Balthazar (band)

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Balthazar

Maarten Devoldere of Balthazar at the Haldern Pop Festival in 2013.
Background information
Origin Kortrijk and Ghent, Belgium
Genres Indie pop, rock
Years active 2004-present
Labels Munich Records
Members Maarten Devoldere
Jinte Deprez
Patricia Vanneste
Simon Casier
Christophe Claeys
Past members Joachim Quartier
Koen Verfaillie

Balthazar is a Belgian indie pop and rock group. The band consists of Maarten Devoldere, Jinte Deprez, Patricia Vanneste, Simon Casier and Christophe Claeys. The band members come from the areas of Kortrijk and Ghent.

History

2004-2009

The group started in the second half of the year 2004. In the spring of 2005, Devoldere, Vanneste and Deprez as eighteen-year-olds won the national Kunstbende competition for young people with Lost and Found. On December 3 that year she also won Talent West, the rock game of the province of West Flanders.

In 2006, Balthazar won Humo's Rock Rally KBC Audience. In August, their first self-titled debut EP was released. In early 2007, after sixty performances, Joachim Quartier bassist and drummer Koen Verfaillie were replaced by Simon Casier and Christophe Claeys and Balthazar started with a brand new set. In July, Balthazar performed during the four-day Dour Festival, which followed the release of their first single "This is a flirt". This was picked up by Radio 1 and Studio Brussel and lingered through the summer in the Settlement, with second place as the top listing.

In February 2008 Balthazar released their second single: Bathroom lovin ': situations. This time the song ended up in the lists of Humo, hotlist and The Reckoning. They played that summer among other Folk Dranouter and Marktrock. The band then tried performing abroad. They performed in Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands and France. In the summer of 2009, Balthazar went to South Africa for a club tour and then work on their first album. Upon return in the end of December 2009, the first single Fifteen Floors was released.

Applause (2010)

Just before their debut album came out, Balthazar still played on the Canadian Music Week festival in Toronto. On 22 March 2010, their debut album Applause came out in Belgium and the Netherlands. The album was produced by the then 22-year-old Martin Devoldere and Jinte Deprez and was mixed in Norway by Ynge Leidulv Saetre. Applause was widely welcomed by both the press and the public, thus ending up in the top of many lists such as the best Belgian final album of 2010 (Focus Knack, De Morgen, OOR magazine, etc.) and on January 7, 2011, Balthazar received a Music Industry Award for "Best Album 2010" on MIA's 2010 list. Not only the singles "Fifteen floors", "Hunger at the door", "I'll stay here" and "The Boatman" contributed to this, but also the unique sound that the young group had with their own production and brought forth in their live presence.

In April 2010, the band performed at London Calling in Amsterdam Paradiso, after several bands were canceled in connection with the cloud of volcanic ash over Europe, this right was a big step forward in the Netherlands. Further, done in the summer of 2010 several festivals, including Rock Werchter, Pukkelpop, Dour Festival and Lowlands . In the autumn various clubs in Belgium and the Netherlands were performed Balthazar (The Forward, The Depot, Tivoli, etc.) sold.

In the spring of 2011, Balthazar contributed to the success of their first album in Belgium and the Netherlands with having concerts in the great halls of the Ancienne Belgique and Paradiso. Balthazars EuroSonic 2011 did not go unnoticed and switched their European story into high gear. The band was playing more across Europe, including for The Joy Formidable and dEUS. Balthazar went overseas and played for the first time in New York. A European contract with Pias Recordings, they made their debut on October 10, 2011 which was released in France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Scandinavia.

Rats (2012)

The second album, Rats, was released on October 15, 2012 in Europe, excluding the UK. This was again produced by Jinte Deprez and Maarten Devoldere. The album was mixed by Noah Georgeson (Devendra Banhart, The Strokes) in Los Angeles. At the Music Industry Awards in 2012, Balthazar again won the award for best album for their album Rats. Recognition for the album went beyond Belgium and the Netherlands, in France the prestigious newspaper Libération claimed the album was the best album released in 2012.[1][2]

Band members

Jinte Deprez at the 2013 Haldern Pop Festival.
Current members
Past members
  • Joachim Quartier - bass guitar
  • Koen Verfaillie - drums

Discography

Studio albums
  • Applause (2010)
  • Rats (2012)

References

  1. ↑ Vorwerk, Josefine. "Balthazar – Rats". Nothing But Hope And Passion. Retrieved 13 November 2013. 
  2. ↑ "Balthazar - Rats Balthazar - Rats". The 405. Retrieved 13 November 2013. 

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