BALTHVS Unveil Hybrid Live-Studio Album ‘Transmutations’
BALTHVS, photo by Santi Pulezio
BALTHVS have announced Transmutations, their fifth full-length album. Set to release on March 20 via their own Cubensis Records imprint, the Bogotá, Colombia-based trio’s latest offering summons their wealth of experience on the road to reimagine older studio favorites and setlist staples, disrupting the divide between the studio and the stage. To preview the collection, they’ve shared three advance singles, including a take on the Grateful Dead’s “Shakedown Street” dressed up in their omnivorous neo-psychedelia.
“For some time, we wanted to show the world that live BALTHVS was a whole other experience than what we showed on our records,” the band expressed in a statement. “When we made the records, we envisioned the home as the place where these sounds would resonate; we wanted to give space and calm for the uncertain times the 2020s ushered in. As life slowly went back to normal, we could head out for the first time to the stage and perform. The wild energy accumulates, and as the decade goes through, so does the intensity of the music and the world, the fire of the audience and the increasing size of the stages, propelling new energy into our melodies and rhythms. After a while, the live offerings were unrecognizable from the original song.”
The material from BALTHVS’ new record was captured in concert during their late 2025 European run and the Flesh and Soul world tour by engineer Zev Russ, with studio additions cut in San Diego, Calif, and at their home base in Bogota, Colombia. Bandleader, guitarist and singer Balthazar Aguirre recorded and produced the sessions, while drummer Santiago Lizcano, bassist and vocalist Johanna Mercuriana and Vanessa Muñoz, Mercuriana’s temporary touring stand-in, add their unique styles throughout. “We ‘transmuted’ the live concert into a studio album,” the band said, “we had no restrictions with the material, we re-recorded multiple elements in order to ensure pristine studio quality while preserving the energy of the live experience, and ‘alchemized’ the songs.”
Transmutations is available to pre-order and pre-save now. Hear the advance singles below, and read on for the album’s full tracklist.
Transmutations – BALTHVS:
1. Ojos Verdes (Alchemized)
2. LSD In Bahia
3. Mood Swing (Alchemized)
4. Flesh and Soul (Alchemized)
5. All is One (Alchemized)
6. Outer Reaches
7. Shakedown Street
8. Inner Heights
9. Johanna’s Dream (Alchemized)
