How Bizarre (album)


How Bizarre is the only album by the New Zealand musical group OMC, released in 1996. It was first released on 27 September under the Huh! recording label, issued by PolyGram New Zealand, and manufactured and marketed by Mercury Records on 25 February 1997 in the United States. The album garnered a mixed reception from critics. How Bizarre reached number 5 in its native New Zealand and number 40 on the Billboard 200, spawning four singles: the title track, "Right On", "On the Run" and "Land of Plenty". It was also certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, denoting sales of over 500,000 copies in that country.

Critical reception

, writing for Spin, praised the overall musicianship throughout the album, highlighting the update to Flying Nun's "angelic-melancholy-through-odd-instrumentation aesthetic" and Fuemana's vocal performance resembling that of Billy Ocean and R. B. Greaves, saying that he crafted a genre hybrid that mixes Beck from 1996, reggae from 1971 and recent pop music that "dour mid-'90s U.S. radio might not know what to do with it." Thom Owens of AllMusic called the record "an intriguing fusion of worldbeat rhythms and urban soul that never manages to catch fire, despite several strong grooves and soulful fusions." Robert Christgau cited the title track and "On the Run" as "choice cuts", indicating good songs on "an album that isn't worth your time or money."

Track listing

Adapted from the album's liner notes.
;OMC
;Additional musicians
;Production
;Artwork

Weekly charts

Certifications