Melancholic indie songwriter Flower Face unveils her beautiful new album 'The Shark In Your Water'

Today, Montreal multi-hyphenate artist Ruby McKinnon aka Flower Face, shares her artfully crafted new album, 'The Shark In Your Water', via Nettwerk. The ten-song collection is a beautiful exploration of when “love becomes an obsession” McKinnon shares stories of heartbreaking intimacy, working through traumas of love, and the constant struggle of self-identity.

Alongside the album release comes the dark and moody opening song, 'Spiracle', providing the perfect entry point for listeners. The spiraling build offers a powerful, cinematic start and sets the tone for the melancholic odyssey.

"I made a demo of a really dark instrumental that just built and built, and I started singing over it, making up everything as I went along,” McKinnon explains. “Usually I’m very calculated and meticulous with my lyrics, but I loved the first run that I did, so I never changed any of the lines... the title of the record comes from a line in this song, and it encapsulates that whole feeling: you love somebody, and you want to care for them, but you also want to be the shark: lurking around them always, haunting them forever.”

Taking inspiration from her own vertiginous life experiences, alongside such varied sources as Lemony Snicket’s 'Series of Unfortunate Events', 'Jesus Christ Superstar', the oeuvre of Mads Mikkelsen and her dog Ziggy, Flower Face’s musical testimonials recall the jagged emotion of Bright Eyes while conjuring the ethereal ecstasy of a fresh wound.

Classically trained in piano since the age of 5, McKinnon began writing her own music at 14. Encouraged by her music-obsessed parents, she formed Flower Face in true D.I.Y. style: recording her independent debut, 'Fever Dreams', almost exclusively on her dad’s GarageBand app. Teeming with acoustic heartbreak hymns, it didn’t take long for the album to find space on bedroom playlists alongside The National, Daughter, Big Thief, and Mazzy Star.

In 2018, McKinnon expanded her sound, hooking up with producer and long-time family friend Joshua Kaiser for her breakthrough sophomore release, 'Baby Teeth'. Featuring an increasingly evocative sonic palette and deeper thematic constructs, the album dealt with, among other things, McKinnon’s own battle with stage three ovarian cancer at the age of 17. Thinking back on her diagnosis, McKinnon says it was her “close brush with the grim reaper” that ultimately made her realize she needed to pursue a career in music.

“It felt like everyone knew me before I had a chance to introduce myself. I was the ‘cancer kid’ at school, and these intimate details of my life became the basis for staff meetings and class discussions and fundraising campaigns.I was so out of it at the time that I didn’t realize how that aspect of it might affect me. But once I left high school and started meeting new people, it became clear how much that experience had damaged my sense of privacy and dignity. It felt important, even urgent, that I tell my own story,” She recalls. “As my reach has grown, sharing my story on my own terms has become such a powerful thing. And it hasinspired others to share their stories with me in return.”

“In a way, I’m lucky that I was given this newfound sense of purpose and belief in my ability to build a life that I’d love,” she adds. “I don’t want that part of my life to define me, and I don’t want to be the poster child for anything, but it undoubtedly propelled me forward and gave me such depth of experience to draw from when I write.”

It was this “sense of purpose” that drove McKinnon to pursue music even more seriously, even using her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree to use, designing all the album artwork and conceptualizing her music videos. Her DIY spirit resonated with fans online, as she built a loyal following excited to follow her on the journey.

Flower Face's new album 'The Shark In Your Water' is her Nettwerk debut. McKinnon says, “'The Shark In Your Water' is an exploration of the self and how that is impacted and transformed by trauma, grief, love, heartbreak and the struggle of identity.”

Produced by McKinnon, Kaiser, Jay Merrow and Alex Bonenfant at Toronto’s Dreamhouse Studios, 'The Shark in Your Water' not only marks the next phase in Flower Face’s stratospheric musical trajectory but also serves as a showcase for McKinnon’s artistic prowess – she puts her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree to use on the album’s cover art, video production and editing.

Listen to 'The Shark In Your Water' on all digital retailers here.

Melancholic indie songwriter Flower Face unveils her beautiful new album 'The Shark In Your Water'

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