Music News - OMC 'How Bizarre' Album 25th Anniversary Vinyl Release
06 April 2021 - 0 Comments
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of OMC’s How Bizarre, the iconic album is being released on vinyl for the very first time. Issued globally 23 April, it will be remastered from the original 1996 mixes by producer Alan Jansson with powerful new artwork created by Auckland designer Barny Bewick.
OMC was fronted by a young man from South Auckland, Pauly Fuemana, working in partnership with his producer/co-writer Alan Jansson. OMC originally stood for the Otara Millionaires Club, an ironic name for the five-piece band from possibly Auckland’s least affluent suburb. When the band fell apart, Pauly kept the OMC name and teamed up with Alan. Their mix of cultures – Pauly’s mother was Māori and his father was from the tiny Pacific nation of Niue, and Alan’s heritage was Swedish/Greek – created a unique blend and they drew from their influences widely.
How Bizarre was released in New Zealand on local independent label, Huh! Records in 1995, and by 1996 had hit number one where it sat for three weeks. It was then picked up by PolyGram for Australian release where it reached the top spot for five weeks, and subsequently went around the world hitting No.1s in countless countries.
How Bizarre was released in the US on February 1997 as a physical single for radio. They soon followed suit with the rest of the world and the song became a hit being played over a million times on US radio.
When the single hit in New Zealand and Australia, the album was unrecorded but there was both a demand and an urgency on a longplayer. Over the first six months of 1996, How Bizarre, the album, was recorded in a small studio in Auckland. It was released on 27 September 1996 in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Asia and Europe.
While How Bizarre contained the title hit single, it had many notable tracks that spoke of OMC’s homeland and the sounds they grew up with. Sadly, it was to be the only OMC album. Pauly Fuemana’s passed away in 2010 from a nervous disorder that had long debilitated him.
How Bizarre has not been forgotten. It’s been featured in countless TV shows, cinema, and advertising syncs. Video and streaming services continue to register many millions of plays and in late 2020 had a life as a TikTok hit with in some 5 billion tag hits to date, exposing the iconic song to a new generation who know it only as a contemporary song.
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