The Useless Critic 2.0

Just so you know, Marina and the Diamonds' semi-NSFW new video, "How to Be a Heartbreaker," premiered last Friday (September 28). The video was supposed to have come out four days earlier, but according to Marina herself , some asshole someone at her record label wouldn't let her release it because she looks "ugly" in it. Wow. I mean, really? Shouldn't all Bruno Mars videos be banned then? (I say that because he is Marina's labelmate. And because he's fugly.) Rants aside, the song appears on the US edition of her number-one album Electra Heart . It's not my favorite song from the album, but I do like (and relate to) the lyrics very much. As for the video itself, well... (I swear it's not a link to Redtube or anything like that .) The following GIF sums up my reaction pretty well:

Little Boots is set to make a comeback, and now Marina and the Diamonds releases her second album . Feels like 2009 all over again! That was s uch a great year. Okay, while a time machine is kinda outside the realms of possibility, for now let's just focus on how awesome Marina is. I suppose most of you are familiar with Marina and the Diamonds, right? The husky-voiced Welsh songstress who hailed from the same crop of late-'00s quirky female artists that also included the likes of Lady Gaga, Little Boots, La Roux, Florence + the Machine and Ellie Goulding. With a distinctive voice that often draws comparisons to Kate Bush, Marina released her debut album The Family Jewels in early 2010, a fantastic album that offered commentary on themes such as feminism, modern society, obsession w ith fame , fear of failure, commercialism and relationships, often with a sarcastic, witty t one . Electra Heart abandons the New Wave-kissed indie pop stylings of its predecessor and...

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.