(From In The Mix, Australian 'zine dedicated mostly to dance music, 28 October 2007)

Industrial-Electronic-Punk Icon Dies at 46

Underground alternative star Paul Raven from Ministry and Killing Joke died expectedly this week, after suffering a heart attack as he was working with French band Treponem Pal in France. MTV reported that the 46 year old Wolverhampton born bass player had been out drinking the night before with the band, and was found dead in the morning by drummer Ted Parsons.

“I found Raven asleep in a chair the next morning in [a] living room,” Parsons wrote on his Myspace page. “I thought nothing of it, as Raven would sleep like this on the tour bus in the front lounge all the time. Then I looked closer at him, and he looked very gray. I checked his pulse and there was none.”

Chatting to US portal PunkTV.ca last year, Raven joked cheerfully about his rock & roll reputation describing himself as ‘a world-class antagonist, long time pit-bull breeder, part-time drug dealer (and) brunette lover.’

“I’ve been making records since 1977. I’m what we call O.P., like O.G., Original Punk Rocker,” he added, “Soon I’m going to be a punk-rock granddad. I’m 45 years old and still f**king you know, kicking ass,” he said.

Though numerous blogs immediately speculated that drugs might have been involved, no mentions of drugs except alcohol have emerged in subsequent press reports.