Stuart Murdoch is a musician and composer from Glasgow. As the frontman and founding member of iconic Scottish band Belle and Sebastian, he has released over twelve studio albums over the two decades they have been making music, and won Brit and NME awards as well as widespread critical acclaim
Belle & Sebastian recently created the original soundtrack for the Simon Bird film Days of Bagnold Summer. The band also contributed original music to the 2001 film Storytelling, which was later released as part of an album of the same name.
In 2014, Stuart Murdoch wrote and directed the film God Help the Girl and composed the original soundtrack. The film was awarded a special jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2014.
Belle & Sebastian are the storied Glasgow 7-piece comprised of Stuart Murdoch, Stevie Jackson, Sarah Martin, Chris Geddes, Richard Colburn, Dave McGowan, and Bobby Kildea. Debut album Tigermilk (1996) was the product of a Stow College music business class that drummer Richard Colburn was taking; just 1,000 vinyl copies were pressed. In spite of huge major label interest (immortalized on the track “Seymour Stein” on their third album, The Boy With The Arab Strap) they initially signed to the tiny Jeepster label, then later to Rough Trade before signing a worldwide deal with Matador Records.
Their recorded music has been used in a variety of films and television shows, including The O.C., Juno, Girls, High Fidelity, (500) Days of Summer, Gilmore Girls, Flaked, The Devil Wears Prada and Forgetting Sarah Marshall.