UNISEX

Staffordshire, England, gave rise to Unisex, assembled by survivors of the Telescopes after that group’s run of early-’90s EPs on Creation Records had ended. The once-vibrant U.K. imprint had housed Oasis, Primal Scream, Teenage Fanclub, Ride, and the Jesus & Mary Chain, rendering even strong acts easy to miss. Two of those former Telescopers, Stephen Lawrie and Jo Doran, became Unisex’s co-leaders when they joined film-music composer Nick Hemming in 1996 to score Shane Meadows’s low-budget British feature A Room for Romeo Brass. Enjoying the collaboration, the three kept recording and later welcomed Andrew Foster and Dan Thompson into the lineup. Unisex’s debut single, “They Do Feel Strange,” surfaced that same year on Heaven Records U.K. and was chosen “Single of the Year” by Pop (France). Further 7-inches appeared on Heaven, Kooky, Short Fuse, Mind Expansion, and the modest American imprint Double Agent. One of those releases, “Critical Condition,” earned “Single of the Week” honors from New Musical Express. The Deadlock EP followed in 2000, and the band’s first album, Stratosphere, arrived on Double Agent in 2001. A second album slated for 2002 is expected to include every member of Unisex plus Randall Nieman of Füxa and Unexplained Transmissions.