"We're the most dysfunctional operating band we know," is the way Ivy guitarist and keyboardist Andy Chase describes the New York-based trio. While Ivy's teasing, give-and-take banter (and the fact that Chase and singer Dominique Durand are married to one another) might lead one to believe he's joking, keep in mind that the band's favorite way to pass time on the road is playing "One Sentence Argument." It's a game won by the band member who can start the longest spat with a single remark, whether it's a comment about musical integrity (which the French-born Durand says was good for an hour-long feud) or a contention that the U.S. saved France in World War II.

Not that it takes much. According to bassist and drummer Adam Schlesinger, Ivy "can argue about anything. Anyone who spends time with us walks away convinced we're about to break up." Since hours-long disagreements aren't exactly an economical use of studio time, a new game came into play -- "Throwing down the card."

"When you throw down your card, nobody can refute you," Chase explains. "The argument's over and you've won." Since each member holds only one card, they have to choose their moment carefully. While the band was recording "Apartment Life," their second album, Durand held hers until mastering, when she insisted that "You Don't Know Anything" be sped up slightly; Schlesinger threw down his card to protect his drum intro on "Quick, Painless and Easy." "They both thought it was cheesy," he laughs. "I was just proud that I could play it." Chase claims that his card was non-musical. "My wife likes to sing naked," he joked. "I insisted she wear clothes."

Still, Ivy's tart combination of richly layered, sprightly music and Durand's beguiling, Nico-esque voice -- a smooth blend of '60s French pop music and the dark, post-punk sensibility of bands like Luna -- is not merely the result of verbal jousting. But the band members' differences don't hurt either: Schlesinger thinks Ivy's sound is a result of their vastly divergent work habits. "I'm much more instinctual," he explains, "while Andy works on a more analytical basis." Durand, though, has final veto power. "She's not a trained musician," he says, "so she also brings a fan's perspective. More than anyone else, she's the personification of Ivy."

One subject that hasn't caused any friction is Schlesinger's involvement in the more commercial power-pop group Fountains of Wayne. Even though that band, which Schlesinger diplomatically claims is "genetically related" to Ivy, outsold their first effort, both Chase and Durand say they're not jealous. "It really had no effect," Chase says, and Fountains' success may actually have raised Ivy's profile. "People at the label who had no idea who we were last time are coming up to us saying how much they love the new album," Schlesinger explains. "It's nice." No one in Ivy will argue with that.