Franz Nicolay on Band People with Steven Hyden, Popular Music Books in Process [10-8-24]

Musician and writer Franz Nicolay chats with music journalist Steven Hyden about his book, Band People: Life and Work in Popular Music (Austin: UT Press, 2024). Part of the Popular Music Books in Process series, Oct 8, 2024.
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In Band People: Life & Work In Popular Music, Franz Nicolay explores the working and creative lives of band people: secret (and no-so-secret) weapons, side-of-the-stagers, hired guns, prolific joiners and members of bands, rhythm and horn sections, backup singers, consiglieres, accompanists, and composers-musicians not primarily known as front people or popularly understood as the authors of the works in which they participate, but without whom those works would not exist.
Franz Nicolay is a musician and writer living in New York’s Hudson Valley. In addition to records under his own name, he has been a member of cabaret-punk orchestra World/Inferno Friendship Society, “world’s best bar band” the Hold Steady, and has recorded or performed with dozens of other acts. His first book, The Humorless Ladies of Border Control: Touring the Punk Underground from Belgrade to Ulaanbaatar, was named a “Season’s Best Travel Book” by The New York Times. His second book, the novel Someone Should Pay For Your Pain, was called “a knockout fiction debut” by Buzzfeed; and was named one of Rolling Stone “Best Music Books of 2021.” He is currently a faculty member in music and written arts at Bard College.
Steven Hyden is the author of six books, including the recent There Was Nothing You Could Do: Bruce Springsteen's Born In The USA and The End Of The Heartland and the bestselling Twilight Of The Gods. His writing has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, Washington Post, Billboard, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, Grantland, The Ringer, The A.V. Club, Slate, and Salon. He is currently the cultural critic at UPROXX.