Concerts

The Garden Announce New Album Bootleg, Share Single “5 Mile Ponytail”

The Garden announce their new album, "Bootleg," alongside the release of their latest single, "5 Mile Ponytail." The new music promises a heartfelt and gutsy, albeit directionless, listening experience.

Consequence·May 14, 2026·via Consequence

The Garden Announce New Album Bootleg, Share Single “5 Mile Ponytail”

The Garden have announced their eighth studio album. Spanning 14 tracks, Bootleg is due out July 10th.

As the slightly ramshackle name might already suggest, the Shears siblings had no particular plans behind the LP:

“ Bootleg is a compilation of songs written and recorded overtime with no particular intent or goal in mind,” the pair said in a statement. “This album is and was purely a pleasurable endeavor by us both. Every track has its own meaning or story, not unlike a chapter book of different narratives.”

Already we’ve heard one track in the aptly-titled “Ugly.” Today, The Garden unveil the record’s second single, “5 Mile Ponytail.” Does the track seem to lack a general purpose or direction? Yes, which seems fitting given the record’s mantra-less approach. Is it, as the band demonstrated over their career, musically uncategorizable? Like throwing darts blindfolded. But is it also the best kind of odd and jarring, and a yet another slice of undeniable lo-fi magic from the brothers Shears? Oh, you betcha.

Check out the corresponding music video below (directed by Will Sipos), which features both a roadside performance and The Garden “riding in a vintage whip with the 5 mile ponytail.” Who said art needs a purpose?

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