Neal Langford, former The Shins bassist, dead at 50
Former bassist of The Shins, Neil Langford has died aged 50. No cause of death has yet to be revealed.
While Langford wasn’t a founding member of the group, he joined in 2000 and stayed with the group for three years. During his time in The Shins, the bassist played on their debut album Oh, Inverted World but none of their subsequent work.
His death was confirmed by The Shins frontman James Mercer, who wrote on Instagram: “Just want to let you guys know one of the best friends I’ve ever had has passed. He was in several bands with me including the Shins. A very important figure in my life you could say. I mean this is the guy who talked me into getting over my shyness and up on the stage. “
Mercer added: “He put me in front of the microphone! He was the catholic school kid who showed me how to sneak into the back of the old El Rey theatre and get a “free” beer. An invaluable person! Who turned me onto Dinosaur Jr. and Interview Magazine and the Cocteau Twins and countless other piles of cool stuff.”
“He would pick me up in his stepdad’s El Camino and we’d listen to his latest mixtape. With our swerve on. Driving when we probably shouldn’t have been. Where we shouldn’t have been. We were like that. A long time ago,” he continued.
Mercer concluded: “There’s too much to the story but I loved him. And I owe him a lot. Neal Langford you were always loved and you always will be.”
Last month, in Langford’s final Instagram post, he revealed to his followers that he’d recently completed a treatment program at Walter B. Jones Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Center in Greenville, North Carolina.
See Mercer’s tribute below.
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