Ep 14: Madison Avenue with Andy Van

A Journey Through Aussie Pop

With every one of their four singles reaching the ARIA top 10, dance duo Madison Avenue had a perfect chart strike rate. Formed by DJ/producer Andy Van and singer Cheyne Coates, the pair crossed over from the clubs to the top 50 in 1999 with "Don't Call Me Baby" — a song Cheyne was never meant to sing. Andy tells us about how that track came together — from the sample he based the song around, the Mousse T tune that served as inspiration and how Cheyne's hastily recorded guide vocal ended up being on the finished record. We'll also hear about the bidding war to release the song overseas, how follow-up singles "Who The Hell Are You" and "Everything You Need" came about, and the pressure to put together debut album The Polyester Embassy. Andy also talks about his and Cheyne's sometimes contentious working relationship, which ultimately led to their split in 2003; his thoughts about Madison Avenue's remake of "Reminiscing"; and other highlights from his career, including his ARIA Award-winning remix of Pendulum's "Coma", starting Vicious Vinyl with John Course, and working with wife Cassie in groups Vandalism and Super Disco Club.

Bonus material at chartbeats.com.au/aussie
Twitter: @ChartBeatsAU, @TurnAroundOnJoy
Instagram: @chartbeatsau, @joyturnbeataround
Email: [e-mail]