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OMC's song How Bizarre was a 90s hit, now the family's forgotten album is gaining new fans after reissue

OMC's song How Bizarre was a 90s hit, now the family's forgotten album is gaining new fans after reissue

By Alipate Narawa
08/04/2024
The launch of OMC's album New Urban Polynesian, which has been re-released on vinyl through independent Melbourne-based record label Gazebo. (ABC News: Hugo Hodge)

Most people will remember Ōtara Millionaires Club (OMC) as one-hit wonders, but for the Aotearoa New Zealand music industry it was a "watershed moment".

The band's sun-drenched song How Bizarre was a global sensation reaching number one in several countries, including Australia, when it was released in 1995.

New Zealand music journalist Martyn Pepperell says in terms of commercial success, How Bizarre is up there with Royals," comparing it to the mega hit by Kiwi singer-songwriter Lorde.

Pepperell says these are the sort of songs that show people growing up in New Zealand that it's possible to reach a global audience from the bottom of the South Pacific.

In the decades since, How Bizarre has cemented itself as an unforgettable tune, reaching new audiences across the world on Spotify, where it has amassed over 180 million listens.

Thirty years after it was first released, the forgotten Fuemana album is gaining new fans in Australia and internationally after it received a vinyl re-release on an independent Melbourne-based record label Gazebo.

Source: ABC

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