Gene Simmons is not a suspect

There's a raid on a house by police looking for child pornography. The house is owned by someone famous, but police go out of their way to stress that the suspect is not the famous person, nor a member of their family; and that the famous person is not a suspect.

The press still use the famous person's name at the front end of the headlines, and a massive photo of him.

It might not even be that someone from the house downloaded anything; it could just be the IP address. And Simmons wasn't even in the country when the alleged offence occurred.

But the AP report still ends with two lines about Simmons:

Phone and email messages to Simmons' publicist were not immediately returned.

The 65-year-old Simmons has been a central member of KISS since the early 1970s. His family was the subject of a reality TV series that aired for several years.

Yes, they were. But not the subject of the story you've just filed.

Obit: Nick Talbot

It's hard to know how to describe Nick Talbot, whose death was confirmed yesterday. He was a musician, and a producer, ran a label, and wrote well about music, most notably for The Quietus.

As Gravenhurst, he provided an until then unnoticed missing link between Kevin Shields and James Taylor, eventually expanding his stage name into a full live band over a fifteen year period.


Warp Records, who released much of Talbot's work, issued a statement:

We are shocked and saddened to share the news that Nick Talbot aka Gravenhurst has passed away aged 37. An immensely talented singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and journalist, he will be hugely missed. Nick's family and friends request privacy at this difficult time.

Manager Michelle Hilborne added:

I am utterly devastated to confirm that Nick Talbot, also known under the performing name Gravenhurst, has passed away aged 37. The finest, most extraordinary and inspirational songwriter, singer and performer, and a remarkable producer and journalist, Nick's work has deeply affected so many people all over the world. Outstandingly intelligent, compassionate, fascinating and witty, Nick was the dearest friend and his absence brings indescribable sorrow.

Writerobit: James McLaren

Really sorry to hear of the death of James McLaren, former editor of Welsh Music magazine SoundNation and - for the last six years - part of BBC Wales, where he was a prolific music blogger.

James died in a traffic accident yesterday.

SoundNation was a brilliant publication under his editorship - proving that arts bodies could be publicly-funded but still burn with a genuine passion.

Our genuine sympathy is extended to his family and friends.

Beyonce: Crazy in print

Here's a headline to make you swell with pride:

Beyonce Wins Journalism Award

I guess it's balancing things out after Peter Oborne won Best Album at this year's Brits.

Still, let's not be too quick to assume this is a tiresome prize designed to attract attention to the gifting organisation even while undermining the people they're actually supposed to represent. What was this sequel to Watergate for which Beyonce has won?

The Crazy In Love hitmaker took a nine-month extended vacation in 2010 to spend time with her family, visit museums, attend concerts and learn how to cook.

She documented her experiences for Essence magazine in a 2011 article titled "Eat, Play, Love" - a play on the title of the book Eat, Pray, Love, which became a movie starring Julia Roberts.

The piece impressed officials at the New York Association of Black Journalists, who have now honoured the star with a writing prize for her efforts.

Yes, the New York Association Of Black Journalists has given Beyonce a prize for a superannuated "what I did on my holidays".

Magazineobit: Tom "Tom" Hibbert

Terribly sad to read the obituary of Tom Hibbert, Smash Hits and Q writer from both magazines' Imperial Phases. You wonder what the home improvement magazines he wrote for before moving, first to New Music News, and then onto Smash Hits, made of his dry wit. At the Hits, and then in Q's Who The Hell... column, Hibbert softly punctured the pompous and puffed-up by gently measuring out the rope they'd need, and effortlessly passing it over. Besides helping with shaping the voice of the two magazines, Hibbert also had a hand in creating the quiet, raised-eyebrow style of journalism today performed by the likes of Jon Ronson and Louis Theroux. On a personal note, he gave me many happy mealtimes - on Q day, tea would always be scoffed with that opening interview propped against the sauce bottles. He'd been unable to work through illness for the last fourteen years, a terrible loss to the world of writing; his death on Sunday an even crueller loss to the world. [Thanks to HungryHatter]