The Castle delivers more of Wolf Colonel’s entertaining, unpretentious indie rock. As with Vikings of Mint, the Guided by Voices influence stays strong on songs like “Sabotage the Alley,” “Pet You Over,” and “He Goes Places No One Goes,” but, once more, Wolf Colonel finds more fun and liveliness in this sound than Bob Pollard and company do currently. Regardless of what inspired them, the shifting tempos and free-falling guitar lines on “Is This What We Asked For?” and “Fantasy Soccer”‘s shiny harmonies and guitars are winningly exuberant. Though The Castle doesn’t mark a huge departure from Wolf Colonel’s other releases, it’s still a completely enjoyable collection of dyed-in-the-wool indie rock. – Heather Phares
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