Harry Styles: paparock for beginners

Life after the boy band: they who survive as a solo artist are rare, and those who survive, as a successful solo artist are even more rare. Compare Ronan Keating with Robbie Williams and you know what …

Life after the boy band: they who survive as a solo artist are rare, and those who survive, as a successful solo artist are even more rare. Compare Ronan Keating with Robbie Williams, and you know what we mean. It is perhaps still a bit early for Harry Styles already in one of these categories. As he sat night himself said, he has at this moment, after all, only ten songs to his name. But the ten are decent to excellent and even classy songs. And if his concert in Antwerp did something suspect, however, that the former member of One Direction is well on the way to a second Robbie Williams to be. To this end, gave Styles because some reasons. His wine red suit with rhinestone accents on the sleeves, for example. And yes, I was kidding. The color stood him well, the cut could have been better. But we go astray. To the heart of the matter: his music.

Blackbird

That Styles good listening to the old rockers at the top of the playlist of many veertigplusser revolution, is beyond question. Even more, this 24-year-old tieneridool gave a nice cover best of Fleetwood Macs ‘The chain’ – if he wanted to make it clear that he believes that dad rock sound that this album characterizes. We also heard more modern influences – ‘Carolina’ had a number of Beck – but grosso modo sounded like Harry Styles as a southern rocker that are great examples eerde. The gitaarlijntje in ‘Sweet creature’ was very schatplichting to the gitaarlijntje of ‘Blackbird’ by The Beatles, opener ‘Only angel was vintage Rolling Stones. Incidentally, it is to us a mystery as to why Styles are so often compared to Mick Jagger: Styles’ mannerisms were before, still just a bit too smooth, and his strut was not yet near that of Jagger. He made us think of Robbie Williams. Harry Styles is the pop star who enjoys the (female) attention, but always are cool stores. The performer who charms and never schoffeert. The man that confetti nor fireworks need to be a stunner of a show.

And a 24-year-old pop singer who will make his particular dedicated 14-year-old fans ‘The chain’ by Fleetwood Mac from front to back (and perhaps back to front) can sing? That will get us an extra star.

Seen on Friday 16 march in the Sportpaleis, Antwerp