Album Notes

The subversive pop of Opposite Sex will warm the heart of anyone who viewed the heady years of 1978-1982 (Rough Trade Records, No Wave, NME's C81 Cassette and the start of Flying Nun Records in NZ) as a watershed period in alternative music - a time when there were no rules and anything seemed possible.

Even if, like the band, you weren't born until long after these years and have no idea about the alternative music of 1978-1982 it is likely you will still enjoy their genre-defying trip through the experimental pop underground of their imaginations.

The Dunedin trio play, they say, “an absurdist-logico mix of Euro pop, Beat poetry, and subterranean lo-fi adventuring.” Their music ranges from oddly poppy carnival waltzes through to manic and melodic post-punk and no wave weirdness. In between those extremes is a little bit of gothic rockabilly and post-punk pop, all re-invented in their own style.

Opposite Sex formed in 2010 in Gisborne. In 2011 they played with Dunedin underground psych-pop band The Puddle. On hearing they were thinking of relocating to Dunedin, Opposite Sex were invited to record at Fishrider Studio in Dunedin. The album was the unexpected result of one remarkable weekend.

"The new wave of New Zealand pop begins here.... Opposite Sex share with their compatriots a penchant for vernacular psychedelia and lop-sided songwriting. Parts of their self-titled debut album recall Flying Nun groups like the 3Ds, but fed through the warping prism of British DIY... and a dash of the new lo-fi consciousness of American groups like Times New Viking. For a debut, it's remarkable, leaping from sea-sick waltzes and crunchy post-punk to ADD-pop (see the hyper opener "La Rat"). **** (4/5) Uncut (UK)

“a wonderfully spontaneous album that boasts a scuzzy ramshackle charm and oozes a woozy youthfulness... Sitting somewhere between oddball pop and disjointed 1970s No Wave, the album is experimental without being alienating and embracing without being sickly. ..It’s a debut album that contains all the elements you desire in a first outing.” 8/10 Kicking Against the Pricks

“head-nodding, chanting strangeness – the same eerie shimmer that bands like Black Tambourine and The Raincoats achieved... some people will fall in love and defend it to the death” Volume #15

“Where pop and anti-pop collide... Opposite Sex’s debut album is wonderfully curious and weird.” Cheese on Toast

“a record of duality and uniqueness. ..Opposite Sex have created a manic, ever-progressing experiment of peculiar pop. A perplexing, disarming but ultimately fascinating listen.” The Corner

“The next wave of swoony Dunedin New Zealand pop.” WFMU Radio - new release of the day