I Was A King (MySpace) is a Norwegian pop band with power pop tendencies. Their hook-filled songs are packed with lovable guitar riffs, noteworthy female-fronted vocals, and a very large sound. Their new single is titled “It’s All You” and it features a near classical, minute-long piano introduction by Sufjan Stevens. When the percussion and guitars kick in, and the song comes full circle, the feeling one gets is… well, powerful.

“Norman Bleik” is the single’s b-side. Like “I Was A King”, “Norman Bleik” is filled with fuzzy guitar distortion a-la Apples In Stereo and vocal pleasantries along the lines of Teenage Fanclub. Both songs can be found on I Was A King’s forthcoming self-titled LP, out March 2 on Control Group. “NB” can be found below, ripped from glorious vinyl on my USB turntable.

It’s easy to hear what makes I Was A King such a great band: they write brightly colored pop songs that are too catchy to ignore! That being said, I’m not really sure I’d dub “It’s All You” the a-side and “Norman Bleik” the b. Both are suited for the front spot (granted, the former a bit more so). The single would be better dubbed a double A-side.

Above image by Fotonils.com.

I Was A King: Norman Bleik [mp3]

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Morningside / Hype City [7" Single, 2009]

1. It’s All You
2. Norman Bleik