The New York-based pop group Ivy came together in 1994 when multi-instrumentalist Andy Chase placed an ad in the Village Voice in an attempt to start a band. Musician/songwriter Adam Schlesinger answered Chase, for the two had mutual musical tastes -- both liked Prefab Sprout and the Go-Betweens. Within months, the two met Parisian-born Dominique Durand. Durand had come to New York in 1989 to learn English, not join a band. Ironically enough, Durand was a massive music fan and adored the sounds of the Smiths, the Pastels, and House of Love.