Now six years deep into their career, Dublin’s SPRINTS proved that they were in it for the long haul back in September with the release of their second album, All That Is Over—this, despite founding guitarist Colm O’Reilly parting ways with the garage-punks in May of last year. Even though the laddies only have two LPs to their name (the first was last year’s Letter to Self), they continue to expertly navigate the Point Break–worthy tidal wave of momentum the band began riding upon their formation in 2019. Perhaps a successful rock career isn’t a sprint or a marathon—it’s both.
Indeed, All That Is Over sounds just as fresh as the first SPRINTS album, as well as all of the EPs and singles they’ve left behind, Johnny Appleseed–style, on their venture to visibility. After playing a slew of shows in Europe over the summer and into the fall, they’ve been cementing their status as a band to be reckoned with by executing 11 shows in the UK since early this month, including two gigs at the famed O2 Academy.
Amid all the hullabaloo—or, better put, hoopla—vocalist/guitarist Karla Chubb carved out some time from SPRINTS’s exhausting schedule to discuss the band’s new lineup, her advice for dealing with bigots, and a chance encounter with Greta Thunberg.
How would you compare and contrast the current SPRINTS lineup with the past one?
I think the most striking contrast is our commitment and willingness to tour. It can be tough, life on the road, and it’s not suited to everyone, but the four of us have fallen into a real rhythm with it that’s alleviated a lot of the previous physical and mental pressures. Musically, I think Zac [Stephenson, who joined SPRINTS in 2024] has brought with him an entirely different style of guitar playing—new influences and references—but also shares a lot of ours. I think that’s what gave us that immediate chemistry. It also helps that he hasn’t toured constantly over the last three years, so he has a lot of contagious energy that’s given us new life.
What was your vision for All That Is Over, and did you match it?
The only real vision or hope we had was to do something that was a bit different, a left-of-field step. We didn’t want to make ourselves more palatable, but wanted to try out new things. I think a particular focus for me, personally, was to try to show a greater range vocally and emotionally—not just rage, but controlled chaos, depth, and desire.
You’ve said that “Better” “explores the idea not of liking someone better, but only liking them when they’re better.” How do you navigate relationships or even tolerate people of a different political situation than you, given the age in which we're living?
Personally, I don’t have any time for people who are homophobic, transphobic, or racist in this day and age. Is that very basic to say? I feel like it’s obvious, but I find it maddening when you step outside of your own circle these days and still hear people calling LGBTQ+ “a fad,” voting for billionaires who are bleeding our communities dry, or supporting politicians with criminal records. I think those people need to tap into their empathy and humanity and treat everyone with a bit more love, and, to be blunt, grow the fuck up.
When did you develop an interest in Descartes, the obvious focus of your song named after him?
I studied philosophy, alongside English and psychology, in college, so that was my first interaction with Descartes. [His writings] really stuck with me. I was immediately drawn into philosophy and how [one] can challenge any school of thought, idea, or hypothesis. Descartes’ Meditations [resonated] with me, particularly the First Meditation—“What can be called into doubt”—and the Fourth—“Concerning the true vs. false.” Can we trust anything we see or experience in this world if it’s experienced purely through our own external senses? How does that differ [from] dreaming? Some of the Meditations do concern themselves heavily with God and religion, which I have no investment or belief in, [but] while I disagreed with them, I still found them interesting to read.
What's your best anecdote from your fall tour?
Tour can be crazy, because one day you’re playing to 500 people at a random regional festival, the next you’re opening for Fontaines D.C. in front of 10,000 people and going out to a dive bar after for drinks with them—and Greta Thunberg, who jumped in your van for a lift to the pub. It keeps you young, but barely sane.
