ACCLAIMED ARTIST FRUIT BATS RELEASES SPARSE AND CAPTIVATING NEW TRACK “LET YOU PEOPLE DOWN”
OFF FORTHCOMING ALBUM BABY MAN
OUT SEPTEMBER 12TH ON MERGE RECORDS
LISTEN HERE
NEW FRUIT BATS FALL TOUR DATES TO FEATURE AN INTIMATE, SOLO EVENING WITH ERIC D. JOHNSON
“Almost 25 years after Eric D. Johnson started the project, he’s arguably on his hottest streak.” – Grammy.com
“This isn’t just another Fruit Bats record; it’s a deep dive into the raw, unadorned core of Johnson’s songwriting.” – KLOF
Nashville, TN – GRAMMY-nominated singer/songwriter Eric D. Johnson (aka Fruit Bats) has released the sparse and intimate new track “Let You People Down.” The song appears on his deeply personal forthcoming album Baby Man, which is set for release September 12th on Merge Records.
“This is an ode to the people pleasers of the world,” says Johnson. “It’s about breaking your own heart. It’s about stumbling while navigating the world and wanting to jump off the planet and take a re-set. And of course maybe it’s sneakily and/or subconsciously about my fear of how people might react to this record and its lack of boppy Fruit Bats songs that they might be waiting for. This might be the album’s mission statement, crushed up into a 2-minute long easy to swallow tablet.”
Baby Man is unlike any album in Fruit Bats’ celebrated body of work. Composed of 10 captivating songs, the new collection finds Johnson performing solo, self-accompanied by guitar, piano or an occasional touch of synth. His use of space throughout the album is often as powerful as the music itself and his remarkable voice, which is as expressive as ever. Album opener “Let You People Down” encapsulates all of these elements and sets the tone for what follows. Listen to “Let You People Down” HERE.
Johnson lays himself bare throughout Baby Man with some of the rawest and most revealing material he has written. He reunited with Thom Monahan, who engineered, produced and mixed the album. Monahan pushed the vocals up front in the mix, which elevates both the command and the vulnerability of each performance. Between the substance and the sonics, a deep listen to Baby Man is an enchanting and emotive aural experience.
Baby Man is the follow-up to 2023’s critically acclaimed release A River Running to Your Heart (Merge). Johnson is also a member of the GRAMMY-nominated indie trio Bonny Light Horseman.
In support of Baby Man, Fruit Bats recently announced a fall tour, An Intimate, Solo Evening with Eric D. Johnson. Stops will include Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Toronto, Brooklyn and Cambridge, MA. See full list of dates below.
To pre-order/pre-save Baby Man, click HERE
For press information about Fruit Bats, please contact:
Jim Flammia or Kai Nanfelt at All Eyes Media
Fruit Bats Summer Tour Dates
Aug 13 – Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
Aug 14 – Hamden, CT – Space Ballroom
Aug 15 – Queens, NY – The Rockaway Hotel
Aug 16 – Manchester, VT – Green Mountain Bluegrass & Roots Festival
New Fruit Bats Fall Tour Dates
Oct 16 – Ojai, CA – Ojai Valley Woman’s Club
Oct 17 – Los Angeles, CA – Pico Union Project
Oct 18 – San Francisco, CA – The Chapel (Two Shows)
Oct 20 – Boulder, CO – Boulder Theater
Oct 22 – Stoughton, WI – Stoughton Opera House
Oct 23 – Minneapolis, MN – Icehouse
Oct 24 – Chicago, IL – Old Town School of Folk Music
Oct 25 – Chicago, IL – Old Town School of Folk Music SOLD OUT
Oct 27 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark
Oct 29 – Toronto, ON – Longboat Hall SOLD OUT
Oct 30 – Buffalo, NY – The Ninth Ward
Oct 31 – Woodstock, NY – Levon Helm Studios
Nov 1 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg
Nov 2 – Cambridge, MA – Sinclair
Stay up to date on news and tour dates by visiting FruitBatsMusic.com