The Slow Readers Club follow their 2020 Top 10 album The Joy of the Return with the release of their new record Knowledge Freedom Power. Knowledge Freedom Power is a sizzling synth-rock beast of a record akin to White Lies, Muse and modern-day Bloc Party, and a rallying cry of emancipation, both stylistically and socially. It s a righteous punch of the air, a surge towards the future. Frontman Aaron Starkie says, The world had got so bleak it felt a little indulgent to paint apocalyptic pictures when they were out in the real world. I thought people would probably want to hear more uplifting things, it was my intention to be a bit more positive. There s still a lot of melodrama in there and it s still dystopian in places but there s more positive shades in this record. That positivity powers to the fore with the album s lead single and title track, an instantly addictive hybrid of the band s new pulsating synth style with their anthemic alt - rock roots. As much as the record finds The Slow Readers Club channelling a brighter spirit, there s no dumbing down of their famously ferocious and insightful lyricism. A beam of hope shines throughout Sacred Song : part in the form of a spiritual saviour, but also embracing the power of love as a force for good, something which can also be achieved by the friendship and community spirit infused in Lay Your Troubles On Me . Yet a darkness still looms large, whether it's within the warmongering satire - and ultimately individual powerlessness of Seconds Out or the steady march of automation over the human workforce on opener Modernise Knowledge Freedom Power is the band s sixth album and the latest giant leap in one of the greatest self-made success stories in recent British rock history.