There is something refreshing about hearing a young artist approach music without trying to sound older than she is. Fronted by 14-year-old singer and songwriter Alice Ventura, Boise-area indie rock band Afternoon Sister brings together indie rock and dream pop on Reset E.P., a five-song project that feels thoughtful, atmospheric and surprisingly emotionally aware.
Released through North Corona Records, the EP moves between heavier guitar-driven moments and quieter, more reflective passages. “Don’t Cross Yer Fingers,” “Ache,” “Night Drive,” “Reset,” and “I Guess It Is Goodbye” each have their own personality, but they still feel connected, as though they are different pages from the same emotional chapter.
“Ache” is where the project hits hardest. There is a vulnerability in the song that makes its longing feel believable. The repeated “Come to me” sounds like someone reaching for a person who represents safety at a moment when everything around them feels unfamiliar. The lyrics describe being surrounded by “shadows” and feeling like a “stranger in the crowd,” creating the image of someone who can be physically surrounded by people and still feel completely alone.
Then comes the line, “I’ve become a joke in their eyes,” which gives the song another dimension. This is not simply a song about missing someone. It is also about feeling misunderstood, wanting to escape and hoping that someone can offer a way back to something familiar.
The closing words are perhaps the most affecting: “Aching, I’m aching in this desert / Give me something to remind me.” That desert becomes a powerful image for emotional emptiness. The narrator is not asking for everything to be fixed. They are asking for something to hold onto, something that proves the connection they are remembering was real.
Elsewhere, “Night Drive” adds to the EP’s atmospheric side, while “Reset” suggests the possibility of beginning again. “I Guess It Is Goodbye” carries a heavier sense of acceptance, giving the project a natural emotional progression.
What makes Reset E.P. interesting is that it never feels like an attempt to manufacture maturity. Instead, Afternoon Sister allows youthful uncertainty, curiosity and emotion to exist naturally alongside its musical influences, from Neil Young and Mazzy Star to Chromatics and Air.
For a debut EP, there is already a clear identity here. And with “Ache” at its emotional center, Afternoon Sister shows that sometimes the simplest feelings are the ones that stay with you the longest.
