Between the Records - by Julian Tepper (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Between the Records examines brothers, fathers, rock and roll, and the personal demons therein; both musical and familial.

Jules and Adam Newman's complex, often hostile, relationship has long fueled their music careers as they followed in their father's footsteps. After the release of their debut record, and while struggling to write tracks for the followup, the brothers begin to clash. Jules, the younger brother, feels cast aside and ignored by Adam, who has long been accustomed to having things his own way.

From the studio to the stage and across the countless miles in between, Julian Tepper's third novel is a moody and heady work of autofiction based on his days in the Natural History, which he and his brother formed in 2001.

Review Quotes

"Julian Tepper has written an autobiographical slice of late 90s/early 00's rock n roll life reflecting a period both he and I lived thru (and, happily, survived) with such ease that I recognized this world immediately, intimately. Within chapters sequenced like the tracks on a vinyl LP two brothers work to get their band off the ground as well as trying to understand the fractured relationship with their shambling, estranged father. Kindred 'workers in song', as Leonard Cohen termed it, both father and sons are involved in the elusive game of chasing a hit record?or even a modicum of recognition?while also trying to see if there are any ties left holding them all together. This is a book about family, about rock n roll aspirations and about a few of the many avenues such lives might take."--Lee Ranaldo, Sonic Youth

About the Author

Julian Tepper's fifth novel, Getting Even/Letting Go (Rare Bird), will be published in the fall of 2026. His writing has appeared in The Paris Review, Playboy, Brooklyn Rail, Zyzzyva, Daily Beast, Bomb, Tablet Magazine, The New York Review of Architecture, and elsewhere. His essay, "Locking Down with the Family You've Just Eviscerated in a Novel" was a "Notable Essay of 2022" in Best American Essays 2022. He was born and raised in New York City.