Max Bien Kahn Touches On Life’s Vast Uncertainties In Whimsical New Video Single ‘Flowers’

“What if Suicide made a folk song?”

This was the sentiment behind New Orleans indie folk singer-songwriter Max Bien Kahn’s latest single, “Flowers.” With the song — which is also the title track of the forthcoming album — Kahn and co-producer Ross Farbe of Video Age wanted to explore the idea, and tracked warm analogue synthesizers alongside more traditional Americana/country instrumentation with a very unique and resonating result.

“Flowers” seems to find Kahn struggling with writer’s block, watching time pass by, and hoping that, one day, the right words will spill out of him. As a prologue to the album, the single makes for a strong introduction to an artist who learned his craft busking on the streets of New Orleans before committing his own material to record.

“The track was written in the midst of a hopeless artistic block in Spring 2020,” Kahn says. “It comes from those uncertain moments when you try to write but can’t quiet the noise of the world around you. It’s like watching the entire sunset waiting to see the flash of green light people always talk about, but the at the last second you blink and miss the whole the whole thing altogether. ‘Flowers’ is about desire and the space in between moments of inspiration.”

Kahn’s doubled vocals come through with reflective lyrics, and a whimsical if not somber melody carries the song forward. The music video for the project, created by NATRSTDY, is saturated with bright colors and an image of Kahn’s face on what feels like a VHS screen, bringing out the colorful, abstract energy that the song maintains. 

Kahn has always written songs, but really discovered a passion for “street music” when he moved to New Orleans some years back. Feeling disengaged at music school in Oregon studying Jazz Guitar, he moved looking for a way to get into playing and collaborating again in a more community-oriented and historical musical environment, eyeing The Big Easy as the answer.

Written and recorded in true DIY fashion in his living room like his last solo project, When I Cross It Off, Flowers is set to come out November 1st, 2024 via Defend Vinyl Records.