Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally. is the studio album equivalent of the new, ever-so-trendy cafe-day-rave; viral and enjoyable to some, but ultimately a diluted version of a rich piece of nightlife culture. Whether we’re talking about dingy, underground nightclubs (something that supposedly inspired Styles’ new album) or disco music as a genre, both stand as pillars of freedom and expression. Both came to be out of the necessity to subvert societal suppression. Disco was born in nightclubs, primarily favoured by minority groups; whether it was African American, Latin or queer communities, it was a form of togetherness and rebellion. It was cutting-edge and represented the unafraid.
Styles’ fourth album presents itself as “experimental” and “wildly adventurous” (quotes taken verbatim from Styles’ Spotify biography). It is a slight departure from his previous work, and there are certainly elements that made me stop and listen—the Moog bassline combined with reverberated drums on “Season 2 Weight Loss” is minimal and clean; the bassline and chorus of people singing together on “Dance No More” is catchy and earns a little sway of the hips. However, I can’t help but feel like I have seen much of this before from other artists.
The second track, “American Girls,” has The 1975 written all over it, almost to an uncanny point. Styles rhymes “ages” and “stages” much in the same way as Healy does on “Me & You Together Song.” The 1975 also has a song that is all about loving American girls that came out 10 years ago.
Styles said that the album was inspired in part by Berlin nightclubs, but also by LCD Soundsystem. This was immediately clear upon listening, specifically that Moog on “Season 2 Weight Loss.” Of course, pop music is constantly being swallowed and regurgitated in ever so slightly different ways across the board, so you can’t be too upset that Styles is taking influence from electro-indie artists that came before him.
I think what is so hard to love about this album is that it seems to lack the reckless abandon and uninhibitedness that is so prevalent in LCD Soundsystem’s music. James Murphy seems to have no fear; his music feels like an honest expression. However, on Styles’ album, there is a certain sense of restraint behind the delivery of his songs.
It is not that the album is objectively bad; it’s just that I thought it was going to be more progressive. The claim that Harry is in a “wildly adventurous” era was exciting, and the production and soundscapes of the album are cool and danceable. I am just unconvinced that Harry himself is feeling the music. I am unconvinced that he was ready to take the plunge out of mainstream palatability and into the deep end of true, artistic experimentation.
