From Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock ’n’ Roll Group, by Ian F. Svenonius, to be published in January by Akashic Books. Svenonius was the front man for several bands, including Nation of Ulysses and the Make-Up. His current group is Chain & the Gang.

To determine your rock ’n’ roll group’s identity, you must first determine what the group is trying to achieve. Is it to be a) “famous,” or perhaps b) sexually popular? Is it c) to write some good songs in the style of another particular group, or possibly d) to advance a particular ideology?

If the…