I’ve been to SOMA many times as an audience member as well as a concert photographer, but I’ve never experienced SOMA this way. This time, SOMA was crawling with ghouls, clowns, and jesters of all ages. Lines were long for everything that was offered and it reeked of smoke in the building, so it seemed like a Garden show for sure.

Show Me the Body was a great opener for The Garden. They warmed up the already exhilarated crowd. I could feel that everyone was ready to dance and scream their heart outs. Everyone was pumped to see Wyatt and Fletcher of The Garden. 

Show Me the Body gave us such great energy that night. The lead singer and banjo player, Julian Cashwan Pratt, demanded the crowd to collide, since he saw many small mosh pits and wanted them to form a large one. “Give security something to do,” he yelled. 

When The Garden came out, the crowd went absolutely wild. The lights were off for a good while which riled up the audience even more. The Garden opened the show with “What Else Could I Be But a Jester.” 

At first, Fletcher remained at the front of the stage. He started doing cart wheels and jumping off of his drum set platform, whipping his hair in all directions. 

Watching him made me dizzy and this was all during their second song called “OC93.” He soon got back to his alter though, the drum set. 

It was such a pleasure to see my favorite jesters perform in San Diego. A lot of people I knew were also there which solidified the love we both hold for The Garden, and for concerts as well. I hope to see them perform again, especially their side projects. Wyatt’s side project is Enjoy, and Fletcher’s is Puzzle. 

All Photos by Maya Tomasik