Caitlin Upton's infamous response at Miss Teen USA 2007 inspired the EP's closing track "Carolina".

Owens felt much sympathy for Upton after seeing all the negative publicity she was receiving and wrote the song "about wanting to save someone from the ravenous wolves of just the way the modern world is.

[8] AllMusic's Jason Lymangrover wrote "If this is a sign of things to come, expect them to sound like Beirut or Grizzly Bear by their next full-length.

"[2] Popmatters' Arnold Pan gave the EP a positive review, writing "What Girls prove more convincingly than ever on Broken Dreams Club is that sometimes a little stylistic schizophrenia can actually go a long way in shaping a singular artistic vision.

So just how Owens and White mix-and-match forms and make clichés not sound like clichés might be a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma... but all you really need to know is that their formula works..." Pan also singled out the track "Carolina" for praise, calling it "a sprawling, multi-part piece that recalls and one-ups Girls' first breakout number, 'Hellhole Ratrace.