(2022) Kellarissa - Voice Leading


Review:
The English translation of Vancouverite Larissa Loyva's solo moniker Kellarissa — Finnish for "in the basement" — has proven a fitting one. While less obvious and front-facing than a foyer full of household names, the basement is necessary, foundational, and may extend further than you know. If there's a party, it's where the cool people hang out, the regulars who know what's up. You know Loyva would be there, having recently played in How to Dress Well and Destroyer's touring bands, as well as hip projects of scenes past like Piano, Fake Tears, and the Choir Practice. Interestingly, it's this choral background that may be the key to Voice Leading, her churchy, retro-futuristic fourth album of self-described femme psyche electronica. More experimental than previous efforts, it's still full of painstaking harmonies and sonorous tones made to reverberate in vaulted ceilings. It's easily her most interesting and accomplished work, a synthwave-adjacent collection of balladry and strange incantation that builds on all her previous releases. As the title suggests, Loyva's vocals are front and centre here. Resonant, controlled, and clear as '80s stemware, they're often harmonically stacked too, upping the focus even more. It can make things feel a bit cold and impersonal at times, but once you find your way in, a refreshingly artist-first album emerges. Opening with a diaristic, almost confessional spoken word intro on "Exposition," we quickly move on to a section of ghostly, chanted harmonies — all before the first bass stab arrives. It's an intriguing start that sets the tone for the unexpected things to come. The vocals are really only half of what's going on here. Like its cover eagerly communicates, Voice Leading is drenched in lush, '80s-style synth work. Pads, stabs, crystalline arpeggios — it's all here, and, along with the choral, often chant-like stylings of Loyva's vocals, the album often conjures up some kind of neon electro church, with John Carpenter on ministerial duties and Vangelis as patron saint. It's definitely a cinematic listen, with a distinct lack of emphasis on beats, so don't expect to dance too much. Although previously-released single "Bad Influence" is a standout exception, a storming electro banger full of synth leads and buzzing vocoders that's over too soon. Generally, Voice Leading strikes a good balance between its artier and more overt pop leanings. "Sphinx," perhaps the most straightforwardly tuneful song here, features a chorus that wouldn't be out of place in any sophisticated synthpop of today. It's followed quickly by "To the Wind At Morn," a beatless vocal track that takes place over a single held synth note, a low-frequency anchor for Loyva's pitch-perfect harmonies. It's beautiful and interesting — like an Irish ballad by way of Blade Runner — but those with a more casual relationship with Kellarissa might come up confused. This will easily resolve for the willing and patient however; Voice Leading is challenging and mature, trading in some of the immediacy of Loyva's earlier work for a scope and ambition that pays off nicely. — exclaim


   


Track List:
01 - Exposition
02 - Desire Path
03 - Anemoia
04 - Voice Leading
05 - Bad Influence
06 - Sphinx
07 - To the Wind at Morn
08 - Dread
09 - Tempting Fate
10 - After Hours
11 - Fantasy Impromptu


Media Report:
Genre: art pop, synth-pop
Country: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits
Compression mode: Lossless
Writing library: libFLAC 1.2.1 (UTC 2007-09-17)


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