Musik & Frieden, Berlin

California-based twins Wyatt and Fletcher Shears first started out with self-released music and DIY videos.

Having cult-label Burger Records in their back yard surely helped them quickly gain attention – and not only in the underground music scene. Following the release of their 2013 debut album The Life and Times of a Paperclip, fashion behemoth Yves Saint Laurent had them strolling down the catwalk. Two years later, The Garden are well known for their distinct aesthetic and sound.

Some call it neo-punk: fast songs with just bass, drums and voices that could not care less. On their recently-released second album haha, The Garden go a step further, blending sampled electronic beats with their signature eeriness, and managing to totally abstract their sound from any genre in the process.

  • © Lewis Lloyd

Kicking into tonight’s set, The Garden mesmerise the crowd in an instant with their raw energy. During their third song, drummer Fletcher suddenly jumps up on his bass drum, takes a big leap to the front and grabs a second mic as something resembling a dubstep beats kick in. He rolls around onstage, does a handstand, then jumps up over the monitors. Both twins chant together, more rapping than singing, with songs like Cloak and I’ll Guess We Never Know reiterating the same phrases over and over: ’I wonder what’s behind that cloak, I wonder what’s behind that cloak – whatever, oh well, whatever, oh well.’

While performing, The Garden adopt what seems to be a dark clown-persona: their naturally nonchalant faces suddenly deform into exaggerated smiles or frowns. The crowd screams as Wyatt passes the mic down to the front row, letting fans sing along, and shakes hands red carpet-style, leaving the audience in awe.