Harry Styles
2nd December 2017
Spark Arena, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Matt Henry Mendonca.
It would be hard not to make comparisons to those days of ‘Beatlemania’ when witnessing the hundreds of young fans lined up since 8am outside Spark Arena in the hope of securing a place in the front row; a front row spot being the guarantee that one would be just that much closer to the one and only Harry Styles. Having this effect on fans is certainly not new for Styles, as a former member of the boy band One Direction he has certainly seen his fair share of fan mania. However as a solo artist, Styles is so much more than just another ‘teenage heartthrob’; he is an accomplished musician with strong song writing capabilities and an endearing – if not rather English – stage presence.
Supporting Styles tonight is another young singer-songwriter by the name of Maddy Jane. Hailing from Tasmania, she began her journey on a shell-encrusted, beaten-up Yamaha guitar. Taking to the stage with her band in tow, Maddy Jane was greeted by hundreds of smiling faces who enthusiastically welcomed her to stage. Showcasing her vocal talents with ‘Not Human At All’ accompanied only by her lead guitarist James Hunt, it is immediately obvious that is indeed a young woman with a bright future in front of her. With a slight country undertone the song has just the right amount of bite to it and displays a maturity that you would not expect from someone quite so young. Dressed in a simple black ensemble, her red and white guitar slung over her shoulder she addresses the cheering crowd; “New Zealand! Hi my names Maddy Jane, I know – I’m not Harry” her self-effacing humour and distinctive Australian accent instantly making her a favourite with the crowd. Joined by the rest of her band Maddy Jane delivered ‘People’ a single from 2015; with an upbeat indie styled chorus it was an immediate hit with the crowd as they danced along in the GA section. Over the course of the next thirty minutes Maddy Janes set grew in intensity and so did the appreciation levels of the audience. With tracks such as ‘Drown it Out’ it would have been impossible to not have found any part of Maddy Janes performance appealing; making it all too obvious why she was selected as the support act for such a colossus of an international artist.
As the stage is quickly and quietly cleared of band equipment the anticipation in the air becomes palpable. The hundreds in GA who are standing so closely together it would be hard to slide a piece of paper between them; begin to wriggle, while those in the seated section are fidgeting non-stop, the excitement of it all just a little too much to bear. Without warning a secondary curtain drops from the stage ceiling, fans instantly recognizing it as Harry Styles current cover photo on his official Facebook page. Screams fill the room, all eyes glued to the stage; however it quickly becomes evident that they still have a little while to wait yet.
Finally after a reasonably lengthy wait, the house lights go down and a silhouette of Styles himself is projected onto the flower emblazoned soft pink curtain, fans collectively shrieking as the curtain falls away and a secondary heavy black drape is pulled back to reveal Harry Styles and band. Against the backdrop of a single luscious heavy red velvet drape, Styles and band looked absolutely resplendent; the drum kit atop a tall riser giving the stage several instant focal points. Dressed in a simple but classic black suit it could not be denied that Styles looked every inch the urbane English gentleman; however there was a split second of disappointment when he did not emerge in what has now become his iconic flower print or sequined suits.
Beginning the set with ‘Ever Since New York’ Styles began behind his guitar and stock still, his deep baritone voice like treacle; fans screaming every time a small smile would curl the corners of his mouth. Unsurprisingly fans knew the words to each and every line and happily sang along; Styles encouraging them with a “Sing It!” as the band rounded the song out.
“Good Evening Auckland” the majority of the audience at this point beside themselves at the fact that their idol has just addressed them; “How are you feeling this evening? My name is Harry, I’m from England, it’s a pleasure to be here. My job this evening, I will do my very best, is to entertain you. I will try” This charming slightly tongue in cheek humour instantly had the fans neatly tucked away inside Styles pocket; there was a way about him, a measured form of speaking that in some ways was very much like another iconic Englishman by the name of Eddie Izzard. Moving swiftly through his set, Styles slowly becomes less static and began to let loose on the stage much to the delight of the audience. Following ‘Sweet Creature’ – which saw him ditch the guitar and instead wrap his rather bejeweled hands around the microphone stand – that aforementioned red velvet drape was drawn away to reveal an astounding bank of spotlights.
‘Only Angel’ turned the heat up, a little too much it would seem as Styles lost it on the line “when it turns out she’s a devil in between the sheets”; quite possibly due to the fact that there were hundreds of underage girls singing the line back to him without blinking once. Attempting to shake it off by heading down to the other end of the stage, Styles was betrayed by his microphone cord pulling him up short, Styles momentarily trying to free it before tilting his head back in mild exasperation and then laughing it off; the mark of a true professional. Handed a rainbow flag by a member of the audience, he seizes the moment and holding it far above his head he runs back and forth across the stage before draping it over the mic stand.
It’s often easy to write off pop artists, especially ones that embark on solo careers following a pop group disbandment; but not so when it comes to Styles. Now twenty-three he is no longer ‘green’ and his – at times – rather intriguing and somewhat raunchy but clever lyrics communicate this fact. Overall tonight’s performance was unquestionably outstanding, Styles backing band in many ways responsible for this fact; both Sarah Jones on drums and Clare Uchima on keys providing wonderful harmonizing that gave many of the tracks a certain profundity. Adam Prendergast and Mitch Rowland on bass and guitar respectively rounding out the overall sound with a spirited elegance. A couple of One Direction ‘covers’ were thrown in for good measure, Styles himself pointing out that he only has ten tracks so he needs to get a little creative with his set; but if anything they just showed how far he has come, the songs while delivered perfectly sounding a little dated and immature now. His cover of Fleetwood Macs ‘The Chain’ however was absolutely thrilling, Styles easily molding the song into his own.
Finishing the set on the highly energetic ‘Kiwi’, a song so wonderfully irresistible with its simmering saunter, Styles took the opportunity to tease the audience just a little by telling them that they just weren’t singing loud enough to satisfy his massive ego. Throughout all his banter not once did Styles come across as disingenuous; instead he radiated a kindness and gratitude that could be felt by all, none more so than his fans. Even some of his tour t-shirts were printed with the line ‘Treat People with Kindness’.
All too soon the show had come to its conclusion, Styles advising the crowd that this was indeed the last song; several overwhelmed fans in the front row bursting into tears at the realization of this indisputable fact. ‘Sign of the Times’ was just as glorious live as it is on the album – a complex tale of loss, strength and love it encircled the room gathering up all under its wings; Styles vocals unwavering throughout.
Well done Harry – that was one hell of a debut.
Were you there at Spark Arena for this magnificent night of pop-rock brilliance? Or have you seen Harry Styles perform live some other time? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
- Ever Since New York
- Two Ghosts
- Carolina
- Sweet Creature
- Only Angel
- Woman
- Meet Me In the Hallway
- Just A Little Bit Of Your Heart (Ariana Grande Cover)
- Stockholm Syndrome (One Direction Cover)
- What Makes You Beautiful (One Direction Cover)
- Kiwi
- From The Dining Table [Encore]
- The Chain (Fleetwood Mac Cover) [Encore]
- Sign Of The Times [Encore]
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