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Doug Shaw<\/a>, a veteran New York-based indie musician known for his work as Highlife<\/a> and with bands including Gang Gang Dance<\/a> and White Magic<\/a>, died at home on Tuesday, May 26, of a stroke, his family said. He was 43.<\/p>\n Known to many as \u201cSleepy\u201d Doug Shaw, the musician was born in London in 1982, and moved stateside to New York in 2003. Over the course of his career, he performed alongside the likes of Lou Reed, Mdou Moctar, Sonic Youth, and Bonnie “Prince” Billy, and wore multiple hats in various bands. He was Gang Gang Dance\u2019s bassist, served as a multi-instrumentalist in White Magic, and played in the late<\/a> Sierra Leone bubu music pioneer Janka Nabay<\/a>\u2019s band, touring with him and appearing on all of his records. Shaw also released some of his solo work under the name D.S., most recently collaborating with Geologist (aka Animal Collective\u2019s Brian Weitz) on the 2025 album A Shaw Deal<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Shaw\u2018s label Drag City wrote on Instagram<\/a>, \u201cWhether you knew Doug from Gang Gang Dance, White Magic, Highlife, or by his \u2018Sleepy\u2019 nom-du-profession, he was a dude of incredible energies, as capable of bubbling over effervescently as getting deep down inside. We recognized him as a deep-thinker, a real freak and a picker unto himself. When he played the guitar, one felt in the presence of the absolute latest in the name of the real folk blues, a mirage of history conjured, rolling over the hills and the ocean beyond, far away\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Since news of Shaw\u2019s death broke, tributes have rolled in from contemporaries and collaborators including his Gang Gang Dance bandmate Lizzi Bougatsos<\/a>, Cass McCombs<\/a>, Deradoorian<\/a>, Cat Power, Coby Sey, Eartheater, and more. \u201cWhat an incredible talent, and friend, and lovely human being, with so much to give. No one else like him,\u201d Hot Chip\u2019s Alexis Taylor wrote on Instagram<\/a> alongside a series of videos of Shaw performing. \u201cNo one could sing the blues, like Sleepy Doug Shaw.\u201d<\/p>\n Brooklyn venue Union Pool, where Shaw played many times over the years, will host a gathering<\/a> tonight (May 31) in celebration of his life.<\/p>\n