Styles continually thanked the crowd for coming to his Melbourne concert.Credit:Lloyd Wakefield
While bounding across the main stage and U-shaped runway into the VIP section,he grabbed cowboy hats and feather boas from the audience,adorning himself without missing a beat. The screens adjacent to the stage shifted between psychedelic graphic illustrations,cloudy blue skies and layered cityscapes reminiscent of Tokyo,where he recorded some of his latest album,Harry’s House (2022).
Loading
Alongside mainstream singles from Harry’s House andFine Line (2019),such asAs It Was, Late Night Talking andWatermelon Sugar,he also dived into lesser-known tracks including Love of My Life andKeep Driving,giving them renewed depth through stellar live vocals that filled the stadium,soliciting karaoke-style accompaniment from his adoring audience.
On the Perth leg of his tour,Styles did a “shoey” – when someone pours a drink,usually beer,into their shoe and drinks it. It seemed he was not keen to repeat the experience in Melbourne,however. His refusal was met with a boo from the crowd,with one of his band members taking on the time-honoured tradition instead.
There’s authentic gratitude from Styles,and perhaps disbelief,that his career has reached the heights it has – he continually thanked the crowd for coming (he last visited Australia five years ago). For mainstream pop stars,you’re only as relevant as the following you garner,and there’s an acknowledgment from Styles that his fans have legitimised his solo career.