Phenomenon: Artistic Love
“What we do is not typical music. It’s us.”
Back in the day when I was an RA at Purchase College, I knew two residents that I was particularly cool with. They were always happy to see and I them. We loved chatting about Death Battle (Popular series on YouTube), video games, and their passion for music. To put it simply, these two were a band, and one that was going to become greater than the people who inspired them. I remember when they would practice their music in the floor lounge at, like, 1 in the morning, and sometimes I’d join them. I could see just from the way they talked how serious they were about what they did. They didn’t want it to sound good, they wanted it to sound unique.
Those two were lyricist/songwriter Osiris Warren, and Bassist Andres Merlano, and their band is called Phenomenon.
It was the start of February, the month of love. Their episode was the first, as they had an immense love for music. When I had them introduce themselves, Osiris went on to explain not just himself as a person, but how he and Andres met and became a band. Gotta say, Super Smash Brothers has an interesting way of bringing people together. Anyways, Andres, in his introduction, stated that he was initially looking to be more independent. “I didn’t believe too much in part of a band, because I really thought the best way for me to go was to go on, play with different people, and experiencing different genres of music.” Osiris himself was not expecting to be a part of a group either. Eventually, after performing a show together, the two decided to expand their horizons. Osiris would continue practicing his lyricism, and Andres would take on composing. After extensive time emailing each other their work, the two found they had something special.
They’ve had a lot of performances that would end with—less than pleasant responses from the audience. All the same, they persisted and kept honing their music. In time, the crowd loved what they had. Andres recalled the praise, “People would come to us and go, ‘Wow! I’ve never heard this in my life. This is amazing.’” Such high praise is appreciated, but it also made something clear: The two’s drive to create their own style and become recognizable from the many who become popular. They want to sound good, but more than they want to be unforgettable. “What we do is not typical music,” Osiris proudly said, “it’s us.”
I asked them what other things they enjoyed doing when they weren’t practicing. Besides playing Smash Bros, and spending time with family, it’s the moments he and Andres spend together that lets me know how tight their bond is. This was a duo that saw each other as more than just friends or bandmates, but like family. They loved spending time doing what they enjoyed and doing it together made the conversation more wholesome. I think it’s also what’s made them stronger artistically. They understand each other and work to build themselves and each other up.
In my final question, I asked what music was to them. For Andres, it was his second heart, giving him life. For Osiris, it was his GPS, giving his direction. Music is their greatest passion, and they demonstrate that artistic love in the best way they can. Episode 51, available now.