Let’s face it, most of us have a complex relationship with our hometown. Whether it be a reluctance to leave for the security it offers, or apprehension to return due to viewing it as a regression, there’s just something about where you grew up.

Athenian artist Sarah P. explores this very concept on her latest single “Athena”. Of the track, she commented: “‘Athena’ is a song I wrote about Athens while I was still living in Berlin and reluctant to resettle in my hometown. Many things have changed since then, but not my complicated relationship with the city I love to call my old/new home.”

Following on from her Maenads EP released back in 2018, “Athena” utilises the disco elements that were displayed across the record, whilst adding a pulsing, repeating synth to tie the track together. The near buzzing of these synths, when placed side by side with an almost rockabilly style swinging guitar riff, creates a chaotic sensibility. There’s also a reflection of this chaos and indecision in the lyrics. As she sings in a mixture of English and her mother tongue, “Athena – you tire me a little/Athena – and now I’m leaving/Help me go home”. Sarah P.’s breathy vocals work by orchestrating this potentially frenetic soundscape into a tamed beast. The song twirls at her command, following the lead of her vocalisations and blending with her high pitched near whispers with precision.

Her upcoming album Plotting Revolutions will further the ideas displayed by her catalogue of work as it will be “addressing difficult matters without losing its humour and positivity” as well as “standing opposite to society with a mirror, trying to wake up all those who may be sleeping”. In the meantime, take a trip to Athens with Sarah P. below.

Known for her former participation in Keep Shelly in Athens, Sarah P. is going solo and experimenting with pop music since 2014. Recently, the Berlin-based singer-songwriter and producer unveiled her new EP, Maenads, which explores the female power: its magic, strength, and imperfect perfection. The project also comes with a series of videos that celebrate her Greek heritage with a strong mythological symbolic.

Following up on the visuals of “Lotus Eaters” and “Mneme“, Sarah P. is sharing today the last installment of her clip trilogy, just a few days before International Women’s Day 2019. With “Maenads”, the artist takes some distance from her usual ethereal electronic pop, embracing instead a disco rock that sounds more nervous and instinctive. Conveying a feeling of power and freedom, the track was actually inspired by the ancient Greek female followers of god Dionysus, who were known for their superhuman strength, sticking together and fighting for their beliefs.

Directed by Colette Pomerleau, the accompanying visuals were shot in Berlin and deal with an issue that is near and dear to her heart: mental illness. About the video, Sarah P. detailed:

[su_quote]Maenads is a song about all those nights that are empty of feelings. I used to have plenty of those in my younger years. The visuals for the video are a fast-forward to my life in Berlin – rather secluded, away from distractions. “Reformed”, but far from perfect. This isolation-by-choice gave me time to process life events that had shaped me, as well as start healing from traumatic experiences of the past. In the video, the bird symbolises mental illness. My coming to terms with it, but also not letting it overtake my life – as it used to, in the past. For those who don’t know, I’ve been struggling with depression and anxiety for a long time.[/su_quote]

Before adding:

[su_quote]The whole point of the video is to show that it’s possible to control one’s mental health, rather than living a life controlled by mental illness. Mental illness never truly goes away, but learning more about it can help understand what’s going on inside your body and mind and therefore, control it better. [/su_quote]

Sarah P. is already readying the release of her sophomore album Plotting Revolutions for 2020. In the meantime, watch her brand new video “Maenads” below.

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The former frontwoman of Keep Shelly in Athens, Sarah P., is going solo for some years. After her 2017’s debut album Who Am I , the experimental pop artist is readying the release of her sophomore album Plotting Revolutions. In between these two projects, she shares today a brand new EP where she explores the theme of female power – its magic, strength, and imperfect perfection. She has also unveiled a video for the mysteriously addictive single “Lotus Eaters”, a song and a flower charged with symbols of rebirth. About the song, she detailed:

[su_quote]For Lotus Eaters, I opted for a mysterious dreamscape where reality and fantasy blend to create a third dimension. Here I explore the themes “witch” and “witchcraft” and how these terms have always been used against emancipated, dynamic women.[/su_quote]

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Berlin-based singer-songwriter and producer Sarah Psalti, known as Sarah P., has just shared a new video for “Millenial Girl”, a song taken from her 2017’s debut album. On the sarcastic electronic track, the artist adresses our obsession with perfection and consumption. The video was shot by George Geranios. Watch it below.

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Sarah P. will be back later this year with a brand new EP titled “Maenads”.

Once part of the Greek synth-pop ensemble Keep Shelly in Athens, Sarah Anna Psalti has spent the past few years laying the groundwork for a successful solo career as Sarah P. She released her debut album last year, and now she is following it up with “Right Where It Belongs”, an impressive new spin on a Nine Inch Nails classic.

When you think of of Nine Inch Nails, what tends to come to mind is Trent Reznor’s idiosyncratic brand of muscular, gritty industrial rock; however, “Right Where It Belongs”, built around a simple piano riff over which the melody is progressively constructed, is well-known for being one of the band’s most pensive tracks. It’s a perfect fit for Sarah P. given her penchant for wizardly, synth-laden introspective pop music, and her cover succeeds in being far more interesting than a note-by-note version of the original.

Sarah P.’s take on “Right Where It Belongs” manages to retain the song’s melodic charm while doing away with the grittiness in Reznor’s vocal delivery, instead offering a decidedly hazey, almost spooky vibe that turns it into a complete reinvention of Nine Inch Nails’ original. Although there is certainly something to be said about the psychedelic, overlapping synths with which the song is brimming, it is Psalti’s vocal delivery that ultimately takes the spotlight. She seems to be taking a page or two off Björk’s liberal approach to melody, but the whole thing is definitely closer to Kate Bush’s equally luring and eerie siren-call style. That eeriness is magnificently propelled by the subtle background sounds inscribed in the song’s guts – telephone noises, pitch-modified voices –, which create an uncanny atmosphere from which it’s hard to escape. Let’s forget about comparisons – Sarah. P’s “Right Where It Belongs” exists and deserves praise in its own merits.

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