Biography
A British pair operating under the name SAM MORTON crafts intimate indie electronica built around the lead singer’s confessional writing, angular melodies, spoken passages, and expansive, otherworldly production textures. Following a limited 2023 single, the gentle track “Cry Without End” appeared in 2024 as one of four joint efforts with Alabaster DePlume on the duo’s first full-length, Daffodils & Dirt.
Oscar-nominated performer Samantha Morton, known for Minority Report, Control, and The Walking Dead, connected with XL Recordings head Richard Russell when the producer and songwriter sought permission to sample her 2020 BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs conversation. In that broadcast Morton recounted a turbulent upbringing marked by repeated stays in foster care and described envisioning a blue butterfly emerging from her body while listening to Suicide’s Dream Baby Dream. Russell was equally struck by her song choices, among them Molly Drake’s “I Remember,” and the two quickly formed a creative alliance that marked Morton’s initial venture into music beyond acting.
Under the SAM MORTON moniker they issued the resulting material as the limited-edition 7-inch “Hungerhill Road” b/w “Ghosts Are Dancing” on XL Recordings in October 2023, unveiling their spectral, off-balance sound of airy vocals layered over acoustic, electric, and electronic elements. Further singles, among them “Cry Without End” and “Let’s Walk in the Night,” both again featuring arts polymath Alabaster DePlume, paved the way for the June 2024 arrival of the twelve-track album Daffodils & Dirt, which also contains a contribution from UB40’s Ali Campbell.
Oscar-nominated performer Samantha Morton, known for Minority Report, Control, and The Walking Dead, connected with XL Recordings head Richard Russell when the producer and songwriter sought permission to sample her 2020 BBC Radio 4 Desert Island Discs conversation. In that broadcast Morton recounted a turbulent upbringing marked by repeated stays in foster care and described envisioning a blue butterfly emerging from her body while listening to Suicide’s Dream Baby Dream. Russell was equally struck by her song choices, among them Molly Drake’s “I Remember,” and the two quickly formed a creative alliance that marked Morton’s initial venture into music beyond acting.
Under the SAM MORTON moniker they issued the resulting material as the limited-edition 7-inch “Hungerhill Road” b/w “Ghosts Are Dancing” on XL Recordings in October 2023, unveiling their spectral, off-balance sound of airy vocals layered over acoustic, electric, and electronic elements. Further singles, among them “Cry Without End” and “Let’s Walk in the Night,” both again featuring arts polymath Alabaster DePlume, paved the way for the June 2024 arrival of the twelve-track album Daffodils & Dirt, which also contains a contribution from UB40’s Ali Campbell.
Albums
Singles
