Wyatt Shears is somewhat of an enigma. A flash of frequently dyed hair, you can often find him tumbling across the stage and jumping into the crowd whilst performing alongside his twin brother, Fletcher, as part of their experimental sonic duo, The Garden. For the project — having been named after the fact that the Shears brothers “continue to grow and evolve as brothers and in music” — Wyatt provides vocals and bass while Fletcher takes to the drums. Since they began releasing content in 2011, they’ve become an unstoppable force, wracking up millions of plays on Spotify, in addition to touring the world. Most recently, they released a brand new record in March 2020, called Kiss My Superbowl Ring (Epitaph).
Aside from his work with The Garden though, Wyatt makes sure to keep busy with his own solo ventures, too. As early as 2010, he began publishing independent work under the moniker “Enjoy,” accumulating a discography that displays a wide array of styles and themes. Nearly a decade later, he has another Enjoy record, entitled Sessions with a Nasty Old Tree (released October 8), under his belt.
On the album’s cover, Wyatt, who currently sports a bleached mop, flashes a maniacal grin, spindly fingers stretched over the soundboard before him as he sits next to the previously mentioned Nasty Old Tree, the Good Boy Graphics-generated entity that he’s crafted this record with. The video for the record’s leading (and only) single, “Vape Smoke,” provides an inside look into how the two interacted while working together, alongside introducing the record’s effectiveness: it’s an immediate classic, combining a toe-tapping hook with bumping bass, shimmering keys, and the unique sonic layer provided by the “congo banana kick drum.” Wyatt says the sessions “were incredible” (even if Nasty Old Tree might’ve spilled his drink on the soundboard and set it ablaze on at least one occasion).
With his holistic discography in mind, Wyatt notes that he has tried, simply, to create unique content that he and those he cares about can have fun listening to. That said, his repertoire oftentimes finds him experimenting, whether that means including fuzzed-out bass lines, reverb-heavy riffing, and intricately layered synths, or ad-libbed overdubs and chaotic sound effects, from revving car engines to chirping crickets. In terms of Sessions, Wyatt isn’t any less daring on a sonic level, but, this time, he opted for a “Halloween-esque” tone. He also notes that the production on 90% of the tracks is slightly different than it has been in the past. “It’s still Enjoy, but definitely a different feel,” he explained.
As he continued regarding the LP’s theme, “Songs like ‘Nasty Old Tree’ and ‘Scariest House I’ve Ever Seen’ are supposed to paint a picture. In my lyrics, I write about scary stories, and where they take me mentally, and how drifting off but not completely fading away is so relaxing/almost exciting to me. They take me to a mental headspace that I can’t get to with anything else.” Related to this, over the past few months, he has been posting ominous, spine-chilling anecdotes — that describe anything from silhouettes appearing in windows to shadowy cat-like figures with human faces — on his socials. He said those stories serve as inspiration “on the regular,” and played a part in this record’s conception.
“Nasty Old Tree,” as he mentioned, chimes in with romping keys and chilling, stealthy percussion, definitely channeling the “Halloween-esque” tone he was going for. At one moment, he whispers, “It’s really quiet in here, I can’t breathe very well,” which can absolutely send a shiver up one’s spine, in addition to the images of looming trees and the murder of crows that sounds off toward the end of the track. Apart from its spooky instrumentation, though, the track has another side to it, too. Lyrically, it essentially describes how it’s important to remain true to yourself and do what you truly want to do, despite outside influences. This introduces an Enjoy calling card, that being Wyatt’s heartfelt, personal confessions, buried beneath a layer of sonic complexities.
Another example of this, “My Collections” adds a sweet, heartwarming flair to the tracklisting, speaking on the importance that escapes physical things when you have the affection of another person. That tone continues with the more traditionally indie-pop “Southern Story,” which details the utterly adorable love affair between Wyatt and the track’s featured artist, Cowgirl Clue, the alias for Ashley Rose Calhoun with whom he has been in a relationship for some time. On working with his partner, Wyatt notes, “Creatively, she is very multi-talented, so it’s extremely easy to bounce ideas off of each other. I trust her input more than most.”
