Park Ave. was an indie pop group from Omaha, Nebraska. It was formed in 1996. All of the members contributed vocals, as well as playing an instrument. The line up included: Clark Baechle and Jamie Williams on guitars, Conor Oberst on drums, Neely Jenkins on bass guitar, and Jenn Bernard on keyboards. Prior to forming the band, none of the female members knew how to play their instrument , and Clark was a drummer whilst Conor had been playing guitar since a very young age.
Park Ave’s existence was short: two and a half years and 15 performances, yet still have a significant fanbase.
They released a split 7” vinyl (with The Wrens) in 1998 on Saddle Creek Records, which included the song “Cloak and Dagger”. In 1999, Park Ave’s first LP, “When Jamie Went to London…We Broke Up” (named such because the band split when Jamie Williams moved to London to work in art) was released on Urinine Records and went out of print after the label’s demise. However, Conor Oberst’s label Team Love re-released ‘When Jaime Went to London…We Broke Up’ in 2005.
Many of the members of Park Ave. went on to other successful music projects after the band broke up: Conor Oberst went on to work with Mike Mogis and Nate Walcott in Bright Eyes, record two albums with the Mystic Valley Band, and most recently recorded an album under the name Monsters of Folk with Jim James, Mike Mogis and M. Ward. Clark Baechle is the drummer for The Faint. Jenn Bernard plays in the Omaha band Fortnight. Neely Jenkins and Jamie Williams (now Jamie Pressnall) are both in Tilly and The Wall. |
