Daffodils & Dirt [LP]

Sam Morton, the musical duo consisting of singer, songwriter and recent BAFTA (the British equivalent of the Oscars) winning actress and director Samantha Morton and music producer and co-songwriter Richard Russell, are releasing their debut album together.

The album is entitled "Daffodils & Dirt" and will be released on June 14 via XL Recordings. In twelve atmospheric tracks, the two build a deeply personal musical world that is at once intimate and tender, but also powerful and sometimes harsh. In the partly autobiographical song sequence, Russell's spartan soundscapes form the fragile framework for Morton's beautiful and ethereal vocals.

They are supported by a number of musical friends. These include Alabaster DePlume, Laura Groves, Jack Peñate and, as an additional singer, Ali Campbell (on "Broxtowe Girl"). Although Samantha Morton has loved and been involved in music all her life, this is her first ever project as a musician. The collaboration came about after she appeared on the BBC program "Desert Island Discs" in October 2020 and Russell happened to listen.

He was impressed not only by her song choices (including a shared fondness for one particular song: "I Remember" by Molly Drake), but also by the way the music weaves together their life experiences. The two got in touch and exchanged ideas, sketches and streams of thought. Finally, months later, they met in the studio and began a spontaneous, intense and open-ended collaboration that proved to be a cathartic musical process for both artists.