About
Jan Vranken
Music journalist. Forty years of writing about music in every form it takes, and a specialist in West African music.
Jan Vranken did his first interview in 1983, with Dutch guitar legend Jan Akkerman. Four decades later he has interviewed a remarkable range of artists, from progressive rock and pop to jazz, chanson and the great voices of Africa. He interviews as easily in Dutch as in English or French.
His speciality is West African music, a region he also knows from twenty-five years of international fieldwork across West Africa, the Middle East and Central Africa. He writes for Maxazine and Writerz Block, and on Rafelrand he publishes album reviews and essays on freedom, the body and tolerance. He is also the founder of Miet Kerbusch. De vergeten Dichteres, the website devoted to the forgotten Limburg poet.
He lives in the south of the Netherlands with his wife Marthe, who regularly reminds him that his Wolof pronunciation still needs work.
Interviews include
- Jan Akkerman
- 10cc
- Marillion
- Fish
- Toto
- Bryan Ferry
- Steve Vai
- Sass Jordan
- Fun Lovin' Criminals
- Hooverphonic
- The Delines
- Danny Kortchmar
- Leland Sklar
- Avishai Cohen
- Grand Corps Malade
- Wolfgang Niedecken
- Fatal Flowers
- Youssou N'Dour
- Baaba Maal
- Salif Keita
- Habib Koité
- Souad Massi
- Didier Awadi
- Daara J Family
- Orchestra Baobab
How I rate
Every album review on Rafelrand ends with a rating out of five stars. Five stars are reserved for records that are not only outstanding but also innovative: albums that break new ground. A record can be close to perfect within its tradition and still get four and a half.
| ★★★★★ | A masterpiece: outstanding and innovative. |
|---|---|
| ★★★★½ | Exceptional. As good as it gets within its tradition. |
| ★★★★ | Excellent. A record you'll keep coming back to. |
| ★★★½ | Very good, with some reservations. |
| ★★★ | Good, but uneven. |
| ★★½ | A few moments, but forgettable as a whole. |
| ★★ or less | Disappointing. |
For labels & PR
I review new albums and reissues across genres, with a special interest in West African music, rock, jazz, soul and singer-songwriters. Interview requests are welcome, in English, Dutch or French.
To send music for review, email a private streaming or download link, the press kit, a high-resolution cover and press photos, and the release date. Due to the volume of releases, not every album can be reviewed.
Contact & follow
Questions, responses or an idea for a story? Write to jlmvranken@icloud.com.
