After Outside Lands on Friday, 8pm, Rickshaw Stop is hosting Bogota, Colombia’s BALTHVS, who layer surf rock and Middle Eastern melodies laid over classic cumbia sounds. We have two pairs of tickets to give away! TO ENTER: Email marke@48hills.org with BALTHVS in the subject and your name in the body by 6pm Thursday. Winners will be chosen then at random and informed right away. More about the band below. NOTE: This is not at Outside Lands, it is afterwards at Rickshaw Stop.
BALTHVS is a Colombian psychedelic funk trio formed in 2020. Best known for their eclectic style, which fuses elements of Middle Eastern Music, Disco, House, Funk, Psychedelia, Indie, Dub Reggae, Surf Rock and Cumbia into a cohesive whole. The band is notable for their energetic shows, live improvisation and prolific output. Since their formation, the band has released over 28 singles and 3 full length albums, accumulating over 7.1 million streams worldwide. With 3 US Tours under their belt and having played the biggest music festival in Colombia (Rock al Parque), the band is eager to make more music and share their sonic voyage with the world.
Released on Mixto Records, new album Harvest was composed by all three band members, Balthazar Aguirre, Johanna Mercuriana, and Santiago Lizcano. It’s a reflection of where the band is currently. After 4 years of the industry grind, they have seen massive growth in the digital sphere with over 15 million streams.
“Harvest is a time of abundance, where our growth has allowed us to become full-time professional musicians. More than money or things, having art be your full-time occupation feels like the greatest of blessings and a huge responsibility,” says BALTHVS.
The trio spent a month at a tropical summer house in La Mesa, Colombia to record. As the band recalls, “More than a studio we wanted to be inspired by nature. So we brought our recording equipment there and started working.”
The tropical landscape served as more than just a backdrop, it was the wellspring of inspiration for BALTHVS. Unlike their previous albums, where Balthazar Aguirre took the lead in recording, composing, producing, and arranging, the music emerged as a collective effort. All three contributed equally to the creation of every song. Thinking back on the recording process, BALTHVS says, “It’s very hot in La Mesa, and the only air conditioning we had was in the recording room in order to protect the gear from overheating. It was literally making music in your underwear drenched in sweat, you can’t get more intimate than that with your bandmates.”
Harvest features vocals that harmonize like instruments, weaving lyrical poetry into a tranquil groove. Most evident in songs like “Like Coconut Water,” an effervescent song that captures the essence of a tropical escape. “Anouk” is a gorgeous groove that is dedicated to the house cat at La Mesa, the sphinx-like guardian who set watch during the recording sessions. “Mango Season” a laid back, funky and soulful instrumental groove that is perfect for relaxing, skateboarding and looking at clouds.
“Aguacero” is one of the few compositions with lyrics and sung in Spanish by bassist, vocalist Johanna Mercuriana; it was inspired by 4 days of non-stop rain, truly influenced by their surroundings – that heat, humidity and abundance of water, both in a physical and emotional sense. “Lovin’” a ballad about such a fun and wonderful aspect to life and “Sun & Moon” is 1 of 2 songs that were not written in La Mesa, however after their Fall 2023 Tour, energized by electronic music, BALTHVS comments, “we wanted to try and replicate a dancing groovy tune in our own style.”
Harvest is a sonic testament to the last four years of artistic and personal growth and building a musical family across borders. The band comments, “It summarizes a beautiful stage of our life and career as friends and musicians,” they continue, “Especially, we would like to thank our manager, Oz McGuire and the team at Mixto for manifesting our music on vinyl and for helping with the live shows. We found a family thousands of miles away. But mostly we gotta thank all the people who listened to our music, bought a record and/or came to one of the shows. You make it happen and it means the world, thank you for this Harvest.” Harvest is out now and everywhere you stream music.
