7 Kings

Inti Maldonado, engineer, songwriter, producer, guitarist extraordinaire, and one of the most active recording and touring musicians in the NYC metro area, decided to allocate more time to develop his original material. To push his creative energy to the forefront, he teamed up with fellow guitar player and multi-instrumentalist Camilo Rodriguez (a.k.a. Balam), an established name in the boiling underground scene, and a young musical force to be reckoned with.
A common interest in the raw force of Hip-Hop and the bludgeoning power of metal, plus their own experience with a vast array of Latin rhythms, led them to work endless hours to turn Inti's rough demos into elaborated productions that further developed Inti's studio and compositional expertise, and Balam's penchant for historical, political and social references, from the standpoint of a young, bicultural witness, stepping into and adoptive nation.
By the winter of 2004, after one year of hard work, they realize that their chemistry as a writing partnership has yielded significant results. With up to 8 original songs, fully written, recorded and produced, they decide to assemble a band to bring their work to life. Balam brings bassist Andres Jimenez, a partner in many of his past projects, to fuel the songs with his expressive approach to fretted and fretless basses, and his rock-solid sense of rhythm. For the percussion department, Inti enlists talented drummer Jerry Chao to complete the band’s first lineup.

The band embarks on a steady schedule of rehearsals and full-band demo recording sessions throughout the reminder of 2004 and winter 2005. However their impressive credentials, they find the work of bringing the songs to a full-band format a daunting task. To re-create the complex atmospheres and the multi-dimensional vocal and instrumental arrangements put together by Inti and Balam, the band quickly acknowledges that technology has to be involved. Sequencers, samplers and distinctive software are brought in as working tools, to allow the musicians enough flexibility to get their point across, without compromising any of its musical value. At this stage of the work, every member is working hard to adapt to their respective roles, as the work at hand proves to be challenging to every stretch of the imagination. Halfway through this period, and after going over a long list of possible band names, they settle for Seven Kings, as a historical link to the seven political characters responsible for the rise and subsequent fall of the Roman Empire.

As summer 2005 approaches, and 7 Kings feel increasingly tight as a band, they start craving for a live show. Highly concerned about setting good standards right from the start, Inti suggests doing a showcase to bring together the two fundamental sides of their show: the music and the use of video as a backdrop to reinforce its atmosphere. Additionally, a showcase allows the band to be in control of every aspect of the production. America Maldonado, a revered videographer and Inti’s sister, gets involved as the band’s official photo and video artist. Brian Langergaard, a frequent collaborator on Inti’s previous work, steps into the project as live sound engineer. After a hectic month and a half of rehearsals, photo sessions, filming, editing and sending out invitations to everyone they know in their musical environment, they book Studio A at SIR studios, for two shows on July 10th 2005. The experience proves to be successful, as it provides the band with many valuable contacts, but overall, a very good impression on how to work together as a team for a worthwhile live experience. America documents the making of this show in the band’s first DVD, which is promoted at later shows with an accompanying demo.

The rest of the year is spent playing at some of the city’s most widely known live spaces: CBGB’s, The Underscore, The Hook, Kenny’s Castaways, D’Antigua, to name a few.
At this point, Jerry Chao decides to split from the band to pursue other musical interests, and the band takes their first break after two years of working non-stop.
By the end of 2005, groovemeister and Berklee graduate Mark Flynn brings his musical expertise to the drummers’ throne, and the band plays a few more dates at CBGB’s and other selected venues.
The new year sees Inti and Balam going back to a relentless schedule of writing and arranging new material, while simultaneously updating the band’s website. The band is currently on rehearsals leading up to the recording of their first album as their next big project, which will also be an independent release.