Beth Orton Unveils Otherside Ahead of Forthcoming Album ‘The Ground Above’

Beth Orton is gearing up for the release of her new album ‘The Ground Above’ (out June 26 via Partisan Records), and she’s just dropped another taste with the gorgeous new track Otherside — plus a live performance video to go along with it.

Orton has a way with words, and her note on the track is no exception:

“I heard that the first birdsong of a new day is the sound of the birds letting it be known they are still here, that they have made it through the night alive and safe. With Otherside, what began as a not so simple tale of sleeplessness went on to have me turning over bigger themes — those of resilience in the face of loss, what freedom means to the individual and the collective; the ability to start again and make beautiful a life when it has been torn apart. An embodiment of what it feels like to implore a loved one home, to make it through the night, or to make it through a day, to make good what we dare to dream.“

The live performance video — directed by Iain and Jane Pollard and Joseph Lynn — is a stunner, giving a proper introduction to some of the musicians who contributed to the record. The directors put it beautifully: “Filming Beth felt like catching an artist mid-transformation. Once a patron saint of fragility, now she’s like an astronaut exploring the vast orbit of her own soul.” Rare air, indeed.

‘The Ground Above’ is being described as Orton’s most direct work to date — urgent, raw, emotionally fearless, and deeply alive. She self-produced the album (as she did with 2022’s acclaimed ‘Weather Alive’), working with a stellar cast including multi-instrumentalist Shahzad Ismaily, drummer Chris Vatalaro (Antibalas, Radiohead), Dave Okumu, bassist Tom Herbert, and others. The performances were largely captured live in the room, and you can feel that immediacy in every second.

Earlier singles Waiting and the title track have already been pulling in serious praise from the New York Times, Pitchfork, Stereogum, and the Guardian — momentum is very much building.

‘The Ground Above’ track list

1. The Ground Above
2. Before I Knew
3. Cigarette Curls
4. Waiting
5. Celestial Light
6. I’ll Miss You
7. Love You Right
8. Otherside

Pre-order / Pre-save ‘The Ground Above’

Beth Orton 2026 Tour Dates

* Record Store shows

June 26 — London, UK — Rough Trade East (+ Q&A w/ Max Porter)*
June 29 — Bristol, UK — Rough Trade*
June 30 — Brighton, UK — Resident*
July 2 — Manchester, UK — Piccadilly @ Night & Day*
July 23–26 — Suffolk, UK — Latitude Festival
Sep 15 — Washington, DC — The Miracle Theatre
Sep 16 — Philadelphia, PA — Baby Grand
Sep 18 — New York, NY — Le Poisson Rouge
Sep 19 — Somerville, MA — Crystal Ballroom (Somerville Theatre)
Sep 20 — Turners Falls, MA — Shea Theater
Sep 22 — Toronto, ON — The Concert Hall
Sep 23 — Detroit, MI — El Club
Sep 24 — Chicago, IL — Old Town School of Folk Music (Maurer Hall)
Sep 26 — Minneapolis, MN — Parkway Theater
Sep 28 — Los Angeles, CA — Troubadour
Sep 30 — San Francisco, CA — Great American Music Hall
Oct 2 — Portland, OR — The Old Church
Oct 3 — Seattle, WA — Washington Hall
Oct 12 — Brighton, UK — Concorde 2
Oct 13 — Manchester, UK — Stoller Hall
Oct 14 — Nottingham, UK — Rescue Rooms
Oct 16 — Leeds, UK — Howard Assembly Room
Oct 17 — Glasgow, UK — St. Luke’s
Oct 19 — Bristol, UK — Trinity Centre
Oct 21 — Norwich, UK — Arts Centre
Oct 22 — London, UK — Alexandra Palace Theatre