Fruit Bats
w/Dolour, Lillydale, Ghost Stories
Sat Aug 27, Chop Suey, 9 pm, $7.

Earth will not end via fire, floods, or nuclear holocaust. No, despite indications to the contrary, our planet will continue spinning for eons. But the human race? Doomed. It is only a matter of time before the animal kingdom decides the wasteful ways of Homo sapiens have gone on too long, and rises up to destroy mankind.

When that judgment day arrives, will any be spared? Yes. Eric D. Johnson, leader of Chicago outfit Fruit Bats.

Hardly a single track passes on the Fruit Bats' third full-length, Spelled in Bones, without mentioning some species of fauna: whales, tigers, buzzards, lions, and snakes. This isn't just lip service. A sense of wonder at, and a desire to coexist peacefully with, nature pervades songs like "Legs of Bees," in which insects, birds, animals, and humans all weigh equally in the narrative.

Musically, Johnson (aided by multi-instrumentalist Dan Strack and percussionist John Byce) also nurtures a harmonious air. Although synthesizers and electric guitars surface in his dreamy indie-pop, they are deployed subtly; keyboards shimmer like will-o'-the-wisp, and guitar effects are balanced by organic timbres: piano, banjo. Johnson writes catchy melodies, but they unfold slowly, seemingly born from organic sources, rather than market research reports.

Should the reckoning arrive this Saturday night, stick close to the band. Perhaps the vengeful beasts will allow Johnson to spare some puny humans for company... provided we inspire Fruit Bats to continue crafting music so attuned to the myriad rhythms crafted by the world around us.