Besides its light-hearted lyrical content,“Southern Story” also introduces Sessions’ collaborative nature, which is a first in Enjoy’s history. “Under the Winking Coconut Tree,” for example, finds Wyatt’s melodic, airy presence met with smooth licks and distorted, alluring vocals from psychedelic garage-pop band, Diviño Niño. On another track, the give-no-fucks, take-no-bullshit “Fold Ya Up Like a Blanket,” Jonny Pierce (of The Drums) takes the stage alongside Wyatt, singing, “I pretended I was all smiles, sitting there bitter” (which possibly calls back to The Garden’s breakout single, “All Smiles Over Here”).
“I really just felt like changing things up as far as this release goes,” Wyatt explained on his decision to collaborate. “Like you stated before, I’ve never previously had any features attached to an Enjoy release and I thought doing so with artists that I respect would help piece things together. I made sure to really think about who I’d like to work with and why. I think everyone killed it, and, as a result, the process was easy. It gives me a fresh feeling, listening to everyone’s contributions.”
The last feature comes with the record’s final inclusion, “Scariest House I’ve Ever Seen,” featuring Jimi Lucid. “Because I made it right before I finished the record, it feels fresh to me,” Wyatt said on the track. “So, for that reason alone, I’m looking forward to its release. It has the perfect sound and feel for the record and, if I had to pick a song that represents the record best, I’d pick that one.”
For many artists local and abroad the pandemic has been quite detrimental regarding their ability to create and function. Regarding Enjoy, however, Wyatt says it didn’t have too much effect on his workflow. As he continued, he had been creating new Enjoy content since 2019 and it just so happened that “Quarantine kind of dropped in the middle of [his] process.” “If anything, [quarantine] has given me more spare time to write endlessly and more time to go back and fix things that I didn’t like about certain songs,” he continued. Of course, the assistance of Nasty Old Tree probably helped in working out the kinks as the process unfolded.
Despite its gestation period of a year and some change, Wyatt unveiled Sessions quite suddenly, giving fans just about two week’s notice before it hit shelves and streaming platforms this week. On his decision to release in a more spur-of-the-moment manner, Wyatt explained, “If I don’t do it then nobody will. Enjoy always has and always will be a solo venture. I write the songs, book the shows, promote it, etc. Everything comes out of pocket.”
In addition to the nerve-wracking prospect of creating and releasing content while a worldwide catastrophe unfolds, another stressor placed on artists at the moment involves a loss of revenue in the absence of touring, this leading to an increased focus on the other means of income including streaming. Unfortunately, however, streaming platforms monetarily undervalue artists, despite the fact that they contribute the basis for said platforms’ business models.
Wyatt gave his own two cents on this topic, saying, “Spotify and Apple Music, etc. really don’t pay that much, at all, to artists. And, on top of that, they pay you at a turtle’s pace.” Regarding streaming platforms, he suggests that artists of all sizes publish their content independently, so as to at least avoid additional cuts to pay from outside entities. He also extends a hand to independent artists who aren’t signed, offering to help if they need assistance properly uploading their music: “I’ve been using Bandcamp since 2010, and it has always been a reliable platform as far as displaying your content goes.” He advises, however, that streaming is a fickle source of income, noting, “If you’re trying to solely make $$$ from it, though, that’s unlikely.”
He concludes with a positive note, however, saying, “The musical landscape seems to have been mostly negative this year. I always try and stay as positive as possible, though, and never stop creating. Just because everything else is halted, doesn’t mean I have to as well. Music is always going to thrive, though; it might just change a little.”
Looking forward, aside from Enjoy-related content, The Garden is also coming out with a music video shortly. “October is the best month of the year so we gotta’ cram it alllllll innnn,” Wyatt remarked. When asked how he balances working with and apart from his brother, especially with content in the works from both ends of the spectrum, he confirmed that it tends to work well: “Fletcher and I do our thing. As long as we stay on the same page we are golden,” he explained. “He’s got something cool brewing as well. He’s starting his own craft brewery! Just kidding.”
Aside from working on music, Wyatt also has a couple of current hobbies up his sleeve, too. He grew up with a propensity for hockey, having played in a couple of leagues around Orange County with his brother when they were younger; that said, since the beginning of quarantine, he notes that he’s been able to brush up on his skills and recently joined a local league that started playing this week.
On and off the ice and out of the studio, Wyatt Shears is clearly a force to be reckoned with and there’s no telling what the rest of a whirlwind year such as this might contain for him. In the meantime, check out Sessions With a Nasty Old Tree on any of your favorite platforms and stay tuned for The Garden’s new video, coming out soon.