Almost exactly a year after My Version of Desire, Philadelphia’s Labrador are already back with a new album. To my ears, The Rosy Red World is the band’s strongest and most fully realized record yet.

Labrador sound more mature here, but not in a boring way. Rather, this is a band that sounds increasingly aware that actions have consequences and that some things are worth caring about deeply. Frontman Pat King sings with a conviction that suggests something is actually at stake. There is defiance here rather than resignation.

Stylistically, Labrador continue to occupy self-created niche, blending alt-country, mod, blues, folk, soul, and punk into something that feels distinctly theirs. They don’t really sound like a ’90s alt-rock band, a 2000s indie-rock revival act, or a contemporary indie-punk group. Mostly, they sound like Labrador.

The political concerns running through The Rosy Red World are impossible to miss, but the band delivers them with the energy of a great bar band rather than the finger-wagging of a lecture. Even when tackling exploitation, greed, and the state of the world, the songs remain vibrant, melodic, and full of life.

In a time when cynicism is easy, Labrador choose something harder: hope. Not naive optimism, but the belief that things can be better if people are willing to fight for it.

Out now on No Way Of Knowing Records and Safe Suburban Home.

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