Spotlight Artist: Only The Poets

We are finally back with our Spotlight Artists for 2021. For anyone new to this segment: Welcome! To those who are returning to our blog, Welcome Back! Our next Spotlight Artist for 2021 is the UK band Only The Poets! Their debut EP ‘Speak Out’ came out on June 8th and, of course here at Our Muchness Guide, we were dying to review it but, since Only the Poets are such an incredible talent, we felt they deserved the title of our Spotlight Artist. I honestly cannot wait for you all to get lost in their music!

So, who exactly are Only The Poets? 

They are a four piece indie pop-rock band from Reading in the UK consisting of band members Tommy, Jared, Marcus and Roo. Although Only The Poets have been on our radar for a few years now, many might be familiar with the band name as they were announced to support Louis Tomlinson during his 2020 (with the final dates in 2022) tour. The band has grown from strength to strength since their debut single ‘Ceasefire’ dropped in 2017. The band spent two years continuously touring with some of my favourite footage coming from the University House Gigs and the socially distanced Park gigs! All of their hard work has truly paid off with headline gigs in London with their next gig on November 19th in the legendary venue The Garage, London. 

One thing I love about Only The Poets is how dedicated they are to having their fans along for the ride on every step of their music journey! From Zoom Calls to hearing music for the first time, to the Newsletter emails and their aim to entertain with their music at free gigs in fans’ houses, this band’s relationship with their fanbase is truly like one big giant family where everyone looks out for the others! The positivity and support in the past year alone from this band and their fans is something that others should strive to have! 

As 2021 continues and as we move into 2022, keep your ear out for new music from the guys which Niamh can say is going to shake up her top 5 favourite songs from Only The Poets! Her top two favourite songs from these guys are yet to be released! If you are lucky enough to see these guys supporting Louis Tomlinson, enjoy every minute! As for their own headliners, make sure you grab tickets to their London show in November or, if you cannot make that one, keep your eyes peeled for other gig announcements!

‘Speak Out’ EP Review

After what felt like the longest wait, as we were extremely excited for the ‘Speak Out’ EP to drop, ‘Speak Out’ was finally released on June 8th! In our opinion, it was truly worth the wait! The songs on this EP were all written in 2020 and, when you hear the EP as a whole, you will pinpoint the emotions all of us went through as we tackled and got through the past year and a bit! Overall, the EP is my favourite EP release to date in 2021 as, every time I listen to Only The Poets music, I always go through a whirlwind of emotions and this EP is something truly special! ‘Speak Out’ is a well rounded EP with high production, catchy music and lyrics that will stay with you long after you finish listening to it! There are aspects of each song that will resonate with fans of Indie pop-rock and the more general music listeners. It may have been a long time coming but I, for one, am glad that they waited. ‘Speak Out’ deserves all of the hype the fans have been giving it and more as this collection of songs are the best the guys have written, in my opinion. 

The first song on the EP is the title of the EP track ‘Speak Out’ and is the song on the EP that can be described as ‘an absolute bop!’ Just listen to that chorus and you’ll know exactly what I mean! The song revolves around pinpointing how someone really is when push comes to shove! ‘Speak Out’ is the song on the EP that you need to listen to at high volume and shout along to the lyrics! 

“And all these things that I’m seeing Are showing who you really are”

Next up we have the song that made me cry my eyes out when I first heard it ‘Waking In The Dark’. It was previously released as a single on June 5th 2020, trust me when I say this was the song that made me come to terms with the fact that feeling incredibly anxious during the insane year that was 2020 was okay! This is the song I come back to time and time again to remind myself that no matter how you are feeling right now, things will get better and there are people there who are there for you. 

“But over time, we’ll start to see your laughter lines You’re struggles won’t last forever, you’ll make it to the other side”

‘If You’d Only Try’ is truly the dark horse of the EP. Just give it a listen, preferable with earphones/headphones. The most simplistic song on the EP in terms of the instrumental and production. This aids the powerful vocals in being the prominent part of the song. Take your time with listening to the lyrics of this one as they are hard hitting and bluntly honest lyrics.

“That I could swim in your eyes And I can tread the tears you cry”

‘No More Lonely’ is next and trying to sum up my thoughts on this one is difficult. This song acts as the last note of hope for the listener when listening to the EP as a whole and, as such, is the most reassuring song on the entire EP. For this reason alone, I adore the message and the song as a whole. This is the song that you can already tell is going to be a special one for the band and their fans when they get to perform it live!

“Yeah we can’t see now, There’s no one to blame. Once it’s all figured out and they put out the flame”

Last but not least is a stunning acoustic version of ‘Speak Out’. Regular readers will be familiar with the fact that I am a big fan of acoustic versions of songs and this acoustic is no different. Even though we have the regular version of ‘Speak Out’ on this EP, the acoustic version of the song gives the song another chapter to understand the story behind the song with emphasis on the lyrics adding to our understanding of the important parts of the song! 

“I always keep my ideas safe From you before I feel insane” 

Other Only The Poets music to date:  

As stated above, Only The Poets debut single ‘Ceasefire’ came out in 2017. After this there wasn’t any releases from the band until 2018 when they released three singles throughout the year ‘Emotional‘, ‘Dead Young’ and ‘Even Hell’. 2019 saw the return of the magic number three with singles ‘Looking At You’, ‘Stolen Bikes’ and ‘You Can Do Magic’ released. Last year saw, not surprisingly, three songs off the ‘Speak Out’ EP being released.

Top 5 favourite Only The Poets songs: 

1. Looking At You. 2. Waking In The Dark. 3. If You’d Only Try. 4. Speak Out  5. No More Lonely. 

Most underrated Only The Poets song? 

With the explosion of Only The Poets fanbase in the past year and a half. I really think some of the older music is highly underrated! With this in mind the song I’d urge everyone to listen to is ‘Dead Young’! 

Favourite Only The Poets music video?  

I’m a sucker for musicians who make music videos with their fans. Throw in a global pandemic and footage of fans’ first reactions to ‘Waking In The Dark’ that was written during the toughest year for many of us and I’m a blubbering mess! 

Favourite lyrics? 

“And if you’re, reaching for someone and you don’t know what to say Don’t be afraid to show your scars” – Waking In The Dark

Favourite gig memory? 

Indiependence Music Festival, Mitchelstown, Co. Cork. Us here at Our Muchness Guide began to listen to Only The Poets music in 2018 and when they were announced to play Indiependence we were thrilled! Even though Indiependence was the only time we have seen Only The Poets, we are looking forward to our next outing to see this band! It was a brilliant experience with the crowd enjoying every minute from the fans who knew their music to eager first time listeners; Only The Poets put on a fun set that gained them a number of new listeners! My favourite moment of the gig revolved around dancing away and singing along to my favourite song by the guys in the front row with Emma and Kat. 

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I hope you all take the time to check out their music and if you enjoy what you hear make sure you follow Only The Poets on their social medias.

Instagram: @onlythepoets

Twitter: @onlythepoetsuk