Three years after the release of Fine Line, Harry Styles released his new single “As It Was” April 1. The single is part of his third album, Harry’s House, set to release May 20. 

Similar to the release of his first two albums, Harry Styles and Fine Line, Styles participated in a small press run in order to promote the album. He drew attention to the album’s release prior to this through a website called youarehome.co where fans open a door to see images. 

Styles also teased the single and accompanying music video with a series of images and videos from the set. The set of the video required a lot of creative direction including a background painted by the director Tanu Muiño from Ukraine that Styles later took home. 

The upbeat change in rhythm of the song makes it feel as if the listener is dancing with tears in their eyes. The lyrics of the song express this feeling by going from Styles being sad that he’s “no good alone,” to him happily telling a lover that “In this world, it’s just us”.  

The music video visualizes Styles’ urgency to let go of his past heartbreak. Viewers see him struggle to reach out to a woman wearing blue while he spins in an empty ballroom. This choreography keeps the viewer on the journey of Styles trying to let go of his past to focus on his future with someone he loves. 

Despite waiting so long for a new release, fans are hesitant to enter this new era as Styles continues his tour for his previous album in international locations. It’s a big change for those going to the tour to see him release new music while playing the old. 

The song, however, is a gut wrenching piece of music and it’s worth wondering if this is the same direction the rest of the upcoming album will take. The song quite literally feels like a reminiscent return home and acceptance towards the fact that things changed since the last visit.  

This song is worth a listen when nostalgia and change approach in life. It compliments that feeling of wanting to hold onto what you had while also being able to just let it go and appreciate what you had. Move on from the past and get up to dance!