Fruit Bats bring "The Landfill" to the State Theatre, Sunday, Nov. 8

Eric D. Johnson's band plays Congress Street with the full-band lineup that cut this year's Merge record mostly live, with Sarah Klang opening.

Some records are made to be played in a room, and Fruit Bats made this year's mostly in one. On Sunday, Nov. 8, the band brings The Landfill to the State Theatre at 609 Congress St. in Portland. The venue lists doors at 7 p.m., the show at 8 p.m., all ages, with Sarah Klang opening.

Tickets are $35 in advance and $40 on the day of the show, according to the State Theatre's event page, through Ticketmaster via the link on this page. In a room that holds about 1,870, that's a reasonable price for a Sunday night out.

The Landfill came out June 12 on Merge Records. It's a full-band record, and that's the point. Most of it was recorded live at Bear Creek Studios in Washington with the band's touring lineup: few overdubs, no click tracks, performances captured mostly in real time. It follows Eric D. Johnson's 2025 solo album *Baby Man*. Johnson leads Fruit Bats and is the only original member. The title track was the lead single, with a video, and "Think Aboutcha" followed in April. Elsewhere on its ten songs are "The Saddest Part of the Song," "Silverfish in the Sink" and "Hummingbird Sage."

A record built on live takes should translate to the stage better than most, and this tour is where you find out.

A record cut live in one room, played live in another.

The run has been out since mid-October. The band played Lawrence on Oct. 20, then Iowa City, Minneapolis–St. Paul, Madison and Chicago, before turning east to Philadelphia on Nov. 5. Portland comes a few nights later, a Sunday stop near the end of the swing.

The State Theatre is a good fit. A 1,870-capacity room gives a band with a long catalog the space to sound big without losing the warmth that brings people back to Fruit Bats.

Practical notes: a Sunday show with an 8 p.m. start should get you home at a reasonable hour for Monday. Advance tickets save you five dollars.

A band that recorded its new album live, playing it at the State Theatre on a Sunday in November: go hear how close it sounds to the record.

Sources: State Theatre: Fruit Bats (statetheatreportland.com); Ticketmaster: Fruit Bats, Nov 08, 2026, Portland, ME (ticketmaster.com); Grateful Web: Fruit Bats returns with expansive full-band album The Landfill on June 12th (gratefulweb.com); Grateful Web: Fruit Bats share new single 'Think Aboutcha' from The Landfill (gratefulweb.com); The Line of Best Fit: Fruit Bats to return with new album The Landfill (thelineofbestfit.com)