the Men from Nowhere
The Men From Nowhere – s/t
Sonic Rendezvous – SRVCD67 [2025]
Uptown Lockdown – Heads Up – Gordian Knot – Going Commando – The Man From Nowhere – Joyride – High Fiving – House Of Love – Memphis To Nashville – Rag Dolled – Midnight Stroll – Blues Del Pueblo Fronterizo
In recent years, instrumental groups have emerged that have breathed new life into the genre and sparked renewed interest. Notable examples include LA LOM (the Los Angeles League of Musicians) and the excellent Hermanos Gutiérrez, who have released outstanding albums on the Verve and Easy Eye Sound labels, respectively. Well, there is good news: a new band has arrived on the scene—The Men From Nowhere.
At the risk of shattering a myth, The Men From Nowhere don’t actually come from “nowhere,” but rather from the Netherlands—or, more precisely, from the mind of Jelle Van Atten (aka Joe Sixpack, guitarist for The Ragtime Wranglers, a band that has already released two solid instrumental albums and backed Miss Mary Ann and The Ranch Girls).
In addition to the consistently brilliant Carl Sonny Leyland on piano, mellotron, and harpsichord, van Allen is backed by a rock-solid rhythm section capable of both rocking out and laying down a groove, along with a horn section and pedal steel guitar.
The resulting blend is explosive. Van Atten has a blast—and so do we—playing with sounds and guitar textures, ranging from Spanish guitar to baritone guitar and everything in between (guitar geeks will thrill at the list of instruments and amps included in the liner notes).
All the tracks are Van Atten originals, with the exception of Man from Nowhere, composed by Clive Westlake for Jet Harris. Like the aforementioned bands, Van Atten’s great achievement lies in colliding genres—some of which might seem to have nothing in common—to create a truly exciting hybrid. The album opens with the Morricone-esque surf sound of Uptown Lockdown. Later on, a track kicks off with a Brubeck-style (or rather, Joe Morello-style) rhythm reminiscent of Take Five, only to be suddenly joined by mariachi trumpets (High Fiving). Memphis to Nashville showcases an incredibly groovy horn section sprinkled with touches of country guitar, while Going Commando skillfully blends a Sandy Nelson-style drum beat with screaming saxophones that sound like they were recorded in a seedy strip joint.
The result is consistently surprising and exciting. Each track plays like the soundtrack to a 1960s or 70s B-movie that—alas—doesn’t actually exist, ranging from exotica to surf music, with detours into melancholic western ballads (like the spellbinding steel guitar on Midnight Stroll), Spanish-flavored tunes à la Malagueña (Blues Del Pueblo Fronterizo), and Euro-spy atmospheres.
Moreover, in an era where digital music seems to reign supreme, it is a real pleasure to see such superbly designed cover art and liner notes.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis
Available on vinyl and cd here.
It’s also available on the Bear Family’s website.
