‘OUT OF A DREAM’ SLOW READERS CLUB ACCOMPLISHED BUT INCONSISTENT NEW ALBUM NO.7
ALBUM REVIEW | SLOW READERS CLUB – OUT OF A DREAM by Martha Munro
The music of Manchester’s ladder-climbing, indie-noir faves Slow Readers Club have never been lacking in drama, danger or depth. After supporting James on tour, sharing stages with the likes of Pixies and The Charlatans, and climbing into the Top 40 Official UK Album Chart four times throughout their career, it’s safe to say they’ve got that something special that listeners just love.
With their brand new synth-strewn seventh studio album Out Of A Dream, Slow Readers Club put their broad range of influences on display, from Killers to Radiohead, from electronica to indie-noir, from love to technology – but is something still missing?
Kickstarting the album with intensity and sharpness is the no-messing single Technofear, a track about social media-induced fears and frustration around world-wide-web-spun lies. It launches straight into a full soundscape of David Whitworth’s front-and-centre drums, steady synth keys, and a heavy bassline from James Ryan. Tensions between the reassuring major and uneasy minor keys could reflect the tricks of social media, that short-lived confidence in a half-truth. The trajectory of the first verse reminds the listener of Arctic Monkeys but with a synthesised spin. Aaron Starkie’s strong vocals and their urgently contrasting tempos weave in and out of the thundering bass and Kurtis Starkie’s high guitar: a frenzy of sound that encapsulates the song’s stimulus perfectly. After an electrifying chorus however, it seems that the structure of the song is a little blurry – it’s hard to tell when the chorus finishes and the second verse starts, meaning the peak of the track loses its impact. But the bridge well and truly brings it back, with highly dramatic choral backing vocals that make it sound as if the track’s been pulled from an action film score. Then, with a screaming, synthed-up-string, we’re catapulted back into a climactic final chorus.
Second track and single Animals is, in the words of vocalist Aaron Starkie, ‘full-on guitar pop’ and introspectively charts an ‘intense, all-consuming, primal love.’ A syncopated drum reels the song in with an impact that smashes into the soundscape, ringing out with uplifting guitar riffs – immediately more euphoric than the existential opener. The song is fun and unpredictable, breaking away from the typical pop-song structure to diversify the band’s sound with snippets of variation in electric guitar lines, electronic beats and synth-keys: ups and downs, ins and outs, backs and forths. It’s jam-packed with romantic peaks and emotive troughs, and silences are frequently used to emphasise that lovely crash back into the full scope of the music. A scooping impact catapults the listener into the last chorus, encompassing the never-ending energy of the whole song and utilising more of those brief silences to elevate it further – a born single.
The third track Little White Lies is introduced only with a rippling, alien, electronic beat that increases in volume; this stays underneath the sound as the more typical pop elements come in for the full intro: a groovy drumbeat with a playful guitar line, bringing in the same smooth quality from the guitar in Animals. Although the drums are perhaps a bit too loud in the mix, this first impression is a well-crafted one. As Starkie’s vocals whine in, there’s an immediate likeness to the voice of Thom Yorke – emotive, melancholy, messily-technical – and the whole song takes on a very Radiohead-esque quality. This is achieved through soft, sensitive harmony lines running through the first verse, as well as a grungy background guitar that appears for the chorus. Again, much like in Technofear, the same-y-ness of the verses’ and choruses’ foundations lets it down slightly, as there’s little to set the sections apart from one another. It’s a true shame, as the track is such a highlight as a whole, with an addictively soothing sound. Acoustic guitar is employed in the second chorus too, adding another layer of sound and emotion – Slow Readers Club certainly know how to get a raw feeling across, even if you’re not listening to the lyrics.
Fourth track Dear Silence is an immediately more fast-paced runner’s track, with quick, synthesised keys and sharp drums. The slower, steadier, deeper vocals highlight the urgency in the backing track’s energy, which is sure to make an incredible live performance with all its electronic pushes and pulls. But it has to be said that, for the average headphone listener, it’s one of the weakest tracks on the album. There’s just no progression to it, despite the fact that the foundation is undoubtedly lively and strong.
