There is a contemporary sound to this music, a mixture of
modern jazz
trumpet, fusion and rock that all blends together surprisingly
well. Ms.
Collins plays trumpet and flugelhorn like a twenty-first century
Miles Davis;
there is a Spanish tinge to many of these improvised solos
and also a touch of
melancholy, similar to that which was always present in
Miles's music. Flute
and vibes solos are pretty much straightahead jazz
contributions and the
rock flavoured bass and drum punctuations are somehow
quite appropriate
and suitable for this music. The Messenger is essentially a
slow ballad with
Ms. Collins blowing moody, atmospheric trumpet and Harris
shining with a
mournful guitar solo. Confidential Obituary continues the dark,
sad mood and
offers more, intense trumpet playing...
... the result is really good music; in the contemporary
manner, in terms of
instrumentation and recording practices but sounding fresh
and inspired all
through. I would urge all enthusiasts to put aside pre-
conceived notions of
any kind and just listen. It is well worth the effort.
Derek Ansell - Jazz Journal International
Kiku is a MUSICAL trumpet player. Her phrasing, sound and
lyricism remind
me of great singers. For
me, that is one of the best compliments that I could give to
any trumpet
player! I really enjoy listening
to her CD and would highly recommend it to others. (Trumpet
players or not.)
—Mike Vax
...Upon first hearing Kiku Collins, that overwhelming
feeling of
discovering something
extraordinary is unavoidable. To those of us with the
overpowering lust for
the aesthetics of
Melody...these occurrences are special. Someone who
consistently dishes-
out, track after track...after
track of unbelievably beautiful melody is surreal and definitely
calls for a
celebratory bonfire among
devotees of tuneful improvisation. Well beyond her years —-
as evinced by
the language of her finely
accented phrasing —- she can hang a note like a sky on fire
over a steady,
potent Latin rhythm or do a
mid-air pause to highlight ( she pauses to highlight ) the
sweetness of a
chordal turn. Musical
improvisation requires unfaltering instinct, listening and as
equally —-
timing. Kiku wields and uses
them at her disposal to fully facilitate the vigor of a melodious
interplay...from player to player; the
free-flow always leads to sonorous mind-vistas, woven
together by the
spontaneity of a craftily
circulating woodwind... “Levitation” calmly takes you on a
wonder-sojourn
without leaving your
physical space...the lift is total. “Blues Again” has the steady
radiance of a
quiet fire. It smolders but,
doesn't burn...the cool glow draws you
in...slowburning...riveting. 1,2,3—-
Go!...”Cartoons of the
Prophet” is hip-vibery. Tuned-in to the world but, wound
around a charming
melody; detached from
real-life...as the pretty Ninja Princess evokes harmony—not
only musically—
but to “those who listen
with a Center”—The beauty in all things is apparent. —Julian
Ardella -
Julian's Flight
Kiku Collins “Here With Me,” is almost a force of quiet, but
determined,
Nature. I met Kiku in New
York City just before I escaped to Austin, Texas when she
was gigging with
the New York City Blues
Devils. At the time, I thought they were slumming from New
Orleans and
parts South. They were that
convincing and the horn solos, mostly expertly played by
Kiku, were that
authentic. Her talent seems
second to none, having learned it at a very early age, enrolling
at the
prestigious Interlochen Arts
Academy in Michigan, after doing a 2 summer stint at their
National Music
Camp. From there, she went
on to study classical performance at Manhattan School of
Music. She's very
easy on the eyes. Most
recently, she's been Beyonce Knowles' trumpet player since
June 2006. When I
say she's that good, I
mean she's THAT good. The overall mood of the album is
almost cinematic,
and as you listen to it from
beginning to end, you'll see the most amazing scenes playing
in your head.
This is a film score that
needs a film. I’ll freely admit that I am not as much of a
Jazzhead as I would
like to be, but certainly not
as much as you are. My forte is Indie and many things Pop,
so it would be
unfair to comment upon each
of these amazing tracks with the opinion of an expert.
However, I know good,
pristinely produced
music when I hear it, and I know what I like. Here With Me
doesn’t suffer from
the same self-produced
unmastered genericism that some music that is sent in to my
radio network
does. Furthermore, there
are only two covers included here. The remaining eight tracks
were written by
Kiku herself and they
sound like instant classics
. The album is an understated Wall Of Sound that deserves to
be heard
outside of the Jazz World. —
Mike Perazzetti - Radio Mike
There is no mistake about it, Kiku Collins' new album
”Here With Me” is
incredibly exciting and very
well-done. Great jazz! I have perused my personal collection
of some of the
best players in this genre
of great trumpet players from Louis Armstrong, Maynard
Ferguson, Miles
Davis, all the way down to
Arturo Sandoval and Derek Watson, and this album is one of
the best
SOUNDING in my collection. The
”Dynamic Duo” of Kiku Collins and Julian Harris have put
together some very
tasteful arrangements that
is sure to make this album one of the hottest jazz releases of
2007. The two
ballads on this album that
are especially impressive are the title song, “Here With Me”
and “The
Messenger”. Collins' sound has
never been captured better and she plays with a brilliant fire, a
wonderful
clarity AND definitely taste.
Her funky mid-range statement of the melody in the middle of
the “Blues
Again” chart blew me away!
”Cartoons of the Prophet” and “Confidential” also both give
Collins a chance
to shine playing the
MELODY and knocking it totally out of the park. What else to
say? Yes, “Here
With Me” has a great
sound, a first rate band and some of the best and cleanest
Kiku Collins
playing I've heard. The sound on
this CD is especially wonderful. —Musi Faisal, President and
CEO - Black Owl
Music
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