BeatRoute Magazine AB Edition November 2018

KELLARISSA
Synth-pop siren casts magnetic loops
The alter-ego of Vancouver-based artist
Larissa Loyva, Kellarissa is a one-woman
tempest in a teapot. An accomplished singer
and songwriter with galaxy of tones at her
fingertips, Kellarissa/Loyva generates rich
electrical fields of sound by utilizing her voice,
synthesizers and an array of loops and effects.
Sampled from a Finnish term meaning “in the
basement,” Kellarissa may not be a household
name, but the many groups she’s been affiliated
with have had a significant impact on the
new wave of pop music that’s crashing up on
Canada’s shores. From her early outings as one
half of the outfit P:ano opposite collaborator
Nick Krgovich, to performing with The Choir
Practice, and touring with pop titans such as
Destroyer and How to Dress Well, Kellarissa
has gleaned the knowledge and experience
required to tell her own story, a nautically inclined
tale that benefits from both her clarity
of intention and considerable musical talent.
As a member of the dream-pop sensation
Fake Tears, with cofounder Elisha May Rembold
(Shimmering Stars,the Lost Lovers Brigade),
she has become known for her mastery
of the duelling microKorg. A skill set Kellarissa
has applied time and again when recording
her first two “femme psych electronica” albums
Flamingo (2008) and Moon of Neptune
(2011), both of which appeared on the Mint
Records label. A third album, Ocean Electro,
released by Mint Records this past March,
was recorded by indie darling Jay Arner and
mastered by Josh Stevenson. Arriving seven
years to the month after the release of Moon
of Neptune, Kellarissa’s latest LP offers a lush
and organic repast. One that immerses the
listener in a world of natural beauty and
deeply impressionistic vantage points. By
the chanteuse’s own account, the journey to
Ocean Electro was a long, but eventful path
that included rest stops and detours along
the way.
“I am self-directed, but I’m also easily
distracted,” states Kellarissa. I am not an
especially prolific songwriter so I tend to take
my time and let myself live with ideas before i
turn them into songs. Some of my songs have
been ideas for two years before I ever put pen
to paper or compose something for it. It all
depends, I really allow it the time it needs to
become its own thing. Some of the songs are
quite old actually for example “Hey Hey Rosé”
is about hanging out on the beach in Cannes
in France and that was during my travels with
Destroyer when I was on tour with them. That
was actually Moon of Neptune era. So, these
ideas have been percolating for a while.”
Music that invites movement and reflection,
Ocean Electro emphasizes Kellarissa’s
unique voice while capturing her stream of
40 | NOVEMBER 2018 • BEATROUTE
You had me at rosé.
consciousness in a pixelated netting. A more
structured, but no less intuitive endeavour
than her previous offerings, the third entry in
Kellarissa’s solo discography draws attention
to the vastness of her potential and intimacy
of her approach.
“Ocean Electro ended up being a little
more pop-centric,” she notes. “I was more
experimental with Moon of Neptune and I
really wanted to do more things that involved
beats, and fiddling around with synthesizers,
and just continuing to focus on my voice and
using loop pedals of my voice and keyboards.
I also wanted to focus more on a singular
vision. More than half of the songs are about
the ocean and nature, although those themes
have always been an undercurrent in my music,
but Moon of Neptune was more spacey.
This new one’s more terrestrial.”
Given her impressive resume, it’s not
surprising that Kellarissa’s works are simultaneously
well-rendered and entertaining.
Having observed her fellow musicians in the
field, she gradually began crafting her own
melodic compositions while cultivating a
compelling onstage persona in order to best
present them.
“I was with the band P:ano for five or six
years and while I was doing that I thought ‘I
have something to say here!’ There was just
this point where I was like ‘Maybe I can do
this too.’ I got my feet wet writing for The
Choir Practice that I was involved in at the
time, and i was like ‘Oh, yeah! I can do this!’ I
always felt like I wasn’t going to do my own
music unless I had something to say. I’m not
an especially outspoken person, so I need to
feel confident in whatever message I’m trying
to relay through my music.”
With three full-fledged solo releases to her
credit, it’s hard to imagine a time when Kellarissa
hesitated to put herself at center stage.
Becoming a public performer is something
she had to grow into and, looking back, she
acknowledges that fear and trepidation are
merely internal barriers to be accepted and
conquered.
“The advice I would give my younger self
would be -- just put it out there! I wish I had
written more songs and performed more and
by Christine Leonard
continued to do that more. Even though i realize
this in hindsight it doesn’t make me work
any faster or harder it’s just my own nature.
But I’d encourage anyone with something to
say to go out there and do it!”
She’s brave, bold and forthright. But don’t
expect keyboardist Kellarissa to mount the
soapbox anytime soon.
“I don’t generally make my personal politics
known. I’m also not a very staunchly political
person, but I know I’m a very open minded
left of center kind of person. I’d like to think
that comes through in my music and the
types of music i choose to make and the fact
that i’m a queer woman doing this. I’d like to
think that that stands for itself. There’s stuff
in “Black Sea” about oil slicks and pipelines,
which I’m against. So, I like to think it comes
through a little bit, but I don’t try to be a
polarizing figure in anyway.”
A humble role model for anyone seeking
to take their creative spark and fan it to a
flame, Kellarissa is proud to be a product of
her surroundings. The prescribed career goals
of monetary gain and international fame
pale in comparison when held up against the
true measure of human contentment. What
never falls short, for Kellarissa, is the way her
hometown always rises to meet her on her
own terms.
“In Vancouver I am very lucky to be part
of an inclusive, supportive and encouraging
music scene where the styles are all across the
board. There have been times when I thought
I did fit in with other types of music like mine
in the Canadian landscape, but haven’t really
received a lot of recognition for it. I’m happy
to continue to play in Vancouver and support
my friends and vice versa and it’s a really warm
environment.”
That familial warmth and spirit of community
is something she hopes to share and
spread as far and wide as the Ocean Electro
will carry her and it’s exactly what makes
Calgary’s Femme Wave Festival such a good fit
for artists like Kellarissa.
“I think it’s a really great way to give women
and non-binary musicians a voice and a really
safe inclusive space to perform and exist in,”
she affirms. “That kind of space is very lacking
in music festivals and even shows. I feel like
i’m going to be talking to my people there;
performing in that kind of environment. It’s already
got a built-in shared mindset that I can
contribute to and not feel too out of place.
I’m really stoked for it.”
Kellarissa performs November 17 at The King
Eddy as part of the Femme Wave Festival
(Calgary). For more information visit: http://www.
femmewave.com