Calpurnia

The loose, garage punk-inflected indie rock sound associated with Calpurnia first took shape after preteen actors Finn Wolfhard and Malcolm Craig crossed paths during a video shoot for PUP’s 2014 single “Guilt Trip.” At that stage Wolfhard had not yet landed the role of Mike Wheeler on Netflix’s Stranger Things, while Craig had not yet booked appearances on shows such as Frequency and Bates Motel. Chosen to portray younger versions of the Canadian band, Craig was already a drummer; the experience prompted Wolfhard to pick up the guitar himself. The two reconnected on the set of PUP’s 2016 clip “Sleep in the Heat,” at which point they resolved to start a group of their own. They added photographer and bassist Jack Anderson along with lead guitarist Ayla Tesler-Mabe, the latter already gaining attention through widely shared clips of her playing material by Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. Still only fourteen, Wolfhard performed with Mac DeMarco in 2017, the same year Calpurnia began securing support slots for Weird Al Yankovic and Tenacious D despite having issued no recordings. Working with Twin Peaks guitarist Cadien James, the quartet released its first single, “City Boy,” in early 2018 on Transgressive and Royal Mountain Records.