Castle Lights
Paint the Stars EP
Magnolia Red

From the outset, the members of Houston’s Castle Lights make no bones about the torch they carry for the semi-recent wave of brooding, radio-friendly Britpop bands, and the group’s songs reflect the Coldplay-Snow Patrol-Keane-Starsailor-Travis school of pop songwriting. The thing is, Castle Lights’ songs are every bit as catchy as their better-known counterparts, with plaintive vocals and big walls of guitars that lets the band stand firmly on its own, despite the similarities to influences from across the pond.

Many a musician has glommed onto the bombast and style that British musicians often bring to their songs, and on its debut EP Castle Lights seems to have studied exactly what it takes to write similarly catchy tunes while avoiding the style-over-substance trap. “Wait For You”‘s repeated “I’ll wait for you as long as I can / I’ll wait for you with my heart in my hand” is the kind of stuff that makes teenage poets weep, while “Maze Of Love” and the more upbeat “Bid You Farewell” show the band’s range. But it’s EP closer “Paint The Stars” that best represents Castle Lights’ music: smooth vocals and squeaky clean pop. It’s tough to argue with a formula this tried-and-true, so why try? Paint The Stars easily ranks among the best releases in Houston this year.

Castle Lights plays an acoustic set tonight (Thursday, 12.16.10) at Warehouse Live, as part of the “Canned Acoustica” food drive benefit concert.

Videos of Castle Lights after the jump…