It’s hard to imagine a Dutch or international stage on which New Cool Collective hasn’t played. For 22 years now, the swinging brass collective successfully has stormed the stages of the hippest clubs and festivals. Conducted by saxophonist and workaholic Benjamin Herman the formation throbs to a sound base of jazz and afro-beats, and always gets the audience dancing. And just when you think it’s time for the group to take a break, their next album is in stores already. Their latest record is called Electric Monkey Sessions and has already received wide acclaim. New Cool Collective’s inspiration for the album came from Senegal’s Orchestra Baobab, as well as psychedelic cumbia, Capetown, Italian cinema and jazz heroes. The group mainly recorded in the Amsterdam Electric Monkey studio and partly in a studio on the beach of Dakar, with local musicians who became friends during one of their many international tours.
