Originally conceived by members Dominique Durand and Andy Chase, the pair recruited Adam Schlesinger for additional production and lyrics.

Sessions took place in New York City and Paris, where they recorded four original tracks and a cover of Orange Juice's 1984 song "I Guess I'm Just a Little Too Sensitive".

[1] According to writer Steven Blush in his book New York Rock, after Melody Maker named the track "Single of the Week", work on Lately was initiated.

During the meetings, the band members worked with several musicians for the track, including Evan Richey, who handled the cello arrangements for "Can't Even Fake It"; Ted Jensen, who mastered the recordings at Sterling Sound Studios in New York City; and Jean-Pierre Sluys, who served as an assistant mixer to both Chase and Schlesinger.

[7][8] According to the members of Ivy, the release displayed Durand's "heavily accented" vocals and Chase and Schlesinger's "pop melodies and jangly guitars".

[11] AllMusic's Nitsuh Abebe was generally positive towards Lately, claiming that "its five songs let their dreamier elements come straight from the [...] songwriting" and that it is an example of "sophisticated pop that Ivy created".