Gordon Burke the frontman of Australian folk rock outfit Josh Orange will make a rare Irish appearance Upstairs in Whelan’s next month with special guests Pete Holidai and Gavin Glass and more set to perform on the night.

Burke, who is originally from Drimnagh in Dublin has been releasing music with Josh Orange for 20 years and this rare hometown performance will celebrate the release of their fifth album “Birds For The Bayou” which arrived on June 28th.

The band have experienced their most successful period in recent years. 2021 single ‘Little Miss America’ received serious radio support and was followed by three number 1 Amrap Metro Singles: ‘Midnight Lights’, ‘I Will Follow You’ and ‘I Feel Love’.

And now the group will be hoping to continue the streak with the release of ‘Birds For The Bayou’. “we didn’t want to repeat the sound of Midnight Lights (2021), and we had numerous recording sessions that we simply binned.” explains Burke.  “…we decided to go back to the basics. We finally found some momentum after much trial and error in late 2023, and we finally finished recording eleven new tracks in April 2024. The band celebrate 20 years of making music together in 2024, and we are really proud to mark that with a fifth studio album.”

In his teens, Burke fronted the Irish band Suddenly Smith who were crowned Hot Press Band of the Year in 1995 and became best known for their single ‘Breakthru’ which went top 30 upon its release.

Gordon Burke AKA Josh Orange live at Whelan’s on August 7th. Tickets €21.50 on sale here