The Long Beach Press-Telegram is reporting that musician/promoter Josh Fischel, creator of the Music Tastes Good festival that took place in Long Beach just last weekend, died Thursday. He was 47.

A spokesman for Music Tastes Good, Mark Magdaleno, confirmed Fischel's death to the Press-Telegram via email, writing in part, “Josh truly was a gentle giant, tall in frame and tall in presence. … The last memory for me is hugging him at the end of The Specials' set last Saturday [at Music Tastes Good] and thanking him for bringing this gift to our city.”

Fischel was known around the Long Beach music scene as a member of the bands Bargain Music and Josh Fischel & The Fiction. He also made music videos and a documentary for Sublime and organizing other events including RiotStage and Live After Five. He was known to have been suffering from an unspecified illness, but the cause of his death was not immediately confirmed.

Speaking to L.A. Weekly recently about what inspired him to launch Music Tastes Good, Fischel said, “I love music and food, and those are my passions. It's time for Long Beach to have that kind and size of fest. If you're going to do something like that, now is the time.”

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.