The Slow Readers Club

Manchester-based electro/indie quartet Slow Readers Club make guitar-centric pop music with a dark, dramatic edge. The first iteration of the band, Omerta, formed in 2003. They signed to Northern Ambition two years later but suddenly disappeared in 2007. Five years passed before vocalist Aaron Starkie resurrected the group, changing their name to Slow Readers Club in the process. In 2011, they self-released their eponymous debut album amid ongoing changes to the line-up. In 2013 they had settled on Aaron Starkie (vocals), Kurtis Starkie (guitar), Jim Ryan (bass), and David Whitworth (Drums). In 2014 they the first band asked to play at Manchester Central Library. Given that the name of the venue couldn't be more apt, the band filmed and recorded the gig, releasing it as a live album, Slow Readers Club: Live at the Library, later the same year. In 2015 they released their sophomore full-length, Cavalcade; upon hearing the record, a member of Mancunian band James invited the group to support them on their Girl at the End of the World tour. In the three years that followed, Slow Readers Club focused on live shows and festivals, slowly building up a fan base in the rest of the U.K. By 2018, they had signed to Modern Sky -- their first label since re-forming -- to release their third studio album, Build a Tower.