‘I’ve known you for ages,’ it’s all that I’ve heard. My friends are in love with American girls,” are beautiful words that reflect on Styles’ happily coupled up friends that gently touch at his own cautious loneliness.
“Paint by Numbers”
Emotional and reflective, Styles touches on his battles with balancing fame, fan expectations and even has a nod to his One Direction days, alluding to a past memory with Liam Payne. “Kids with water guns, watch them run” seemingly refers to when One Direction would spray each other with water guns on stage, a melancholy callback to his early-career days. The idea of early fame forcing Styles to grow as a person and artist in a certain way with the metaphor of “painting by numbers” is a melancholy and thought-provoking song stem I truly enjoyed.
“Taste Back”
“Did you get your taste back? Or do you just need a little love?” Styles consistently asks his listener these questions throughout the track while exploring the idea of an unexpected person reappearing in your life. His lyrics in “Taste Back” playfully toy with the push and pull of two people reconnecting after a significant period of time has passed, something very relatable that almost everyone has experienced at one point. The bittersweetness of talking with a former love or friend is captured well in “Taste Back” and forces the listener to look into their own past.
“The Waiting Game”
My personal favorite off the album, I felt called out by and deeply connected with “The Waiting Game.” The song explores heavy topics like avoiding responsibility in relationships, “romanticizing” one’s own shortcomings and failing to take action for change while instead remaining unhealthily passive. A bit of a hopeless ballad, “The Waiting Game” also struck me as referencing someone who stays in a rocky relationship, waiting for something to magically change while growing numb to the problems that have accumulated over time. Elegant and raw, I appreciated Styles’ vulnerability and ability to capture the parts of relationships drawing to a close that are difficult to talk about.
While “Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally” might not be what fans were originally expecting, it hit home in all the right places with a delicate vulnerability that only an artist like Harry Styles could produce.
