At just sixteen, Ava Valianti stirs with a debut EP abundant in emotional depth and quality songwriting. petunias artfully captures the fragile wonder and dissolution of growing up — set amidst tender folk-pop and chamber instrumentation with a striking lyrical maturity. “Together, these songs create a portrait of adolescence that mirrors the petunia itself, fragile yet unyielding, overlooked yet luminous,” Valianti says. All seven tracks succeed with an emotional sincerity that feels both deeply personal and universally resonant.
“First Day of Spring (interlude)” opens with a gorgeous, nostalgic push of elegant orchestration and youthful vocals. “I love the first day of spring,” they begin, then tracing various holidays and events they look forward to. This excitable whimsy is conveyed via both the bursting orchestral grandeur and the vocal infusion, then easing into the gentle folk-forward initial foray of “Buttercups.” Valianti’s vocals emerge with soothing introspection, admitting “I just need to take it breath by breath, and hope you don’t forget it” into a title-bearing chorus. There, the “buttercup baby” smitten sense combines with twinkling keys and harmonious vocal layers for a replay-inducing allure. The track’s second half, with its brisker rock energy and soaring vocals, proves equally sating.
The opening one-two punch to the release is definitively stirring, excelling in orchestral-laden richness and folk-ready subduedness alike. That quality continues with the riveting “Laugh Track.” “Oh it hurts to look inward,” Valianti’s captivating vocals ascend within a glistening folk-pop enamoring. Its thoughtful perspectives of self-reflection — and how the process can be painful, yet cathartic — infuses within a harmonious production. “Clean My Room” excels similarly in its sense of self-searching, dazzling in its heightened vocal layers and frolicking acoustics. Blending wry humor with aching self-awareness, the track captures the unraveling of early adulthood and the looming loftiness of decisions ahead — mirroring internal disarray and soul-searching via unfortunate online scams, missed milestones, and messy rooms.
The EP’s focus track and enthralling finale, “Running on Empty” is a gripping showcase in songwriting — reminding of Marissa Nadler in its ghostly folk chilliness, while its lyricism exudes the ache of growing apart — ultimately capturing how childhood intimacy dissolves into distant memory. The repetition of “how do the people we love become people we forget?” underscores a helplessness toward time’s impact on relationships. Strings enter during that section with spine-tingling allure, as Valianti admits to “running on empty” with heart-aching ardor. petunias unfolds as a beautifully unassuming triumph, playing like a coming-of-age portrait with relatable, emotive charm.
