Selken - The Winds (2025) Hi-Res

This Chicago-based project’s debut LP, Selken – The Winds, dips generously into vintage pop files & alt-country traditions where they bury old dreams & make room for new ones. Selken is made up of solo folk artist Heather Styka (lead vocals/guitar/bass/producer), & JG Shadid, co-producer & multi-instrumentalist (synth/guitar/piano/vocals). There are 10 tales to this LP, recorded in Chicago. The songs probe reflections of past lives, old loves, lost feelings, life’s routines, daily challenges, & change.

The problem with many indie projects is that general audiences accustomed to the gloss & sparkle of Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Beyonce, & Shakira don’t suspect an indie artist of being a highly polished entity. Silken begins as a well-buffed showcase as Heather Styka spreads her silky voice across the opening song “Perseids.” Impressive.

“The Winds” is the 2nd & continues with the forward motion, ethereal inertia that coalesces into a candescent showcase. It’s not mystical but more mellifluous in an Alison Moyet-type low-flame seductive yet graceful, potent way. The tune is followed by the lovely narrative “Wash Your Face” – exceptional. The musicians lay down an atmospheric mood that’s gripping.

More percussive is “Love Me Like You Do,” where Ms. Styka goes a tad more mainstream & despite the inclusion of synths, the song keeps its glorious warmth & upbeat immediacy. Quite a good composition with little in the way of embellishments. It’s all melody, percussion, tantalizing vocals & a nice musical shift that makes it exciting.

More progressive country is “Continental Drift,” a slow piece with the addition of JG’s vocal becomes an intimate narrative magnetized by their contrasting voices. Impressively arranged in its simplicity, but this confirms that sometimes less is more. Deliciously rendered, mindful of some of the slower Nancy Sinatra-Lee Hazelwood duets. I like the gentleness, poignancy, & benevolence of the song.

The cover of “With or Without You” maintains the beauty of that era’s U2 composition. A skill the group apparently lost through the decades. Here, Ms. Styka reminds the boys of the rich songwriting they had. A superb classic performed with a broad ballad brush. Story-songs are my weakness, & “People In Love” is a short story, countrified to perfection.

The final tune, “Peggy Lee,” is a bit dramatic, but the musicians handle it with care. It’s a clever hat tip to the Lee hit novelty song “Is That All There Is” (written by the team of Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller – who wrote so many Elvis-hit songs, including “Hound Dog”).