diff --git a/backend/novasonic-server.js b/backend/novasonic-server.js
index 410ed14..48edaea 100644
--- a/backend/novasonic-server.js
+++ b/backend/novasonic-server.js
@@ -78,6 +78,9 @@ function _fetchTimeout(url, opts = {}, ms = 10000) {
       hostname: u.hostname, port: 443,
       path: u.pathname + u.search,
       method: opts.method || 'GET',
+      // Force HTTP/1.1 — api.spotify.com negotiates h2 via ALPN but
+      // https.request uses HTTP/1.1 framing, causing a silent hang.
+      ALPNProtocols: ['http/1.1'],
       headers: {
         'User-Agent': 'NovaSonic/1.0',
         'Accept': 'application/json',