New Fruit Bats Album: Baby Man

Fruit Bats, the moniker of Eric D. Johnson's musical endeavors, has just released Baby Man. The album is follows the 2023 release, A River Runs to Your Heart, and is a bit of a departure in that each song is presented in its starkest form. Intimate recordings of acoustic guitar or acoustic piano bring the songs on Baby Man to the listener as if you are sitting in the room. In some ways, it reminds me of Nick Drake records; rich, dark, smooth tones, and minimal vocal processing provide a direct line from the artist to the ears of the audience. Add Baby Man to the list of Sunday morning listens or long desert drives at dusk.

The album was produced, engineered, and mixed by longtime Tape Op contributor Thom Monahan, and was mastered by fellow contributor Eric Broyhill at Broyhill Masters in Stockholm.