Esquire

This is one of the more breathtakingly original, witty, and anything-goes experimentalist outfits of the past ten years.

“We’ve always thought we were in a lane of our own,” he adds, maybe the best summation of The Garden available. “But a lot of people who say that aren’t even from there.” Fletcher is especially proud of the county’s seminal place in punk rock. “I love Sugar Ray, and when I made it I was kind of messing with an acoustic guitar a lot and I probably subconsciously channeled my inner Southern California on that one.” On top of the track, Wyatt–a man of many voices–lays into an especially bratty snarl. “We were listening to a whole different thing that was going on, more left-field style, like the rap stuff that was coming out of New York, with Mykki Blanco and Le1f. “But I looked around and there’s just not a lot of options to do that sort of thing in small towns,” explains Wyatt, “and even if you do rent out a warehouse, it’s kind of difficult.” I defy you to listen to “Orange County Punk Rock Legend” and not think “Every Morning.” “That’s okay!” says Wyatt, laughing, when I make the comparison. The Shears grew up not on the beach, but in the city of Orange, and they’re happy to represent. “It’s a part of ourselves that we haven’t totally elaborated on.” The brothers once took a road trip to visit two reputedly haunted Nevada hotels–the Goldfield and the Mizpah–and “a bunch of weird shit happened.” They toyed with recording the new LP in a haunted space. There are other highlights, especially the immediate, irresistible “Orange County Punk Rock Legend,” a song that’s already booked a spot in my top five singles of the year. It's precisely that kind of weirdness, with words, musical mashups, and hilariously provocative takes on the world, that has made The Garden so singular, the embodiment of “vada vada”–their own invented word for a “why not?” approach to art that dismisses rules and conventions. “A lot of times I won’t know if Wyatt’s gonna have jester garb or face paint on until moments before we get ready to go on stage.” Adds Wyatt, “We don’t ever want to have to box ourselves into a ‘we’re expected to do something every night’ thing, by the audience.” “It’s a strong word, honestly,” cosigns Fletcher Shears, his twin brother and bandmate in the wild and wooly Southern California art punk duo The Garden.