K I N G P I N
Profile - Ivan Madeira/Kingpin
Contact: ivan.madeira@hentuckybreaks.co.uk
Role: Founder of Hentucky Breaks. I'm Editor or the UK site and Sub-Editor of the Spanish Site. I'm also the manager of events and projects. I also contribute my own articles and content in the various sections of the site.
The Early Days
Hentucky Breaks initially was just about being a mixtape. My musical tastes had changed quiet a lot since I started to get into music properly in the early 90s. From Marvin Gaye to crystal Gaile to 60s rock & roll to 80s power ballads I was raised on a fairly eclectic playlist. It wasn't until I started to buy my own music such as the Now Compilations and On a Energy Tip series did I start to take an interest in music by my own initiative. Eventually I got into 'propah' dance music, such as Hardcore and Jungle. It wasn't long before reading the back of my brothers 'DJ Magazine' I would want to get a pair of decks. After much convincing I blagged a pair for my 14th birthday. It took several months before I would actually touch the decks, after being scared of the fact that mixing is harder than it looks; particularly when mixing unquantized 1991 breakbeat hardcore. But with people in my school getting wind off that I had decks, I soon formed a regular crew of friends comprising of two DJs and an X-Amount of wannabe MCs which where ample in supply. As time went on and several TDK's later, I started to take DJing seriously. His phases of music ranged from Hardcore to Jungle/D&B and UK Garage, but it took his time at university to move away from being a straight up dance DJ.
After being bored of dirty basslines and fender Rhodes chords of the 95 Garage scene which I was heavily into pre university, I asked to borrow CDs of a couple of my Indie/alternative flatmates. Getting into Badly Drawn Boy, The Hives, Doves opened up his ears a lot. But it wasn't until hearing The Bends by Radiohead my mind was changed on 'non-electronically produced' modern music. With a combination of a student loan and 18 year old naivety on budgeting I stocked up on new vinyl. As the student debt increased the buying of new records decreased with the introduction of an 18 month sabbatical on DJing. With a brief stint trying to form a band (which failed in the very early stages) it took a summer of failed job hunting to get back on the decks. It was one afternoon when the penny dropped. How to mix all those various genres together in one set? The art of turntablism. With moving into his new student house, it was perfect to accommodate my set up and from there I started to take scratching more seriously. With the dissertation of the final year looming, it was particularly during the final stretch of doom that I decided to work on the 'ultimate' mixtape.
The turning point
The idea was to mix up a little bit of everything that I was into, from Indie to D&B to hip hop tied up with a little bit of rudimentary scratching. The pinnacle moment of Hentucky was to occur when a visit to Matécana in London Bridge for a friends birthday. The venue was managed by John, old time college friend of myself. They had a little chat about the possibility of having a night at the venue. It was a dream of his to have an event since he was mixing with my mates in my parents garage. But with the possibility of it being a reality, well it was immediately inspiring, and ideas for the night where being drawn up.
There where four fundamental ingredients which where critical in Hentucky Breaks conception. They are, Music, Drink, Jokes and Fried Chicken. The music was always the fundamental to what this is all about and the first mixtape what got Hentucky Breaks started. The music to come from Hentucky would be based on the diverse playlist of mixtape. Wanting to have a night with a variety of DJs and styles all knowing how to create the ultimate party atmosphere. The second ingredient of drink and jokes was supplied by the friends in the pub setting. This type of intimate, friendly atmosphere was something I wanted to transcend into the club nights and the website. With the site in particular I'd like to create a community of artists and musicians. The final ingredient the name was half nabbed from a Manchester chicken shop called Hentucky Fried Chicken; the breaks was added on for cheesy effect. It was from here where it was all born.
Hentucky Breaks has been constantly evolving since its original idea of 'just' being a mixtape to 'just' being a charity club night. The goal posts have kept on moving and as a result it's just now more than just solely about being a mixtape and the odd club night. Currently Hentucky is currently working on bring out new talent from musicians, artists and journalists. This use to be a small part of the website, has now turned into one of main reasons for HB. We have also started to look into starting projects which we could start and fund ourselves, from helping a kid in South America get a decent education to helping fund a talented but struggling photographer getting his work seen. It's in the early stages, but as said before my ideas of HB are evolving every day, so bookmark the site and keep on checking back to see what we're up to. Also keep an eye out for exclusive downloads and information relating to Hentucky Events and forthcoming coming releases.
Additional Information
Total of three Hentucky Breaks Events all in support of Teenage Cancer Trust. Total amount raised just under £1000. Events held on 1st July 2004, 13th August 2004 and 27th May 2005 at the Matécana and Sahara Nights. Birthday celebration was held at Living - Brixton for a small intimate gathering for Hentucky regulars, mixed in with Living regulars. A live performance of Drive's Daytona (link) was held exclusively at the 1st Birthday bash.
Music Experience: Played at Ministry of Sound and Scala, Kings Cross as major club playouts. Have played at smaller venues, including at the Hentucky Events. Held a residency on B1000 in 2001-2002. Also been making music since 1999, and am currently working on a few projects with Goatlab.
