Emerson’s girlfriend said at the weekend that he’d become “tormented with worry” about upcoming show in Japan, after suffering a nervous problem that made it difficult for him to play.

Mari Kawaguchi told the Daily Mail: “His right hand and arm had given him problems for years. He had an operation a few years ago but the pain and nerve issues were getting worse.

“Keith was worried – he read all the criticism online and was a sensitive soul. Last year he played concerts and people posted mean comments such as, ‘I wish he would stop playing.’

“He was planning to retire after Japan. He was a perfectionist and the thought he wouldn’t play perfectly made him depressed, nervous and anxious.”

Yes it can be cathartic to read highly negative reviews, and even more so to write them. It’s especially true when the subject is somebody you never really liked in the first place. But just as it’s unfair on audiences to pull too many punches, no reviewer should be so lacking in empathy that they completely ignore the effect that reading those reviews might have on the artist.

Critical reviews are an important part of any cultural ecosystem; many artists will never fulfil their full potential if all they hear is fannish cheerleading. But if you can’t frame criticism constructively, directed at an artist you believe can do better, what is the purpose of your criticism?

But does a site need a few less-than-positive reviews to put the positive ones into context?

I’m thinking of Dom Lawson’s reviews in The Guardian. Almost everything he writes is a solid four stars. I can appreciate the reasons why The Guardian’s only reviewer with a deep love and knowledge of rock and metal shouldn’t be devoting too much of a limited space to second or third rate records. There’s so much good stuff out there which no-one else on the site is likely to review fairly. But since taste is music is deeply subjective, the more you know about a reviewer’s own tastes the more you know how much you can trust their opinions. So perhaps it would be useful to know more about what Dom doesn’t like?

Back to this site. Should I try and write a few more less-than-positive reviews of albums and gigs that I wasn’t that impressed with? Or should I stick to what I actually like?