Harry Styles Is In The Business Of Arena Rock, And Business Is Good

If there’s one term to describe the audience that have comfortably filled out Qudos Bank Arena this evening for Harry Styles, it’s this: they’re ready.

The second support act The Preatures depart the stage, the distinctive opening riff to Shania Twain’s ‘Man! I Feel Like a Woman’ plays over the PA. As if a reflex, the audience screams back its response: “LET’S GO, GIRLS.” Minutes later, a full-throated rendition of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ fills the air, bringing parents and children together as only a song like that can.

Perhaps the most curious inclusion on the pre-show playlist, however, is a One Direction song. The song in question is ‘Olivia’, which is on their final album, Made in the A.M., from 2015. It was not a single from that record, nor would it ever be considered among the group’s most popular songs — and yet, it elicits a louder, wilder reaction than Shania and Queen combined. People are out of their seats. Friends are in arms. The lyrics are belted out so loudly that the song itself can barely be heard over the P.A. If that’s not a signal of how ready this crowd is, you’d be hard pressed to figure out what is.

The shriek when the lights go down is so high that only certain breeds of dogs can hear it. It’s a scene, man — the front dancefloor is lit up by phones recording the intro, chants of “HAR-RY/HAR-RY” are set off in opposing pockets of the arena, every able-bodied person is on their feet.

Without any exaggeration whatsoever, the reaction Styles gets when he finally emerges in the opening notes of ‘Only Angel’ is what one imagines The Beatles would have gotten in ’64, or Michael Jackson in ’87 — to this crowd, to this fandom, he is on that same tier. Probably above it, really. 

Tonight is part of the first full-size solo tour Styles has undertaken, but he’s not a stranger to this venue in particular. Five years prior, One Direction performed here as a part of their massive Take Me Home world tour.

A lot has changed in the intervening years, with the group serving as a Hydran beast of sorts — the head was chopped off, but several grew back. Of the five solo careers that have been forged, Styles is easily the frontrunner — critically, commercially and artistically. It once took being a part of an ensemble for Styles to be able to fill this arena — now, he can do it all on his own.

“The reaction Styles gets when he finally emerges is what one imagines The Beatles would have gotten in ’64, or Michael Jackson in ’87 — to this crowd, to this fandom, he is on that same tier. Probably above it, really.”

When you have an audience that is as hopelessly devoted to you as Styles has, it would be easy to phone in a performance and reason that your presence is the present. It’s for this reason that Styles deserves full credit for keeping the energy levels up across the board, bounding from one side of the stage to another with a speed that would have Mick Jagger needing a breather.

His banter is well-rehearsed, but his cheeky running jokes (singing ‘The Horses’, pointing out repeat-offender fans in the crowd) ensure that the human element factors in just enough to shake the idea of simply going through the motions.

He could get by on charm alone, but Styles is all-round a better musician than ever before to boot. He reflects a versatile array of personae through his voice and stage presence depending on the track, from sweet and soulful to folksy troubadour to flat-our rockstar. One would also put this down to his engine room of a backing band — not only exceptional musicians behind their respective instruments, but the perfect vocal foil to Styles’ full tenor.

Special mention in particular has to go to drummer Sarah Jones, who is quite literally the driving force behind all of the set’s highlights. She fires on all cylinders during a rework of early 1D hit ‘What Makes You Beautiful’, slinks between a rim-shot groove and splashy strut on ‘Carolina’ and nails a Phil Collins-sized fill on ‘Sign of the Times’. Even the most cross-armed pop skeptic would find their jaws agape at Jones’s abilities — the old saying about a great man and a great woman is literally true in this instance.

The final numbers of the evening are testament to Styles’ second act being both a liberating and wholly-fruitful experience. Although not his song and covered quite faithfully, Fleetwood Mac’s ‘The Chain’ allows for Styles to utilise his backing band to their utmost abilities in addition to acknowledging the impact such masterful songwriting has had on him personally. The famous second part of the song brings the audience to its feet once again, and the legacy of the Mac lives on in a new generation — perhaps Styles should have been considered as Lindsey Buckingham’s replacement? 

With ‘Kiwi’ — Styles’ hardest, fastest and sexiest song — the arena gets as close to a moshpit as one can get at a family-friendly pop show. It’s fever-pitch intensity, running off twentysomething sex appeal and big-swinging guitars — a world away, really, from the squeaky-clean purity that defined One Direction’s visit to this venue in 2013.

Yes, Harry Styles has grown up in public — but now he’s a giant. All you can really do is stand back in awe of the spectacle.

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David James Young is a writer and podcaster. Tweet him your favourite One Direction song: @DJYwrites.

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Harry Styles photos by Duncan Barnes