Harry Styles’ ‘As It Was’ Track Review
The new lead single cements itself as a pure synth-pop ballad, a venture into a new era of high-tempo sound soaked with desolate lyrics
VIA COLUMBIA ERSKINE RECORDS
April 13, 2022
British heartthrob Harry Styles has successfully struck gold yet again — this time around, the hugely praised musician has entered a new oasis, one of home, heard in his latest hit lead single, “As It Was.”
Whirling around on a turntable while sporting a feverishly red sparkly jumpsuit and the iconic black gloves featured on his 2019 smash-hit “Fine Line” album cover, Styles released a sensational video to match his new song.
The sub-three-minute track is the first tease of 13 songs on his upcoming third album, “Harry’s House,” set to arrive on May 20.
After a three-year hiatus from releasing new music, the “As It Was” video premiere aired late Thursday. The single takes an emotional dip into ’80s synth-pop reminiscent of the electronic bouts gathered in A-ha’s “Take On Me.”
Far from musical similarities, Styles’ latest record captures an all-embracing story of how his life is quite literally “not the same as it was.”
The single opens up with “Come on, Harry, we wanna say goodnight to you!” echoed using the youthful voice of his goddaughter, Ruby. It then immediately transitions into the flare of past musical periods — dream-like chords, tangy drum beats and elemental background tunes.
For the most part, Styles’ voice is a beautifully soft blend of speaking and singing over an endlessly catchy beat. Yet, the lyrics are far less cheerful than his pipes, seen in the second verse: “Answer the phone / Harry, you’re no good alone / Why are you sitting at home on the floor? / What kind of pills are you on?”
Styles continues this melancholy sentiment, plastered behind a soon-to-be peppy summertime anthem, when singing the bridge “I don’t wanna talk about how it was,” referring to how he wishes to not dwell on the past.
The “As It Was” video presents Styles with a female companion running in circles on a spinning platform, eliciting the idea of a breakdown in a relationship and embarking on unavoidable new beginnings.
“As It Was” has already become the hottest rave in the music industry, breaking outstanding new records on the first day of its release.
The lyrics “Gravity’s holdin’ me back” appropriately fit moments in the video when Styles fails to catch up with his partner. In another scene, they lay on boards smeared in color with hands intertwined, only to lose grip as the boards separate.
Earlier in the video, Styles is seen walking forward on a line drawn on the floor, when he is suddenly forced to walk backward on the same line, into a door, as he croons, “Holdin’ me back.”
It appears to be a fine line, a continuation of Styles’ journey as a blockbuster solo artist, leaping through treacherous waters to start a new era for his music.
The grand-opener “As It Was,” of the soon-to-be-released album “Harry’s House,” is a bold and unforeseen move from Styles.
“As It Was” has already become the hottest rave in the music industry, breaking outstanding new records on the first day of its release and making eager fans hungry for more.
The grand-opener “As It Was,” of the soon-to-be-released album “Harry’s House,” is a bold and unforeseen move from Styles. Previous singles “Sign of the Times” and “Lights Up” demonstrated their respective record’s concepts and sound — which can only mean “As It Was” is seemingly prophesying that the new album is unlike anything Styles has musically yet done.
The new single hints that Styles is far from delving into old grounds. Instead, leaving off where “Fine Line” ended, he is rapidly rising to a new era: “Harry’s House,” filled to the brim with grittier ballads and a more stylistic Hazza, an ode to Styles’ nickname.
