Vancouver's
Kellarissa is Larissa Loyva, a crystalline-voiced singer and synthesizer experimentalist who first gained exposure in 1999 when she formed
P:ano with
Nick Krgovich. The duo, later expanded to a quartet, released three albums during the 2000s, during which time Loyva also contributed to numerous bands and projects around Vancouver, including
the Choir Practice, Alunared, and
FanShaw.
P:ano eventually disbanded, and while
Krgovich and the others formed
No Kids, Loyva began recording by herself, both at home and in the studio, as
Kellarissa. (The word is Finnish for "in the basement.") Her debut, Flamingo, appeared in 2008 on Mint, also the home of
P:ano and
the Choir Practice.
Moon of Neptune followed in 2011.
Loyva then toured as keyboardist and backing vocalist for
Destroyer, and later joined the touring band for
How to Dress Well. In the meantime, she formed the synth pop project
Fake Tears with Elisha May Rembold (the Lost Lovers Brigade,
Shimmering Stars). The duo signed with Mint and issued the album
Nightshifting in 2015. Working on more solo material as time permitted, Loyva embraced a bolder synth pop sound that she partially termed "femme psych electronica" on her first solo album in seven years,
Ocean Electro. Recorded by
Jay Arner, it was released by Mint Records in March 2018. ~ John Bush & Marcy Donelson