review by Abigail June

Las Vegas emo band High Sierra Club combine pop punk electricity with deeply vulnerable lyricism in their new EP Love All By Itself Isn’t Enough, perfect for fans of Movements and Phoebe Bridgers. In just six songs, High Sierra Club explores the emotions that arise at the end of a tumultuous relationship where miscommunication and willful ignorance reign.

The EP opens with Talk, a short and bitter song with a strong instrumental track and catchy chorus, setting the emotional tone for the rest of the project.

By comparison, Early Sundown, their strongest performing single to date, and one of the strongest songs on the entire EP, could be considered a slow song. This lyric focused track explores the polarity of hope and despair that comes from a seemingly endless string of arguments with a partner, punctuated by the repeated line “I don’t want to make it worse”.

The third track, Memories, picks the pace back up with drum heavy backing and powerful vocals, reminiscent of Girlfriend’s Where Were You. The raw lyrics about a toxic love/hate relationship cycle are sure to have you scream-singing in the car while you relive an explosive argument with your ex.

This same train of thought continues in Where You’re Sleeping, but instead asks how you rebuild after that argument ends, or if it’s even possible to recover from. In the fifth track, Hear Me Out, melancholy and heartbreak take center stage. “Tell me, do you feel better now?” lead singer Mat Kerekes begs during a break with his partner.

Kerekes doesn’t attempt to answer these questions until the final song and title track, Love All by Itself Isn’t Enough, which encapsulates the overall message behind the EP. Love isn’t enough in a relationship where trust has been broken and arguments play on a loop.

When taken as a whole, this EP tells the story of a relationship doomed to fail not because of a lack of love, but because of all the other factors. With moody vocals and intense instrumentals, this EP is the perfect listen for a late night drive or a sleepless night staring at the ceiling fan wondering what went wrong.

You can find High Sierra Club on Instagram, Tiktok, or on their website, and check out Love All by Itself Isn’t Enough on Spotify today.