ASPRA is the new project of Sophia Sarigiannidou, best known as one half of the Greek synthpop duo MARSHEAUX.

Although MARSHEAUX’s last album of original material was ‘Ath.Lon’ in 2016, Sophia Sarigiannidou has been writing, compiling and recording songs over a number of years with the view to a solo release.

Perhaps unexpectedly, with her first single ‘Velvet’, she taps into her love of shoegaze via an electronic rework of the 4AD cult favorite by THE BIG PINK, a London duo with two long players to their name. Sarigiannidou takes the dense claustrophobic original and converts it into a more fragile atmospheric one. Swathed in crystalline electronics, it recalls mysterious otherworldly air of Julee Cruise and Jonna Lee.

Backing the release of ‘Velvet’ is another cover in the shape of THE FIELD MICE song ‘Anoint’; originally part of a 1990 John Peel session which comprised of material that was written exclusively for it and never released, the alternative rock quintet were signed to Sarah Records but split up in 1991 after falling out during a tense tour in support their third album ‘For Keeps’.

Both tracks were recorded during lockdown in Athens and while ASPRA’s account has opened with a pair of cover versions, self-composed material is on the way with the debut album set to go public on the Palindrome Tuesday of 22/2/22.

In the meantime, a collaboration with veteran electronic composer Lena Platonos is in the works while ’Play For Tomorrow’, a various artists compilation curated by Sophie Sarigiannidou including tracks by artists such as Michael Rother, Chris & Cosey, Blaine Reininger as well as I START COUNTING, ELECTRONIC CIRCUS, OMD and CAR CRASH SET is set to be issued at the end of the year.

Pre-order the vinyl here