This Norwegian group has been kicking around the indiepop circuits for a while. Looks like they decided to get serious on this one, as they enlisted Teenage Fan Club's Norman Blake to produce. I can't say that he really added a lot to the sound (it was pretty glorious before), but I'm sure he helped out with the feng shui.

I Was a King Slow Century (Coastal Town Recordings)

That's not a dismissal or anything. It's just that I Was a King has a solid track record. To my ear, this is the band's most complete (and most joyous) outing yet. Lovely is an understatement, and "joy" barely begins to describe the feeling created by hearing these songs.

I am a sucker for female vocals, particularly multiple vocals sung in unison (different voices, not multitracked). I'm also a sucker for simple melodies that are complete in and of themselves. I Was a King is chock full of that, and the execution of these songs is spot-on.

Add in a willingness to veer from basher to mid-tempo contemplative and back again, and you have an album with a fine sonic arc. It's not too early to think about summer. Odd that a Norwegian band inspires such thoughts--or maybe not. Perhaps they need sun even more than us. Easily one of the best albums of the year so far.

Jon Worley