The Useless Critic 2.0

Alright, I think I'll be giving this movie a shitty review if I officially reviewed it, so a public service announcement: SEE THIS MOVIE. If it's playing in your area. Submarine is a little British indie film directed by one of my favorite (favourite?) people of all time, Richard Ayoade, a half-Nigerian, half-Norwegian comedian and blipster, most famous for playing hilarious characters on The IT Crowd and The Mighty Boosh . He's also directed videos for Vampire Weekend, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Arctic Monkeys. Speaking of Arctic Monkeys, their lead singer, Alex Turner, contributed songs to the soundtrack for this film. The film is set in 1986, but Turner's modern indie vocals fall in place perfectly throughout its vintage, twee Welsh setting. Ayoade's been called the next Wes Anderson. It's also his birthday today (well yesterday, since I'm posting this so late and it's almost midnight on the west coast)! Do yourself a favor and watch SUBMARINE.

So on the blog in the past, I’ve stated that I get a lot of music advice from Emily Osment, sister of Haley Joel. But lately, she’s been recommending this band known as “The Sequel.” Saying they is like super awesomes and such. They are promoting an Indie Americana angle, but really it’s more pop-rocky. I disagree with you Emily! Normally, Emily and I agree on certain tastes such as “Clinic” and Chewing on Bass guitars, but this band is just not Alive!! [Maybe Emily is just promoting them because she’s their Bestie .] Their music is just a little too flat (or sometimes it’s too sharp). From most of what I’ve heard their sound just isn’t original enough. I’m not feeling the heart behind the music. However, some of their pop-esque melodies might be trapped in your mind for a while. The Sequel: Myspace The song “Everybody Knows” is the one with a good melody, but I aint so huge on the lyrics. But then songs like “Hills and Manhattan” feature what I was saying about no heart. If anybody ...

The music video for La Roux's new single "I'm Not Your Toy" has been released and... I like it. La Roux is a British electropop synth band composed of Elly Jackson and Ben Langmaid, singer and producer respectively. They work in the same milieu as Little Boots, Ladyhawke, and Passion Pit, so if you're into the indie electronic music that has been so popular recently, you'll probably like La Roux. I've been listening to La Roux on and off for a while now and I haven't exactly been blown away. Their songs are all good - catchy and interesting - but they just don't quite hit the spot. I like " Fascination " enough to let it play all the way through when it comes up on my iPod, but not enough to put it on repeat. Same with " Bulletproof " and " In For The Kill ." In contrast, I think that "I'm Not Your Toy," their new single, is better than their previous songs. When I first listened to it I didn't parti...