Fruit Bats are an indie rock band out of Chicago formed by singer and songwriter Eric D. Johnson. With a career spanning three decades, Johnson has served as the band’s permanent member, with various musicians joining the band for studio recordings and live performances. With their latest release, The Landfill, Fruit Bats are touring and making a stop at The Englert in Iowa City on Wednesday, October 21st. KRUI’s Myles Ackman and Kade Grierson met and spoke with Johnson over the phone for an exclusive KRUI interview.
MA: Going back to your early years, can you tell us a little bit about growing up in Chicago and how that shaped your musical identity?
EJ: The scene around that time was emo bands or post-rock bands that were ten years older than me. It wasn’t until I started working at Old Town School of Folk Music that I kinda found this realm of people kind of on the edge of folk and indie and stuff like that. I was just finding my way, and when I went on tour I started to discover, ‘oh, there’s other people doing this’. So it was definitely Old Town School in Chicago, but also touring too. You had to kinda get out and find your people.
MA: Before signing with Sub Pop Records in 2002, you played alongside artists including Modest Mouse and The Shins, later becoming a member of the latter. What was the early 2000s indie music scene like, and how was your experience touring with The Shins?
“That early 2000s time—I’ve said this before—it was really kinda easy, I don’t know if that’s the right word, but the stakes were a lot lower. You’d just get in a van and drive around, and there wasn’t, like—I’m making it sound like ancient history, but it kinda was—social media or anything like that. There were just message boards and Pitchfork, I guess. So you would drive around and see if your band got picked up by the local weekly or something. Now that I think back, it was really primitive, but in a really charming way, ya know? It was a little bit simpler, and you were just happy to have maybe 50 people come to the local club and for there to be a vibe.
When the boom started happening, that was around 2004, you had things like Arcade Fire, The Strokes. Things got bigger and faster.
MA: Following your run with The Shins, Fruit Bats released The Ruminant Band in 2009. What were some influences on that record?
EJ: In a lot of ways, that was like a new leaf for me, songwriting-wise. I was leaning way more into what I was feeling at the time. Neil Young, for sure, and kind of like Led Zeppelin 3. Always The Beatles, Grateful Dead, and stuff like that. I had been living on the West Coast for a while, and it was kind of my way of tapping into that West Coast country-rock thing.
MA: In reference to your 28-song collection titled Sometimes a Cloud Is Just a Cloud: Slow Growers, Sleeper Hits and Lost Songs, J. Mascis made an appearance on the title track, WACS. How did you two meet?
EJ: I don’t think I’ve ever met–well, I’ve maybe met J once. But, funnily enough, at that moment, the reason I got J. Mascis on the record was because we had the same manager. It was just one of those funny things, and he (manager) was like, “Do you wanna get J to play on the record? Like, I can ask him.”
And he (J. Mascis) just did, but he did that remotely so I wasn’t even there, and it’s funny because the song didn’t even make the record. So, that’s why the song is on the compilation because it was kind of a rarity. I forget about that sometimes, and I’m like, “yeah, J Mascis played on my record, that’s trippy.”
MA: Can you tell us how the music video for The Landfill came together?
EJ: The guy who directed it is a guy named Adam Willis, who’s not only like a long-time collaborator, but a dear friend. We’ve done videos together since 2008, and he’s maybe the only person that I’ve not only worked with, but who later became a friend of mine through a “cold email.”
He emailed me out of the blue and was like, “I like your music and I direct videos,” and I just liked what he did. He does a lot for me, and I just let him come up with it.
I always just let him cook, and he’s definitely comedy-oriented, and knows all these funny people who are like under the radar who are willing to get paid very little money to be in an indie music video. So, it was like all him and we are always working with very low budgets. He and I have a very similar sense of humor and we always like to go in the direction of comedy.
MA: The last time you played in Iowa City was 2011, at The Mill. After nearly 15 years, how does it feel to be back?
EJ: I love Iowa City. I grew up in the Chicago suburbs, and my friend’s brother went to the University of Iowa, and it (Iowa City) was the first place I ever drove kinda far with a driver’s license because I was 16. I always have a fond memory of that because I was like, “I just drove far!”
It’s like four hours, not even that far, but it was like my first road trip ever. Before The Mill, we always played at Gabes or Oasis, so I’ve always liked the vibe.
KG: What are some of your favorite music venues to play or attend in Chicago?
EJ: We’re playing at the Salt Shed a couple of days after the Iowa City show, and that’s like, one of the best. It’s gorgeous, it’s pretty new, and just incredible backstage. I’ve only played there one time, but I love it.
MA: Just to wrap it up, what music are you listening to these days?
EJ: Most of the new music I’m listening to is like my friends’ bands sending me stuff. My friend, V.V. Lightbody, just put a new record out a couple of days ago that is really good. My friend, Kevin Morby, has, I think, made his best record this year.
I listen to a lot of older stuff. I listen to a lot of quiet ambient music and quiet classical music because my brain sometimes just needs a break from lyrics and drums, and stuff like that. I listen to podcasts probably more than music.
KG: What podcasts have you been listening to lately?
EJ: I listen to really nerdy film podcasts like Film Spotting, which is film critics talking about art films and stuff like that. I really like the Conan O’Brien podcast. It’s very comforting, like it’s kind of like listening to zany morning radio back in the day.
“The Landfill” is out now on streaming, and physical copies can be purchased through Merge Records or at Wednesday’s show at The Englert. Tickets and more information can be found at englert.org.
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