Truthfully, every since it’s release on Friday the 13th, I haven’t been able to stop listening to Harry Styles’ sophomore album, Fine Line. There's a sort of enchanting power to it, in which Styles invites us into his private world, blurring the ever present line between fan and friend. We're enticed by the story of how his heart broke. Through all the scattered pieces, Harry invites us, the listener, to piece it back together again by finding out how it ever broke in the first place.  

Golden - 3:29 

A sweeping entrance into the album, like hoofbeats on a pavement before something exciting begins. The song is just made to be driven to, with ear-bursting drums accompanied by a bright and excited Styles, who croons about a lover being the Sun, the positives and negatives of that metaphor all included. It shows a side of Styles that most media seems to forget: his vulnerability. He sings about the lover fixing his brokenness, casting all of their worries about a possible relationship aside, and disabling all of his senses so that he becomes completely lost within them. This marks the first chapter of the story of love: falling in it.  

Notable Lyric: "I know that you're scared because I'm so open." 

Watermelon Sugar - 2:54 

The track premiered during Styles' highly coveted double duty as host and musical guest on SNL. The lyrics transport the reader back to a simple, mellow summer evening, tasting strawberries and languishing in the complex simplicities of summer loving. Styles, who directs each phrase to his lover, praising them, sings each line so that they flow into each other. The lyrics continue the theme of being all consumed in a love that takes away your identity. In terms of production, the single is loud and boisterous, almost taunting. The trumpets in the second chorus add to the already layered and fun, upbeat mix of electric guitar & drum beats. 

Notable Lyric: "Getting washed away in you.” 

Adore You - 3:27 

The "pop-iest" track on the album exceeds the preset expectations. The beat is catchy and seems like something out of Bowie's catalog. The lyrics are excitingly tragic, masked behind the background harmonies and beats, wishing for commitment but throwing it away. While the front vocals say "you don't have to say you love me," the background vocals plead "say you love me," which is definitive of Style’s casualty being an act, and wanting a deep emotional connection, which he mentions was missing while he was in the band, and must be missing in his high sphere. 

Notable Lyric: "I'd walk through fire for you, just let me adore you." 

Lights Up - 2:52 

The first single from the new era, this ditty is a 3 minute dance-pop anthem to the sad person on the dancefloor. Reminiscent of the iconic album, Melodrama, which explores the sadness embedded in the toxic, addicting, party atmosphere, Lights Up displays a figure that hasn't been shown to us, the Styles that is lost within the party, drowning out his sorrows in human touch. The chapter has changed to watching the relationship unravel before your eyes, neither powerless nor complacent in it. 

Notable Lyric: "Do you know who you are?" 

Cherry - 4:19 

The most obviously personal song on the album is centered around the fall of the central relationship. The love moves on so quick, it makes Styles’ head spin. A raw and reflective voice accompanies a folk guitar, which carries through the deepest confessions of missing accents, talking to friends, and jealousy. The voice note at the end is a revealing touch that adds to the authenticity of the artist, showing that Harry feels comfortable enough to share with the world. 

Notable Lyric: "Don't you call him what you used to call me."  

Falling - 4:00 

The one true ballad on the album is dedicated to the mourning of Styles’ sense of self. In the song, which was written in 20 minutes and features his crisp, haunting vocals against a simple piano beat, Harry showcases the sides of him that have “fallen” into despair since the loss of his all-consuming partner. The lyrics are deeply personal, allowing the audience into his darkest moments. Styles mentions “the Beachwood Cafe” by name, a breakfast spot known to be frequented by his ex. It’s about seeing someone who has already walked two steps ahead, and still trying to fall back into their arms, knowing they’ll never catch you and desperately scrambling to pick up your pieces before the pain of hitting the ground. 

Notable Lyric: "And I get the feeling that you'll never need me again." 

 To Be So Lonely - 3:12 

My personal favorite song on the album. The track truly highlights the deft ability and nimble hands of the guitarist, Mitch Rowland, in an acoustic setting, accompanied by light drums and a heavy string section. The lyrics are the most heart wrenching, yet the tone of the song is carefree. Styles reveals his jealous and broken to the core nature while simultaneously  

putting on the facade of being carefree. The song has layers and builds up to the resounding chorus of Styles screaming the song title, pulling down the mask to show how truly broken his pieces are as he tries desperately to escape his lover’s power over him. 

Noteable Lyric: “Do you think it’s easy, being of the jealous kind.” 

She - 6:03 

          A brand new chapter showing Styles’ reinvention of self after succumbing to the darkness that lived inside of him. This is a rock number that puts Woman to shame. The song allows Rowland to shine once again with an outro worthy of Prince’s Purple Rain. The lyrics are story-like, a dream sequence in an already interesting narrative. Styles speaks with longing about a woman, perhaps the femininity that he wishes to express or perhaps the perfect lover, that exists only in his head, and how she impacts everyone else’s movements as much as his are infuenced.  

Noteable Lyric: She lives in daydreams with me, and I don’t know why, I don’t know where she is. 

Sunflower Vol. 6 - 3:42 

Part of a summer album in the winter (as writer Alexa Kochiniski put it), Sunflower Vol. 6 was the wild card of the album, exploding with unnatural happiness. The production is fun and lighthearted without taking itself too seriously, and shows the metamorphosis of Styles falling in love with a new stranger, his tongue-tiredness and foolishness in all. The synth mixed with the background harmonies make for an auditory experience, along with the sound effects in the background. 

Noteable Lyric: “Your flowers just died, plant new seeds in the melody.” 

Canyon Moon - 3:10 

Stevie Nicks’ favorite song off of the album is a jaunty guitar tune, with a foolishly lovestruck Styles at the center. Canyon Moon just makes you feel good, and is reminiscent of the Beatles. The thrill that lightly accents the final chorus paired with the blind optimist shows Styles has fallen in love, and shows just how boundless the folds of his favor fall. He’s been away from his lover for a minimal amount of time, yet it seems to stretch forever, as he reminisces on more favorable times while waiting to get home. 

Noteable Lyric: “I’ve been gone too long from you.” 

Treat People With Kindness - 3:17 

The slogan everyone knows, the song that no one truly expected. Styles seems more like a feature than a main singer, as a chorus takes on the message of self love, self acceptance, and treating people with kindness. Backed by a piano and guitar beat, this song sounds straight out of a vintage public service announcement, showing the listener that in order to move forward, you must accept yourself for who you are. The good. The bad. It makes us human. 

Noteable Lyric: “Maybe we can find a place to feel good.”  

Fine Line - 6:18 

Here, we return to the main narrative of Styles and his ex. It seems as if they’re back together, in an odd sort of temporary fix to their brokenness.  

Though the end refrain at the climax is “We’ll be alright”, with a beautifully chaotic crescendo of voices, drums, and acoustic guitar, the ending song is pessimistic, in an almost unrecognizable falsetto falling back to his most hopeless, and might serve as a sort of goodbye to his lover. It’s more of Styles trying to convince himself that the “Fine Line” he walks between friend and lover in the agreement he has alluded to establishing with his ex will work, while knowing that it won’t. The verses are sappy and dripped in sad pearls of lyric quality, making it the perfect anthem for Harry’s broken heart. 

Noteable Lyric: You sunshine, you temptress.  

"The album is yours. I am yours. I couldn't ask for a more incredibly group of people to play my music to." 

 - Harry Styles, One Night Only: Fine Line Live at the Forum in LA 12/13/2019 

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