Brothers Rob and John Wright formed Nomeansno as a two-piece band in 1979, initially making home recordings and then performing live as a duo. Guitarist Andy Kerr joined in 1983, and the band became a fixture of the British Columbia punk scene before embarking on extensive North American touring.
Their first release as a three-piece band was the You Kill Me EP on Undergrowth Records. This was followed thereafter by the Sex Mad album, issued initially on Psyche Industry Records. The band attracted the attention of Alternative Tentacles, who signed them and issued Sex Mad on LP in the United States and Europe. In 1991, Alternative Tentacles released both records on compact disc together as the Sex Mad/You Kill Me compilation album, with international distribution from Cargo Records. The new edition was remixed by long-time Nomeansno producer Cecil English in Profile Studios in Vancouver.
In 2002, Nomeansno bought the rights to their back catalogue,[1] reissuing their albums on their own Wrong Records imprint with distribution from Southern Records. Neither Sex Mad nor You Kill Me, however, has been reissued during this process.
As a single disc showcasing the musical prowess of the burgeoning trio, the compilation was received well by critics. Writing for AllMusic, Ned Raggett writes that "Sex Mad/You Kill Me makes for an edgy, thrashing release that shows the Canadians fully in charge of a frenetic post-punk style seemingly left for dead by many in the late '80s." Raggett awards the disc four out of five stars.
