[6] After recording a ten-track demo, their first release was the "Romance"/"Chance Meeting" single on Orange Juice drummer Steven Daly's Absolute label in December that year.
[2][3] They were then signed to Postcard Records, the label founded by Daly and Alan Horne, releasing a string of critically acclaimed singles in 1980 and 1981.
[2] Torrance joined Boots for Dancing and later (with Weddell) formed The Happy Family with Nick Currie (aka Momus).
[2] Musically, they resembled their label mates Orange Juice in fusing post-punk guitars with funk and disco rhythms.
[4] Haig's lyrics were also inspired by the works of Franz Kafka, Albert Camus, Hermann Hesse, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and Knut Hamsun.
[13] In an interview with Nardwuar the Human Serviette, British musician King Krule stated that Josef K created, "intelligent music and it's coming from a pure place, I think.
The history of Josef K is covered in 2015 documentary film Big Gold Dream, with Malcolm Ross featuring prominently as an interviewee.