The untimely passing of Broadcast's Trish Keenan.

My god, what a tragedy! Trish Keenan, the creative and talented lead singer and lyricist of the British band Broadcast, has passed away at the shockingly young age of 42. Keenan, a resident of Birmingham, UK, died of "complications of pneumonia," according to the Web site of Broadcast's record label, Warp Records, which continues:

Our thoughts go out to James, Martin, her friends and her family and we request that the public respect their wishes for privacy at this time.

This is an untimely tragic loss and we will miss Trish dearly - a unique voice, an extraordinary talent and a beautiful human being. Rest in Peace.

The Toronto Sun provides additional details on this horrible horrible turn of events:

The Broadcast frontwoman picked up a strain of swine flu while touring Australia in December. She was hospitalized on her return to England and spent two weeks in intensive care after she was also diagnosed with pneumonia.

Keenan's sister told fans the rocker was "fighting for her life" on Thursday, and the following morning, the star passed away after suffering complications from the inflammatory lung condition.

I'm simply too shocked and sad about this to wax eloquent about the joy and comfort that Broadcast's music has brought me over the years—in particular, their 2005 album Tender Buttons, on which the band's line-up was stripped down to a duo, bringing into sharper focus Trish's beautiful voice/diction and evocative lyrics. That masterpiece's juxtaposition of Trish's voice—simultaneously mellow and icy—against frequently cacophonous musical accompaniments is showcased on Track 10, "Subject to the Ladder," which is possibly my favorite Broadcast song.

Subject to the Ladder (please feel free to ignore the visuals...I have no idea what they're supposed to be all about; it happens that this video represents the only posting of this song that appears on YouTube):

And here's the more tuneful and every bit as wonderful song Black Cat, also from Tender Buttons:

 

Why does it always seem to be the good people, who bring happiness into the world? Why not Tom Delay, or Henry Kissinger, or somebody like that?

Rest in Peace, Trish. We're really going to miss you.