"Flower" Press Release

Chris Rusin Releases “Flower” – A Song about love When Life Gets In The Way 

“The knot that we tied became a tangle…” how does that happen? “Flower” is a Folk Americana song about trying to sustain love when life gets in the way. It’s a soaring vocal duet backed by a minimalist acoustic guitar that builds with a 3 piece band, pedal steel, hammer dulcimer, and cello.

Making “Flower”

A little while back, I stumbled onto the music of “The Civil Wars” and I thought, wow I should just write one like that — a song that lets two voices carry the emotional weight weaving together, then pulling apart. A song with vocals that kind of mesmerize you.  I had no idea that it would send me down a path of writing a whole series of duets that would take years to finish. I have to concede that it was way easier said than done. Flower is one of my favorite vocal arrangements from this effort. I tried to keep everything else as simple as possible to give room to the vocals . It starts small and builds into an expansive chorus. Instruments come in and out of the song, but the vocal is the core.  
When I got into the studio with “Flower” I tried all kinds of guitars but it just wasn’t sounding right. I finally hit on muting a clean electric guitar with a sponge under the bridge and that was the sound the song needed. There’s also some hammer dulcimer and cello in there to fill out the mood.   
 
The music video? It’s a visual metaphor layered on top of a song that’s already bursting with metaphors. Love starts simply and playfully but every relationship navigates crossroads, dead ends, loss, separation, and reunion. 
 
Flower, was produced by Grammy nominated producer and engineer Andrew Berlin (Gregory Alan Isakov) and features some of the best musicians along the Colorado front range including John Paul Grigsby on bass, Russick Smith on Cello, Shane Zweygardt on drums… and a truly remarkable duet partner who, for now, wishes to remain anonymous. I wish I could tell you who it is—but maybe it’s better to just listen.
 
 

“FLOWER” Lyrics

Back when “I love you” was the answer 

to every question that mattered to me

Now I’m aiming to hold you but I feel out of range

Something seems like it changed

The nights I can’t sleep I feel the distance 

I got something to prove I feel it burning inside

This thing is building and it’s out of control

And I held you like a flower 

but winter is here and the sun don’t shine any more

the ground’s dried up and you’re a flower

won’t you come inside

 I can’t come inside 

In the sun we went strolling through the garden

but the love we were making was a family

heat becomes cloudy when it mixes with rains

Something seems like it changed

The knot that we tied became a tangle

and the walk became working is it your turn or mine

I don’t know where the path went I’m just trying to survive

And I held you like a flower 

but winter is here and the sun don’t shine any more

the grounds dried up and you’re a flower

won’t you come inside

I can’t come inside

Whoa oh oh ohoh 

Whoa oh oh ohoh 

Whoa oh oh ohoh 

I held you like a flower 

winter is here and the sun don’t shine any more

the grounds dried up and you’re a flower

won’t you come inside

I can’t come inside

 

Written and performed by Chris Rusin copyright 2025.

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