“Baby, please, turn out the light / I know it’s not the first time / You’ve seen me cry,” Philadelphia’s Greg Mendez sings on the single release, “First Time,” from his latest EP, First Time/Alone. It is an exercise in brevity and simplicity, (each of the four songs is two minutes or less,) but his Elliott Smith-influenced songs are jam-packed with indie hooks and deep feeling, nonetheless. “Baby, please, be good tonight / I know it’s not the first time… / That you’ve been right.”

He shares not only Elliott Smith’s penchant for emotionally rich melodies, but something of his refreshing melancholy. Like on EP opener “Mountain Dew Hell,” where he sings “Everyone’s leaving / nobody’s here / I’m all alone / Drinking Mountain Dew.” Sugar soda, “Pain Meds,” hard drugs, they’re all a sort of high that comes with a hidden punishment in the end, and Mendez’s compassionate and witty lyrics touch the heart, so that a little bit goes a long way.

The final track, in a twist in aesthetic, has his voice pitched higher like a chipmunk. His acoustic guitar is pitched up, too. It’s all just a little touch of magic. He will be touring next year with Lomelda and Tomberlin, two acts who share his bedroom indie feel. They are all experts in minimalism and emotionalism. Greg Mendez’s self-titled album released in 2023 was met with critical success, and he’s showing his penchant for the song and not the fame, by releasing such a short and simple collection of songs. Song, he knows, is king, not fiery production or convoluted but epic subject matter. It is a humble offering that will hold over his fans, until the next time he releases a batch of beautiful and melancholy tunes.

With a play time of seven minutes and three seconds, a divine number if there ever was one, he covers angels and devils, relationships and loneliness, mountain dew and pain meds. You could say that it pales in comparison to his self-titled album, but to compare the two works of art is a sort of vain exercise. Mendez, who’s been a part of the DIY Philly scene for many years, is merely adding to the many songs that are indie ear worms and real-life heart soothers. They probably won’t get the million plays his breakout single “Maria” got, but I’m pretty sure some people will be playing this EP until the tape warbles and the heart is ”saying I need more / oh.”

Order First Time / Alone by Greg Mendez HERE