Joshua Burnside is a Belfast‑based experimental folk songwriter, multi‑instrumentalist, producer, and performer.

His music blends traditional Irish folk, indie rock, folktronica, electronica, world music, and found sounds into richly textured, atmospheric compositions.

Burnside’s debut full‑length album, Ephrata, released in May 2017, earned him the Northern Ireland Music Prize for Best Album later that year. The album was notably written in Colombia and incorporates Cumbian rhythms alongside lyrical nods to Colombian culture.

His follow‑up, Into the Depths of Hell (September 2020), took a darker, more experimental turn—melding metallic found sounds, alt‑rock energy, electronica and folk traditions in a brooding sonic narrative that won praise across UK and US media.
Burnside himself described the record as an “absurdist examination of human suffering and our need for humour to survive”.

His most recent album, Teeth of Time, was released on 28 February 2025 via Nettwerk Music Group. It has already been hailed as a confident and cohesive work, channeling introspection and mythic storytelling through lush alt‑folk soundscapes, often compared to the work of Bon Iver or Sufjan Stevens.

Live highlights include selling out Ulster Hall in Belfast, performing at major festivals such as Cambridge, Glastonbury, and the Transatlantic Sessions tour in 2024, and headlining venues across Ireland and the UK.

Lyrically, his songs often explore identity, memory, trauma, and place—rooted in growing up in Northern Ireland while weaving in wider political and psychological themes.

His creative process embraces experimentation—from found sound collages to field recordings and disrupted rhythms. Joshua often layers unconventional textures and improvisation atop folk songwriting structures, producing immersive experiences that challenge genre boundaries.