NFS
There’s a moment, about two minutes into “NFS”, when Poems shift gears entirely. What begins as a tightly wound alt-indie track suddenly opens into something unexpected, tender and strange. It’s a small transformation, but one that rewires how you hear the band. And as soon as it happens, you don’t want to go back to the start of the track, you want to hear more of what Poems have to offer. Because if this is how they play with structure and mood, the next track will likely be just as surprising. NFS, short for Naked For Science, isn’t showy in its vulnerability. Instead, it invites you in slowly, layering doubled vocals, subtle dynamics and a ghostly Mellotron that seems to hover just beyond the centre. There are echoes of UK alt-rock, but this is not an act of mimicry. Poems are using those reference points as loose coordinates while building something more elusive and personal. With the EP “Half-Life” on the horizon, it’s not familiarity you’re left craving. It’s the unknown.