If you have been waiting for Fruit Bats to hit the Northeast on the Landfill Tour, the wait ends November 6 at Higher Ground in South Burlington. Doors at 7:00 PM, show at 8:00. All ages, and tickets are $35–$40 — one of the more reasonable indie-rock asks you will find this fall.
About Fruit Bats
Fruit Bats is the project of Grammy-nominated songwriter Eric D. Johnson, a 25-year endeavor that has quietly built one of the more devoted followings in indie folk-rock. Johnson has worn many hats — film composer (Our Idiot Brother, Smashed, Here Alone), a stint as a member of The Shins, a role in the folk supergroup Bonny Light Horseman — but Fruit Bats is home base.
The Landfill, out June 12, 2026 on Merge Records, is the most live-sounding Fruit Bats record since 2009’s The Ruminant Band. Tracked at Bear Creek Studios with the full touring band — David Dawda (bass), Josh Mease (guitars/synth), Frank LoCrasto (piano/synth), and Kosta Galanopoulos (drums) — Johnson stripped back the overdubs and let the room breathe. The result is their signature “psychedelic, technicolor dreaminess” landing with a directness and force that makes these songs feel immediate in a way studio gloss tends to sand down.
The album title draws from those unexpected hills in the Midwest — old landfills reclaimed by grass and time. Johnson uses the image to examine what you carry: personal history, emotional weight, cultural debris. Heavy material, but delivered with the full-band warmth that has always been Fruit Bats’ signature.
About the Venue
Higher Ground is a 750-capacity room at 1214 Williston Rd in South Burlington and one of Vermont’s premier live music destinations. The November 6 date falls near the tail end of a 43-date North American tour — which means a band that has been on the road long enough to be completely locked in.
Tickets & Pricing
Tickets are $35–$40. All ages. Grab them at the link below. A well-sized room, a deep catalog, and a full band this far into a tour — this is exactly the kind of night worth making the drive up into North Country.