Something about the gypsy jazz sound of Ameranouche caught the eye of actor-director Kevin Wheatley. Wheatley was surfing MySpace pages in search of music to feature on the soundtrack of his new National Lampoon film, “Beachparty at the Threshold of Hell,” when he came across the local jazz trio. He knew he’d found something special. 

“He was looking for a certain style of music that reflected American roots—something that was not your standard, typical thing,” said Ameranouche guitarist Ryan Flaherty. “Our music is a little different, and I think that turned him on to it.”

The film is a post-apocalyptic political comedy and sci-fi thriller. Wheatley sent Ameranouche an email telling the band about the film and why he thought its music would be perfect. “The film is considered ‘young and hip,’ but the soundtrack is an eclectic mix inspired by truly American music from the 1910s through the 1940s,” Wheatley wrote in the email. “We have used classic American music sounds stemming from the Appalachian Mountains all the way to Hawaii. My hope is to wet the appetites of young America to take interest in the amazing roots of American music. Obviously, it’s extremely important to me that several styles of jazz are represented, and I thought your music is perfect.”

Wheatley asked band members Richard Sheppard (lead guitar and vocals), Xar Adelberg (upright bass and vocals) and Flaherty (rhythm guitar and vocals) to send him a CD of their music. “We were skeptical, but we sent it anyway,” Flaherty said. Through the course of several email exchanges and telephone conversations, Wheatley offered to buy the rights to three Ameranouche songs. The band members’ skepticism continued; they didn’t want to get their hopes up, in case the deal fell through. That was about three months ago, according to Flaherty. When the band found out that Wheatley’s offer was real, the members were “blown away.”

“The fact that we could just put up this MySpace page and, out of the millions of MySpace pages, the fact that he found us and found our music is mind blowing and very humbling,” Flaherty said.

Based in southern New Hampshire, Ameranouche has been together for three years. The band has toured extensively throughout New England and has played shows in the southeastern United States, as well as festivals out west. Flaherty identifies the band as an acoustic gypsy jazz trio with an upbeat style that draws from the innovative music of guitar legend Django Reinhardt. “People really seem to love it,” Flaherty said.  Ameranouche composes most of its own songs, which include traces of jazz, swing, gypsy and Latin influence. The band is currently at work on its second album.

Two Ameranouche songs will be featured in the “Beachparty” trailer, and a total of three will appear in the film, according to Flaherty. Sheppard composed all three songs—“Homage,” “L’Encureuil Rouge (M’a Les Noix)” and “Spike’s Blues”—all of which are on the band’s debut album, “Homage a Manouche.”

The film was completed two years ago and has made the rounds on the independent film circuit, but Ameranouche was not added to the soundtrack until comedy syndicate National Lampoon, Inc., picked up the film a few months ago. National Lampoon, the network behind such comedy classics as “Animal House,” “Vacation,” “European Vacation” and “Christmas Vacation,” will release “Beachparty at the Threshold of Hell”—complete with its new soundtrack—on Oct. 19.

In the film, only a few survivors remain in post-apocalyptic America, one of whom is Tex Kennedy, a direct descendent of JFK. Along with a pair of former Secret Service robots, Kennedy must reach and reclaim the country’s last functional radio tower in order to unite fellow survivors and retake America. “From the trailer, it looks really hilarious,” Flaherty said. When National Lampoon picked up the film several months ago, the filmmakers decided to scratch the previous soundtrack and create an entirely new sound for the movie.

The band members from Ameranouche are excited their music could be included in that new soundtrack, which also includes music by New Orleans group Preservation Hall Jazz Band. “Hopefully this will widen our window to get our music out to more people,” Flaherty said. “It’s a great thing to let the fans and music lovers in New Hampshire know that this is possible. You can be successful with your music.”

For more information, visit www.ameranouche.com or www.thresholdofhell.com.