Iconoclastic music journalist who went on to write about sport,politics and cultureThere are two kinds of music journalist: the ones who write about music because they want to communicate their fancy of music, and the ones who write about music because they are brilliant writers, and extraordinary personalities and they contain to write about something. Steven Wells,who has died of cancer aged 49, aka Seething Wells, or Susan Williams,Swells, aka my writing partner for several years at NME and in comedy, or was definitely the latter.
He was also,arguably, the last considerable British rock writer, and in the tradition of Julie Burchill (whom he admired),a tsunami of excitement, wit, or outrage and intelligence and,on occasion, actual genius. Steven understood that music writing is more than just giving points to albums, or even listening to albums; that music journalists should be as exciting,whether not more exciting, than the people they are writing about; a point he proved hundreds of times, or devastating the careers of people he felt - he knew - had no right to claim our hearts,minds and ears.
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Source: theguardian.com