In late October of last year, Cherry Anemoia was born by a group of high schoolers with a passion for music. Sophomore Sebastian Olfatmanesh, senior David Antonio and other band members decided to create a band outside of school to pursue their musical talents. 

The band includes students from Daniel Pearl Magnet High School and members from other schools where they all play instruments and sing to create something that other people will enjoy. They contribute their ideas, skills and time to build something that allows them to use their creativity. The band consists of four members, the lead guitarist, electric guitarist, drummer and bassist. The connection they have between each other is very important. They all have similar interests and hobbies that they share with one another, so achieving their goals is just that much easier. 

Cherry Anemoia had their first official gig when performing at Garden Cafe during winter break and had a great turn out for their first official performance. They plan to do a couple gigs in February and many more later on to help expand their audience and reach new people. They want to be able to inspire and help others find their own peace through their music. 

“I really hope that this band can actually be something that’s significant and that it won’t just be something small,” Antonio said. “I really hope that this band will get to play in a lot of places and have sort of an influence for high school students as well.”

Both Antonio and Olfatmanesh agreed that one of the biggest challenges they faced was coming up with a band name everyone agreed on. ‘Anemoia’ stuck out to the group since they liked the way it sounded and the word itself meant nostalgia for something you haven’t experienced. Cherry Anemoia is currently their band name but they are planning to change it as the band grows together and finds a name that fits the band’s overall essence. 

Cherry Anemoia does covers on varieties of music genres but their inspirations include the Smashing Pumpkins, Radiohead, Foo Fighters and the Rolling Stones. The band is in the process of writing their own lyrics and composing music, since their desire is to perform and possibly record original songs they will make in the future. 

“Our goal is probably to record some songs soon and then put them on Spotify,” said Olfatmanesh, who plays lead guitar. “Then get more gigs and hopefully get more popularity.”

Before learning the guitar, Antonio played piano but found his interest in playing a new instrument by seeing a friend play guitar. Hearing how passionate his friend was about music and how it deeply affected his life, Antonio hoped to experience a similar outcome. 

“Guitar has been my passion for maybe a year or two, so I always wanted to get into working with a band, working with a team and also improving my skills on electric guitar,” Antonio said. “There’s hardly any better option to do that than in a band where it’s a setting where you’re able to hone in on your skills and also get to learn how to work with a group.”

Similarly to Antonio, Olfatmanesh discovered his interest in playing guitar after his uncle showed him how to play seventies rock. Ever since then, Olfatmanesh has continued practicing and playing the guitar for over two years. With all the effort put into his passion, he is very well pleased with the outcome of his improvements and with what he has created with his fellow bandmates. 

“Making music makes me happy,” Olfatmanesh said. “It also makes me satisfied and proud of both myself and band members for how much we have accomplished so far.”