Joshua Burnell makes retro pop-rock for the modern world.
His latest album, Glass Knight – which according to the Financial Times, “plays like a lost out-take from Spiders-From-Mars-era Bowie” – won over a lot of new fans upon its release in Autumn.
Expect hooky melodies drenched in warm, retro-synth textures, reverbing guitars, lush harmonies and words that make you think. Imagine The War On Drugs meets Genesis with “lashings of Peter Gabriel stylings,” – The Guardian.
Joshua and his band love what they do and it is infectious; they left the stage at Fairport’s Cropredy Convention to a standing ovation, and similarly won the hearts of audiences at Towersey, Folkeast, Wickham and Moonbeams festivals this summer. They are now taking the show on a tour of major UK cities including London, Sheffield, Middlesbrough, Lincoln, Manchester, Saltaire, Salisbury, Beverley and Newcastle.
Always leaving his fans and critics guessing, Glass Knight has yet again defied expectations: “coloured with glam, psychedelia and 70s folk/pop, Glass Knight is a redefining album in much the same way as Ziggy Stardust” (Folking.com).
Through his intricately crafted lyrics, Joshua creates a multiverse of settings, from apocalyptic love songs to reimagined fairy tales, and introduces otherworldly characters – the Glass Knight being resurrected from an old English folk tale to reflect the foibles of the modern-day world.
This one’s for fans of Stranger Things, 70s art rock and everything in between.
It is Joshua’s original songwriting, however, that has won the hearts of listeners and industry professionals alike. His previous album, Flowers Where The Horses Sleep (2020) earned him the Folking Magazine Rising Star Award and – following a brief hiatus for a global pandemic – was toured in the UK, including dates at Cambridge Folk Festival, Manchester Folk Festival, Costa Del Folk Festival as well as headline shows in Sheffield, Glasgow, York, Bridlington, London, Brighton, Milton Keynes and Bristol.
Things are moving quickly for this ambitious and hard-working “genre-dodging genius” (Spiral Earth). Whatever your take on this genre-hopping songwriter’s music, he has proven he can connect with an audience and keep them hanging on for more. In Joshua’s own words, “it is about telling a compelling story while discovering what it means to be human.”
“Joshua Burnell has been described as a figure on the folk scene to watch: this record leaves you in no doubt why.” – Tykes Stirrings
“Joshua Burnell’s music has always thrived on the blurring of boundaries. However, with Glass Knight, his most daring and deeply rewarding album to date, he’s written music that simply refuses to recognise their existence.” – Folk Radio UK
