Tel Aviv

In 1994 the indie rock outfit Tel Aviv came together in Louisville, Kentucky, when singer and multi-instrumentalist Andrew Comer joined forces with guitarist and synth player Jay Kraus. The pair, who had been close since childhood and first bonded over Duran Duran and Wham! albums during their teenage years, initially operated under the moniker Korova. Shortly after finishing high school they laid down a demo tape one summer and sent it to TeenBeat Records, which at first declined to offer a deal. Label head Mark Robinson later happened upon the recording and became fixated on it while traveling through Europe. Armed solely with the band’s name, he tried in vain to locate Korova online; soon afterward he embarked on a tour with his own group Air Miami, whose itinerary brought them to Oberlin College, where Comer was then enrolled. At the show Comer approached Robinson, leading to an immediate signing. The duo adopted the name Tel Aviv and released the single “Cigarette” in the middle of 1995, issuing their self-titled debut album that autumn. Keyboardist Raymond Sweeten, another Oberlin student, joined soon after, and the expanded lineup delivered The Shape of Fiction in early 1997.