U.K. transplant and Los Angeles based recording artist, Sammi Doll, is best known as the stage right, femme-fatale synth player/backing vocalist for the alternative, synthpop band, IAMX. Upon joining the then German-based band in 2013 Sammi relocated to Berlin while touring extensively through Europe and North America, amassing almost 200k followers across all social media platforms. She began composing her original material along with diving deeper into her other mediums of photography and videography. A chance encounter with Jon Courtney (Pure Reason Revolution) in-between tours led to collaborating on his industrial influenced, prog-rock band, Bullet Height. Signed by Sony/Superball Music, Bullet Height released their critically acclaimed debut LP, “No Atonement.” In February of 2020, entrepreneur and IAMX collaborator, Kat Von D, announced Sammi would be joining her band on synth and backing vocals for her debut and forthcoming tours.

Inspired by her darkwave musical roots, Sammi began creating and mixing a myriad of influences from such bands as Metric, Stabbing Westward, and Grimes to create a sound reminiscent of 90’s electronica /trip-hop, with hard-hitting synthesizers encompassed with dark poetry. Upon teaming up with legendary producer Sean Beavan, (NIN, Manson, 3Teeth, Guns N’ Roses), Doll and Beavan wrote the debut single “AN OM IE“; the first release under her name. And it’s time to know more about her, so here’s our exclusive interview with her!

Solo career:

It was a long traveled road to get to this point. I have been a part of making music come alive on stage for many artists, and even ventured as an electronic duo with my previous band, Bullet Height. It just made sense for me to branch out away from all the things I felt may have been holding me back from executing things exactly the way I wanted. I’m doing all the work myself; it felt like it was the next logical move for me as an artist.

Starting a project from the ground up is a lot harder than you can imagine when you want to play at the level I’m used to playing with. It’s hard to get people on board to listen to something unfamiliar. I enjoy the challenge though, it really makes you appreciate the process and within that, become humble for what you have and who you are.

Inspiration:

I feel when you have a good grasp of who you are and you surround yourself with creative and inspiring people, it’s a domino effect. I have so many talented friends that are self-made and pushing boundaries – it inspires me to work harder and really hone in on what I’m doing. Bands? I find inspiration in everything I listen to whether it be song structure, melody, key changes, mood… Music is a universal language.

“AN OM IE” refers to the ‘Anomie Theory’ by French sociologist, Emile Durkheim. It’s social disintegration; it states ‘individuals in a society are in permanent competition with each other, expect much of existence and demand much of it and find themselves perpetually haunted by the suffering that arises from the disproportion between their aspirations and their satisfaction.’ We, more than ever, live within an anomic society and we are our own worst enemies.
I wont be releasing an album or EP just yet – I’m thinking a series of singles that will be released every 8-12 weeks to keep my project fresh and current.

Working with Kat Von D:

Awe Kat! She’s such a wonderful and warm person. We added some additional programming to her upcoming album while locked in quarantine – she knows exactly what she wants so it made the process a breeze. I’m so inspired by her creative drive and execution. She has a beautiful voice & I’m very excited to tour with her.

COVID-19:

I feel I’ve been preparing for quarantine my whole life – I like to keep to myself more than I like to go out, so it has been nice for me to reflect on the things that I spend the most time on and shift my priorities around. I’m also a touring artist… This whole year has been cancelled as far as that goes – I know everyone is in the same boat, but I miss going to work everyday in a new city and playing live music. There’s a release you get on stage as a performer that cannot be replicated.

I was fortunate enough to perform with my live band; a full concert last month, live from The Bourbon Room in Hollywood! It was my first and probably only performance of the year – performing “AN OM IE” and a few other previews to unreleased tracks.