R.I.P Swells

Forget Farrah Fawcett, I've just heard the sad news that Steven Wells, journalist and poet, has died. There would rarely be a week that I wasn't glued to a Swells review or interview in the NME in the 80s. He lambasted most bands for the pompous self loving smug idiots the majority of them were. Not to say I always agreed with his tastes, but he was never, ever, a dull read. The closest we've got in mainstream journalism today is Charlie Brooker. There's a tribute here, and his last article here. For a sample of a rather tame (for him) rant about the Manic Street Preachers in 1999, go here.