The Man behind the Noodles

The Nightly Noodle: Stories Told Through Guitar

What started as a way to keep playing guitar after long days at work has become a musical journey built around memories, emotion, and the idea that sometimes a melody can say everything words cannot.

The Nightly Noodle is the instrumental music project of Erick Roman, a self-taught guitarist, songwriter, and producer from New Jersey. Through melodic guitar lines, soulful chord progressions, laid-back grooves, and cinematic arrangements, Roman creates instrumental indie rock that invites listeners to step away from reality and into a world of their own.

Finding a Sound Without Words

Roman has been playing guitar since he was 15 and performing in bands since he was 16. But The Nightly Noodle began to take shape in 2019, when he started working at Nickelodeon in New York City. Long commutes introduced him to a new world of instrumental music, including artists like Khruangbin, Tommy Guerrero, and Tom Misch, alongside the sounds of lo-fi and chill instrumental music.

He became fascinated by the idea that music didn't need lyrics to communicate a feeling. Sometimes, a simple melody, a soulful chord progression, or a perfectly placed guitar riff could tell a story more powerfully than words.

Inspired to explore that approach himself, Roman began experimenting with guitar every night after work. He posted these sessions to Instagram under the name “The Nightly Noodle,” a title that started as a playful caption for his late-night guitar practice and eventually became the identity of his musical project.

His debut album, Guitar Noodles, was his first attempt to transform those spontaneous guitar ideas into structured, intentional instrumental songs. What began as noodling gradually became songwriting — not necessarily writing songs in the traditional sense, but building musical stories through melody, harmony, rhythm, and atmosphere.

Music as a Personal Soundtrack

The Nightly Noodle's sound is chill, rhythmic, melodic, and atmospheric. Clean Fender Strat tones, soulful R&B-influenced chord progressions, catchy guitar hooks, and laid-back grooves form the foundation, while layered synthesizers, bass, and dynamic drums give each song its own character.

Drawing inspiration from the melodic sensibilities of John Mayer and Cory Wong, the atmosphere of Khruangbin, and the laid-back instrumental worlds of Tommy Guerrero and Tom Misch, Roman balances feel-good grooves with dreamy textures and nostalgic melodies. The result is guitar-driven instrumental music that can accompany a quiet evening, soundtrack a late-night drive, or bring an old memory back to life.

For Roman, the goal isn't simply to make music that people admire. It's to make music that people feel. A song might remind someone of a person they once loved, a place they miss, or a chapter of life they haven't thought about in years. It might even help someone get through a difficult day. And if someone simply wants to let the music play in the background while they work, unwind, or daydream, that's part of the experience, too.

Every listener brings their own story to the music. Without lyrics to define what a song means, there's room for everyone to find something different in it.