On his new album, Baby Man, Eric D. Johnson stands alone, delivering his most exposed and vulnerable work to date. While the name Fruit Bats is a title he assigns to his recorded work, Johnson has traditionally been accompanied by a full band. However, for this record, he chose a starker, more intimate approach, creating a new entry point into his art and life. The album’s sparse instrumentation—usually nothing more than an acoustic guitar or a solitary piano—provides a minimalist framework that forces the listener to lean in and reckon with the raw, emotional core of Johnson’s songwriting.
Stripped of any sonic embellishment, Johnson’s lyrics move to the forefront, revealing an artist prepared to examine his life and flaws with unflinching honesty. The opening lines of Let You People Down immediately establish the album’s emotional depth: “There are times that I’ve prayed / For this ship to go down / And me to be the only one / The only one who drowns.” A guitar and banjo accompany his profound revelation, “Because I never want to let you people down.”
The album is a poignant meditation on nostalgia and the passage of time. A solitary piano fills in the musical details on the title track, Baby Man, as Johnson reveals, “Things were far less crazy / Back when I was a baby, man.” He reflects on a lost innocence, noting how circumstances have changed the details: “Still believed in God then / And I grieved for no one yet.” This longing for a past that is no longer accessible is a central theme, with the simple musical arrangement amplifying the feeling of wistful solitude.
Johnson is masterful at conveying a great deal while providing a minimum of detail, which in turn offers pathways for listeners to apply their own emotional context and interpretations. The guitar and bass of Creature from the Wild provide a sturdy framework for his reflection on his dog’s life: “Then you came to us / A creature from the wild / But you behaved / Just like a perfect child / And you saved us for a while.” By paring these songs back to their emotional core, he makes the intensely personal feel universal.
Whether he’s Building a Cathedral or Stuck in My Head Again, Johnson consistently finds an emotional core that reveals untold depths. The bravery he exhibits in bringing these truths into the light is the album’s most defining feature. By stripping away the comfort of a full band, Johnson forces a singular focus on his lyrical and melodic introspection, a choice that elevates this album. It stands as an intimate and essential document of an artist reckoning with his past and present, a beautiful and poignant act of vulnerability that ultimately reveals a deep and resonant strength.
Baby Man (September 12th, 2025) Merge Records