Music review: Harry Styles at Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow

Of all the things one might expect to hear at a concert by the most charismatic member of One Direction as he embarks on the trepidatious path to a post-boy band solo career, a track by prog rockers Yes floating through the speakers shortly before he took the stage was not the most obvious. But there comes a time to put off childish things, as Styles' new direction, fronting a young and eminently capable four-piece band, attempts to establish.

Harry Styles

Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow ***

This was the only Scottish date of his debut solo tour, essentially a warm-up to next year’s arena tour, and it was a relatively plain affair – no big screens encouraging hysterical fans to scream if they wanted to go faster. Those screams were reserved for his silhouette, with guitar in hand, heralding a set of pleasant but unspectacular guitar pop which threw about some light touch Oasis – and therefore Beatles – references and borrowed blatantly from Elton John on the sturdier, guitar shredding Woman.

Harry Styles in Glasgow PIC: Calum Buchan

Styles freely admitted to the paucity of his solo catalogue at this early stage, so the set was embellished with Just A Little Bit Of Your Heart, which he wrote for Ariana Grande, and a couple of One Direction numbers – Stockholm Syndrome from their “mature” period and their debut hit You Don’t Know You’re Beautiful given a partial mod rock makeover – before he cut loose like some baby-faced rock’n’roller on Kiwi.

An unexpected cover of Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain, carried by the band with Styles along for the ride, was a curious blip before normal service was resumed on closing lighter-waving ballad Sign of the Times.