But with a melancholic, reverbed guitar and bass combo, the fifth, thought-provoking track Know This I Am hikes the standard right back up. A rushing wind impact introduces the first verse, which once again centres the singer’s fears around technology, power and life. The drums are steady and pump through the song like a heartbeat, a sturdy setup of humanity and emotion, coupled with high-reaching, heartfelt, hazy vocals and alien-esque sounds to give a sense of bewilderment. The chorus takes the hook ‘know this I am’ into a wonderfully atmospheric, action-movie-esque refrain, created predominantly by the rippling drums and reliably-effortless guitar. The sections build and repeat up to the bridge, featuring powerful images of ‘light’ and ‘hope,’ built up in a military movement with tinny drum taps and high, orchestral strings. Then, every element comes into full force for the final chorus: classically, irresistibly dramatic. Again, the band employs brief silences to emphasise that plunge back in – a highly impressive ending, dwindling down to just that rippling guitar and some ringing strings to end.
As we move into the second half of the album, the single Boy So Blue transports the listener to a 90s rave, with synth pummelling the song forwards. More modern vocals are used over the top, but where before the use of contrast felt expert and effective, in this song it frequently sounds off, messy or disjointed. While the teasing, dance floor build-up and manipulated sections are fun, the main issue with the track is that, from the initial uplifting key, it ranges around to uncomplimentary places and therefore doesn’t feel single-worthy compared to some of the other, more accomplished tracks we’ve heard so far.
Seventh track Pirouette is another one with clear 90s influences, but this one packs a flawless punch. The beginning is more subdued than that of Boy So Blue, featuring a plucked, synthed-up guitar, building, fuzzy drums, and an earthy bass. There’s a sense of anticipation in both the harmonies and lyrics: ‘So many colours here distorting my vision / Can’t tell my wrong from my right.’ Here too, the structure is manipulated and fun; the next section comes in with a much heavier rock influence, all staccato guitar strums and tangible angst. The second verse maintains this newfound grittiness, with an amped-up guitar line and an even harder-driven bass. There’s a sense of spiral, of mania, running through the number, epitomised in an impressive instrumental section; each musician really shows their expertise, through vocal ad libs, smashing cymbals and a centre-stage guitar. This one’s a winner.
But again, the next track Puppets sounds oddly experimental and unfinished after a contrastingly well-seasoned number like Pirouette. There’s more 80s electronica here than 90s, and the track starts promisingly with a weird, wacky, synthesised feel. The combination of elements, combined with the uneven mixing, results in an unharmonious sound overall. It’s so nearly an ambitious, intriguing song, but feels just out of reach. However, it has to be said that the bridge is fantastic, with spacey, gothic elements and synth additions, as well as harder, emo-rock aspects in the amped-up guitar layers.
Penultimate song Loved You Then, while potentially slightly over-produced at points, is a stunning track to not-quite-end with: sharp bass, quick tempo, rippling, electronica-classic beats. With popping bubbles of synth and a more pop-esque quality altogether, the track moves through the pre-chorus, chorus and into the second verse with added grit from a second electric guitar. The lyrics are rife with emotion and turmoil, light and dark – ‘Loved you then / Hate you now / Does me good just to say it out loud’ – and give that sense of push and pull that we’ve seen throughout the record. And again, the instrumental break is where Slow Readers Club’s true prowess is shown off. The high, spacey guitar encompasses that 90s rock feel, as well as the ever-strong drums – a smashing song with non-stop skill.
For an atmospheric closer, the band end Out Of A Dream with Our Song Is Sung, an immediately more emotive, raw, acoustic number. Still maintaining that electronic golden thread in the hazy background, the flowing acoustic guitar picking pattern is soon joined by the gentle electric, and the sensitively, pleadingly sung lyrics: ‘Tell me what we’re doing here / Surely not to live in pain and fear.’ The heavenly vocals and gorgeous, faint harmonic backing create a starry sound altogether, before the drum comes in to slow things down. This subtly alters the rhythm, forming more of a waltz. But in true Slow Readers Club fashion, the track suddenly jumps right into a sea of intensity. A pummelling, heavy bass enters with raw rock-realness, encompassing the high-stakes-sense of the album. Just as suddenly as it appeared, this frenzy reduces to graininess, then smoothness, and finally, to silence.
The most apt word to describe Out Of A Dream would have to be inconsistent. While the band is certainly and evidently accomplished, with their experience and authenticity on show, as well as such well-expressed themes and thoughts, the highs are followed by the lows again and again, creating more of a pick-and-choose record than a no-skip one. But, as has been true for the last six major projects of Slow Readers Club, the album’s success is in the hands of the fans.
Pre-Order OUT OF A DREAM (released 14th March) NOW
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