Biography
Matt Morton, a Columbus, Ohio resident, first gained notice as a founding member of the funk-tinged roots-rock outfit the Shantee before earning wider recognition for the taut, atmospheric scores he supplied to motion pictures, notably the 2019 documentary Apollo 11.
He took up the guitar at age nine and went on to master additional instruments such as piano, drums, mandolin, banjo, and cello. In 1995 he helped launch the Shantee, serving as its lead guitarist and vocalist in a band whose upbeat rock sound cultivated a devoted regional audience. The group became a staple of the Ohio club circuit and shared stages with touring headliners including George Clinton, Blues Traveler, the Neville Brothers, and Widespread Panic. Its last performance occurred in December 2004 and was later issued on DVD.
Once the Shantee disbanded, Morton turned his attention to scoring films, commercials, and gallery installations. His initial feature-length credits arrived in 2008 with the drama Scaring the Fish and the documentary Beauty of the Fight. Further praise followed for the grounded soundtrack he created for Dinosaur 13, the Emmy-winning documentary released in 2014. After scoring the 2016 short The Last Steps, which chronicled the 1972 Apollo 17 flight, he was commissioned to compose for the feature-length Apollo 11. Working with period-appropriate tools from the mission year of 1969—including the Moog IIIc modular synthesizer and the Mellotron—alongside a complete orchestra, Morton produced the music. The finished film received a Special Jury Award for Editing at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, and Milan issued the accompanying score. He also contributed the track “The Godfather of It All” to the 2020 documentary Electronic Voyager, a portrait of Bob Moog on which Morton served as executive producer.
He took up the guitar at age nine and went on to master additional instruments such as piano, drums, mandolin, banjo, and cello. In 1995 he helped launch the Shantee, serving as its lead guitarist and vocalist in a band whose upbeat rock sound cultivated a devoted regional audience. The group became a staple of the Ohio club circuit and shared stages with touring headliners including George Clinton, Blues Traveler, the Neville Brothers, and Widespread Panic. Its last performance occurred in December 2004 and was later issued on DVD.
Once the Shantee disbanded, Morton turned his attention to scoring films, commercials, and gallery installations. His initial feature-length credits arrived in 2008 with the drama Scaring the Fish and the documentary Beauty of the Fight. Further praise followed for the grounded soundtrack he created for Dinosaur 13, the Emmy-winning documentary released in 2014. After scoring the 2016 short The Last Steps, which chronicled the 1972 Apollo 17 flight, he was commissioned to compose for the feature-length Apollo 11. Working with period-appropriate tools from the mission year of 1969—including the Moog IIIc modular synthesizer and the Mellotron—alongside a complete orchestra, Morton produced the music. The finished film received a Special Jury Award for Editing at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, and Milan issued the accompanying score. He also contributed the track “The Godfather of It All” to the 2020 documentary Electronic Voyager, a portrait of Bob Moog on which Morton served as executive producer.
Albums
Painkiller (Soundtrack from the Netflix Series)
2023
Apollo 11 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
2019
Singles
