After starting Balthazar as teenagers, the lineup of Maarten Devoldere (lead vocals/guitar/keyboards), Jinte Deprez (guitar/vocals), and Patricia Vanneste (violin/keyboards/vocals) won a national youth talent competition in 2005 with the song "Lost and Found." They included the track on their self-titled debut EP, released in 2006. By then, they had begun touring with additional members Joachim Quartier (bass) and Koen Verfaillie (drums). In early 2007, the rhythm section was replaced by Simon Casier and Christophe Claeys. The following year, the band played their first shows outside of Belgium, visiting nearby countries including France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, and in 2009, they did a club tour of South Africa before returning to the studio.
Their first full-length record, Applause, arrived in March 2010 and spent a week at number 13 on Belgium's album chart. They followed it up with appearances at European summer festivals such as Pukkelpop and Rock Werchter as well as tours in support of the Joy Formidable and dEUS. With mixing by Noah Georgeson (the Strokes, Joanna Newsom), the band's second studio LP, Rats, was released by Play It Again Sam in 2012. It topped the album chart in Belgium, also charting in France and the Netherlands. Featuring the line-up of Devoldere, Deprez, Vanneste, Casier, and drummer Michiel Balcaen, their third long-player, 2015's Thin Walls, was their first with an outside producer, Ben Hillier (Depeche Mode, Blur). It reached the number two spot in their home country and the Top 20 in the Netherlands.
After 14 years in the group, Vanneste parted ways with Balthazar in April 2018. The rest of the members returned with their PIAS-issued fourth album Fever in early 2019. The title track became their first single to chart in Belgium when it debuted at number 47. This was succeeded by 2021 LP Sand: preoccupied with themes of restlessness and waiting, the group's fifth album featured a cover designed by sculptor Margriet Van Breevort.
Biography by Marcy Donelson
2. Balthazar is a Black Metal band from New Zealand of the industrious Mort. They cite association with Exiled From Light, Schizophrenia, Funereal, Beyond Light, Serpenthrone, Nystagmus, Einsamkeit, When Mine Eyes Blacken and Winds Of Sorrow.
True Love
Balthazar Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To find its way into my dreams
No matter what, it's how I make
A thousand variations of the same mistake
No matter how, it's the same old thing
You got me trapped in my freedom again
So get it done, however that may be
Come on just let it all out tonight
Come on just let it all out tonight
Come on just let it all out tonight
Come on, girl, just let it all out tonight
The more precise your plan has been
The more chaotic when lust kicks in
But anyway we shouldn't be surprised
How can true love ever be civilized, yeah
Come on, just let it all out tonight
Come on, just let it all out tonight
Come on, just let it all out tonight
Come on, girl, just let it all out tonight
Why, why should we wait, why should we hide
From the confrontration with the light
The lyrics of Balthazar's song "True Love" are about the complexities of love and relationships. The singer begins by acknowledging that, no matter what, love always finds a way into their dreams and life, but it also leads to "a thousand variations of the same mistake." The singer is caught between the desire for freedom and the feeling of being trapped by love. They urge their lover to make a decision, but not to go "soft" on them.
The second verse suggests that even the most precise plan can be disrupted by the chaos of lust. The singer emphasizes that true love cannot be civilized or controlled. In the chorus, the singer pleads with their lover to let go and express themselves honestly, asking "why should we wait, why should we hide, from the confrontation with the light?"
Overall, the song speaks to the struggle of navigating the complex emotions and contradictions of love. It highlights the tension between the desire for personal freedom and the intimacy and vulnerability of a committed relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
No matter what, it always seems
Despite any circumstance, true love continuously appears
To find its way into my dreams
It always enters my subconscious thoughts and desires
No matter what, it's how I make
Irrespective of the consequences, true love is how I operate
A thousand variations of the same mistake
I repeatedly make the same tragic error in my pursuit of true love
No matter how, it's the same old thing
Regardless of how I approach it, it always results in the same outcome
You got me trapped in my freedom again
Despite having the ability to choose, I am constrained by my feelings for you
So get it done, however that may be
We need to make our relationship happen, no matter what the method
But anyway don't you go soft on me, yeah
Don't falter in your commitment to me
Come on just let it all out tonight
Let's express our emotions freely and honestly this evening
Come on just let it all out tonight
One more time, let's express ourselves wholeheartedly this night
Come on just let it all out tonight
Let's not hold back our feelings and ideas tonight
Come on, girl, just let it all out tonight
My love, let's be completely honest with each other this moment
The more precise your plan has been
The more detailed your strategy, the more chaotic it becomes when true love comes into play
The more chaotic when lust kicks in
Once there's a burst of sexual desire, it results in more chaos
But anyway we shouldn't be surprised
Despite the unpredictability of true love, we shouldn't be caught off guard
How can true love ever be civilized, yeah
True love can never be tamed or restrained
Why, why should we wait, why should we hide
What's the point of waiting or concealing our emotions?
From the confrontration with the light
From the unavoidable exposure of our feelings to the world
Contributed by Carson P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.