In 2007, Lena Warnke transferred from the United Kingdom to Newton South High School, where she met a spunky girl, Martha Schnee, in her math class who had dark, curly hair and a distaste for arithmetic. 

“Martha would raise her hand every day in math class and ask, ‘Why do we need this in real life?’ Every single day,” Warnke said.

“It’s so funny and ironic that I’m now the drummer,” Schnee said. “It can be mathematical. Not that it is for me specifically, but I’m learning a very applicable use.”

The two became friends and started playing music together in their senior year with another classmate, Hava Horowitz. The three members of the Newton South Class of 2011 and a fourth member, Cara Giaimo of Sherborn who joined a few years later, make up the Somerville-based indie rock band Sidebody.

After over a decade playing local venues and basement parties, they got the chance to play at one of New England’s biggest festivals, Boston Calling, last month, sharing the stage with major acts such as Cage the Elephant, Luke Combs and Sublime, with at least 40,000 people in attendance that day.

With Horowitz on vocals, Warnke on bass, Schnee on drums and Giaimo on guitar, the group creates a distinct blend of punk, rock and electronic influences. However, each member refuses to bind themselves to one genre or instrument. The women are known to rotate instruments and make up songs onstage, and occasionally introduce a synth or “street trash horn” into the mix.

They all have day jobs. Horowitz, 32, is a leadership and communication coach. Warnke, 32, is an educator and cognitive scientist. Schnee, 32, is an artist and visiting lecturer in studio foundations for drawing at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Giaimo, 35, is a freelance science journalist. But by night, the girls tear up local venues.

Their success can be traced back to their freshman year in the halls of Newton South High School.

Warnke met Horowitz in a global studies class. Coming from the U.K., Warnke said she experienced “culture shock” when she saw Horowitz’s eccentric style.

“I remember you had short pink Uggs that were signed by all of your friends in eighth grade, and I had never seen Uggs before,” Warnke said.

“Yeah, I think they had a hole in the toe,” Horowitz laughed.

They got close while participating in Newton South’s WISE program, which allows seniors in good academic standing to pursue a part-time or full-time community service, research, or personal project instead of taking a full course load.

“We were like, ‘Hey, let’s drop out of classes and do something fun,’” Horowitz said.

The three friends dropped four of their six classes and opted for part-time projects exploring photography and visual art. Soon they started to jam. 

It was this class that planted the seeds of their project, and after years of honing their skills and hours locked inside together during the pandemic, it bloomed into the distinct sound they make today. With synth riffs and spoken-word lyrics, the band’s style is reminiscent of ‘80s pop grooves and the ‘90s Riot Grrrl punk.

“Lena and I did the project together,” Horowitz said, “and she taught me how to draw, and we made a comic book together, and Martha did a project related to photography.” 

The girls from Sidebody pose for a picture, date unknown. Courtesy photo

One day in school, less than a year after they started playing together, the band discussed names. After an amusing conversation about body parts in which Martha mentioned her side body, they decided on the name “Sidebody.”

They began playing their instruments in high school, but it wasn’t until the pandemic that the band took their music to the professional level.

The band members credit Newton South’s many extracurricular resources and programs with fostering creativity among students. 

“The school itself was really invested in the arts … the theater, music program, band, a cappella,” Horowitz said. “There was just a lot of investment.”

Many of Sidebody’s projects are made possible through connections they made at Newton South. The videographer who filmed their latest music video was the beatboxer in Horowitz’s high school a cappella group, the Newtones. Their music producers also went to Newton South.

“By the time we graduated high school, it was like a 300-person friend group,” Horowitz said.

Giaimo met the group several years later, after her roommate let the band practice in her basement in Somerville. She taught herself guitar at 15 years old and has played and written music ever since.

“We like to say that Cara has an honorary degree from Newton South High School,” Horowitz said.

One night, Giaimo and her roommates had a party, and Sidebody played a few songs for the crowd.

“I don’t know, I just thought they were awesome,” Giaimo said. “I just really liked the show. And I could tell that they were just goofing around and having fun, but I thought the songs were really good.”

The band is now deeply involved in the Somerville community through local venues, zines, and activist movements. They make their own designs for T-shirts, costumes, and other merchandise.

“We’ve lived here for a long time, and we’re pretty rooted and invested in sustaining living here,” Warnke said. “It’s not easy to live in Somerville as an artist. It’s very expensive.”

They rent a space at Central Street Studios in Somerville to house their printing press business and other art ventures. Recently, they learned that the owners are selling the building. They and 30 other tenants who are part of a nonprofit called The Arts and Business Council are trying to purchase it.

“We started a fundraiser,” Warnke said, “and we are raising money from the community to try to get the sale to go through so that the building can remain as an affordable artspace in perpetuity.”

Sidebody at Boston Calling (Ben Stas/Noise Floor)

The band has survived years of physical and mental obstacles together, contributing to the band’s ever-changing identity. After over a decade with each other, Sidebody embraces their collective chaos.

“It’s very hard to define what the kind of music we create is, how we all switch instruments,” Horowitz said. “It really just reflects the changing nature of the band.”

From their high school years to now, they have categorized the phases of their band into three eras: pre-music, music, and post-music. In high school, the musicians used to “wing it” during performances; now their sets are thought out. 

As they have worked together longer, they have put more structure and attention to detail into their sets.

“I think we did go through a curve where we got better enough to be like, ‘We don’t know anything,’” Giaimo said. “Now I think we have moved past that, and we are, like, learning more and stepping into our confidence again.”

Even at Boston Calling, the band made sure to include an improvised jam in their set. Playing at Boston Calling was a dream come true for them.

“It was unreal… And to be on the biggest stage in New England was so fun,” Schnee said. “All of our families were there, and parents were there. That was really cool to have.”

This story is part of a partnership between the Newton Beacon and the Boston University Department of Journalism.