Selk life at The Twisted Pepper

Most recently, Jordan released her debut solo EP Dust, which followed a stint with seven-piece electronic jazz outfit Orca.
For Selk, Jordan has teamed up with percussionist Dennis Cassidy, best-known for his beat-making exploits with Dublin’s jazz hip hop collective Mixtapes From The Underground. And throughout this District54 show at a bustling Twisted Pepper, the pair dish up interesting tracks that suggest a debut album might not be too far down the line.
The show opens with two songs from the Dust EP. ‘Silent Sea’ – a solo effort – is a delicate and intricate number, making for a perfect introduction to Jordan’s fragile, but edgy, vocals (think White Chalk-era PJ Harvey). On ‘Dust’ and ‘Oh Sweet One’, meanwhile, we begin to see some chemistry at work, as Cassidy’s deep bass rhythms and gentle brush strokes enter the fray.
However, it’s when Jordan utilises the cluster of loop pedals scattered at her feet that we really begin to see what Selk are all about. It takes a while to get there, but when the timing of the layered vocals, handclaps, and muffled tones on ‘It’s Been Too Long’ coalesce with the almost hip-hop percussion, it’s a real joy.
Much the same can also be said about ‘Beautiful Beast’. Here, skillfully constructed vocals, along with thumb piano, provide the platform as Jordan effortlessly drops in and out of falsetto, while intermittently diving beneath her piano to ensure everything’s looping correctly. Although the execution is faultless this time, it looks like it could all fall apart at any moment, which is really captivating to watch. Oh, and great to listen to! Definitely a project worth keeping an eye on.