I had the good fortune to meet Alyssa Gengos three years ago, as nervous college freshmen trying to rush the “alt-frat” where Vampire Weekend inaugurated their prep-pop stardom. Nowadays, there’s a new musical act in town. Her name is Kythira; she’s Alyssa’s alter-ego, one of the many creative projects she puts on when she’s not feeding me paella at gallery openings (it’s relational aesthetics!) or globetrotting and convincing strangers she’s Danish (she’s not, she just has a great eye for sweaters). She brings light into the world. Listen to her sonic emissions and beautify your fucking soul.

Who is Alyssa Gengos? Who is Kythira? Has anyone ever seen the two of you in the same room at the same time?
Alyssa Gengos is me, and I’m a lot of scattered things. I’m finishing up my last year of an undergraduate degree in Art History and Visual Art – which one I say first depends on who’s asking. I’m also a musician, a designer of different objects, a vintage seller, a Craiglist fiend, and an amateur DJ.
Kythira started as a name for my solo music. Recently, though, I’ve been thinking of expanding it to other media—sorta like making Kythira into a brand. I’d like to round up some band members to join me as well. I find it really hard to play a good live show with just me and a backing track.
Kythira is a not Alyssa Gengos, but I am Kythira… I think that when I play shows, I dress up as Kythira. We’re wearing the same outfit, but I’m Kythira when I’m onstage (except for the moment when I say “my name is Alyssa”) and Alyssa when I’m off. If I got a band together, I think it would be easier for me to exist as Alyssa and for Kythira to also be present in the same room at the same time.

How did living in Copenhagen change your practice? And what’s it like being back in New York? While we’re at it, what about growing up in LA? Is spatial situation something that influences your art?
While living in Copenhagen, I was studying a lot of things I’m passionate about but don’t have a lot of knowledge of: textiles, furniture, interior architecture… Living in a city that is so obsessed with design definitely influenced my practice—I think you can see it in the curved shapes and graphic influences in my most recent illustrations. Moving back to New York was a little bit jarring, mainly due to the rush of life here; no longer can I get anywhere (safely, might I add) on a bike in 20 minutes or less. I also can’t drink a beer on the street here. These are seemingly unrelated to my practice, but I think that my lifestyle, and in turn, my mindset, is strongly linked to my creative output. I haven’t yet decided whether I work better when I’m relaxed or surrounded by stimuli.
I grew up in the suburbs of LA and found them very uninspiring. Of course, looking back on my upbringing, I find inspiration in nostalgia. I was a big nerd in high school (or, at least, I worked really hard) and didn’t do much except homework. I found myself writing a lot of songs and making a lot of art about feeling stuck or about experiences I’d had in other locations.
Being back in New York has made my art a bit more energetic, perhaps manic. I wasn’t writing music in Copenhagen because I didn’t take any of my instruments or gear. I guess I’ve started writing again in the same place I left off, but in a different mental state.

What attracts you to analog media? “Cut Through,” your EP on Healthy Tapes, was released concurrently this May on both cassette and online streaming. How do you hope that distributing it both ways might impact its reception?
I think it’s my sense of touch. The feeling of holding my music in my own hands is so much more satisfying than seeing my artist page on a streaming platform. Healthy Tapes sells their catalog online, but sent out a couple copies of my album to shops in Australia and Japan. Knowing that someone could stumble upon my album in a record store is such a sweet feeling. I also understand that most people do not have a way to play cassettes anymore, though, so the option for online streaming is important for accessibility. I think of the cassette as a fleeting, serendipitous object, and online streaming as more concrete—something to point to.

Printmaking, collage, curating vintage clothing…outside of just music, your practice is so multifaceted! How do all the different aspects interact? Does your approach to sourcing clothing for your store, for instance, inform the sensibility of your songwriting? It seems like nostalgia is sort of the through-line uniting All of the Above here. Is that an accurate assessment?
There’s something about being a college senior has made me think I need to focus on one thing in preparation for the Real World, but I’m more interested in finding a way to have all of my interests coexist—that remains on the drawing board. You’re definitely right in identifying nostalgia as a common theme. I’m a sucker for mid-to-late twentieth century; I’m drawn to kitsch and craft, which is visible in my art practice and the visual aspects of Kythira. For example: in the same way that I’m drawn to vintage pieces from the sixties, right now I’m filling my brain with Laurel Canyon sounds as part of my songwriting process.

Your work also has an underlying social justice slant: you’ve rejected neoliberal assessments of women’s value in the workplace with your limited-edition run of “Girls Who Don’t Code But Are Still Valid” shirts. What advice would you give to girls who want to be cool like you but are quantitatively-challenged?
I was always good at math, but never wanted to “apply myself.” My decision to focus on creative work was a long process that is just now ending. I think a lot of young people are forcing themselves into industries like software engineering because it’s like the new “you should be a doctor or a lawyer.” The best thing to do, in my opinion, is have confidence in the fact that you don’t have to do something you dislike or find overwhelmingly frustrating or stressful just because that’s what others find respectable. I’m very lucky that my parents support me, but I also feel judgement from others in my family. You just have to be ok with that, and find a way to support yourself while still being able to do something that is personally rewarding.

Finally, what inspiration have you gathered lately?
ASMR videos with plastic-y textures, sexy 60s baritone guitar lines, female surrealists (Elsa Thoresen comes to mind), the sound of the basketball court outside of my bedroom window.