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Kesha shows her strength by being vulnerable on 'Rainbow' (Album Review)

/ August 14, 2017
Kesha is no longer waking up coated in glitter feeling like P Diddy. Instead, she's baring her soul on her new album Rainbow. Fans have been waiting years for new music from the glittered queen, and, after very public legal battle against her former producer Dr Luke last year - whom she claims sexually assaulted her - she's finally back on the pop scene. But was it worth the wait?

 

Kesha's gone through a lot of changes since we last heard from her five years ago. She's dropped her producer, dropped the dollar sign from her name, and dropped the auto-tune. All of which pretty much made "Kesha" into the pop brand that made her a household name across the world. This change isn't only on a surface level, but one that's deep and cutting, mentally and musically, reflected in her new music. Even the album cover is different from her usual style; using art and psychedelic visuals to promote her transition into new ventures. It portrays a more vulnerable side of Kesha, standing naked, ready to begin her new journey. Still, the record feels haunted, virtually on every track. You can feel the angst from the trauma her former producer allegedly forced her to endure. Within every note, every lyric, Kesha is anguished; but it only makes her stronger because of it.

Rainbow opens with the aptly titled Bastards, a stripped-back ballad centering on the hook of "Don't let the bastards get you down." It certainly shows Kesha's vulnerable side; it's pretty much just her smooth tones and a guitar. Anyone clicking play on this album expecting something reminiscent of Tik Tok will certainly be in for a shock. While it is a nice song, I do wish that Kesha had opened with something with a little more oomph behind it. In my view, Praying would've been a perfect album opener. It would've still shown the listener that the auto-tuned songs about partying are behind her, and that now her focus is on authenticity, yet it would've opened the album with the inner strength that's bubbling behind her new mentality. Ignoring the placing of the track, it's still pretty solid, with a message that carries on throughout the album. The crescendo doesn't hit until almost the three-minute mark; making it a bit of a slow build, reflecting Kesha's slow journey of self-discovery through the storm; emerging on the other side as a rainbow.

We then move onto Let 'Em Talk, which is just classic Kesha in all its glory. After the mellow Bastards, track two will certainly inject you with a jolt of the fist-pumping, ass-shaking pop princess that we all know and love. A perfect empowering bop that will stick around in your head for hours after your first listen. You'll be left asking yourself: "What was that neat little ass-shaking song on Rainbow?"

The next four tracks were all releases as singles and/or promo singles. Woman follows nicely on from Let 'Em Talk, an empowering song about being a fierce independent woman, complete with The Dap-King's wonderful trumpets. There's a nice little verse where Kesha can't get through the line without laughing; adding a sense of bona fides to the track. This song pretty much epitomises what Kesha is now all about: strength. She's turning what has been used against her in her career; being downtrodden on by those in the industry just because she's a woman, into her strongest weapon.

Hymn is a love-letter to her fans, a quite literal "hymn for the hymnless". "I know that I'm perfect / Even though I'm fucked up" is probably my favourite lyric on the entire album. It's so literal and in your face, but it works so effectively. The reiteration of "This is a hymn, hymn, hymn" does get a tad repetitive after a while, but the solid verses more than make up for it. 


Lead single Praying follows Hymn. The low tempo follows the mellow vibe of the track before, so it flows together rather nicely. Praying is, in my opinion, the strongest track on the album. It really is a phoenix rising from the ashes moment for the singer. The track has been theorised to be about the Dr Luke abuse scandal; and the music video on reinforces this sentiment. Not only does she acknowledge her past struggles: "You brought the flames and you put me through Hell," - but she openly wishes for peace for everyone involved. The best thing about this song, though, is the slow build it has over time. It starts off with just a few piano notes and her lonely little voice, and by the songs ending there's a huge backing of musical explosions and her voice pitching so high it'll make your dog's ears turn. Only Kesha could make that kind of magic.

Learn To Let Go is the perfect track to follow the lead. After singing about her pain, she realises it's time to let it all go; to "exorcise the demons inside me." This really shows the singer's maturity. It's as if we're figuring things out inside the singer's head as she writes the album; feeling her pain, heartbreak, relief and joy all wrapped into one. The track tells a story. No longer will Kesha be a victim, instead, she's going to be a fighter. (Side note: the music video that accompanies this song is literally adorable, go check it out!)

Finding You is the weakest track on the album. It's another low-tempo track, but it gets washed out when compared to the likes of Praying and Rainbow. It's not bad by any means, and it starts out with a pretty sick riff, but it's a track I'd probably skip upon listening to the album again. Maybe it'll end up being one of those tracks that ends up growing on you.

Title track Rainbow doesn't disappoint. It's a song that Kesha wrote while she was in rehab for an eating disorder, apparently after begging to be able to use a piano for just an hour a day. This was the first song that blossomed for Rainbow, and in turn inspired an entire album campaign. Much in the same way of Praying, this is a builder; starting off with just her and a piano, before a booming orchestra accompanies her. Signifying not only her own inner strength growing, but the support of those around her building like a crescendo. This song is also filled with lyrics that'll make the hairs on your arms stand on end: "Deep down inside I'm still a child / Playful eyes wide and wild / I can't lose hope / What's left of my heart's still made of gold." Imagining Kesha singing these lines, alone in rehab, really does convey her sense of vulnerability; and from that she now draws her best strength. When her tour kicks off, she'll be singing what she once sang along, in her darkest hour, to crowds of thousands and thousands of people. A truly inspiring feat. 


After Rainbow come a series of (mostly) up-beat tracks; again a tactful track-listing. She's stronger now; over her pain. Which is why it's a nice change to hear Hunt You Down, a fun track with its boots firmly in country soil. It reminds me of Kesha's Cannibal days: "Baby, I love you so much / Don't make me kill you." It's sung with her tongue firmly planted in her cheek, and shows us a flash of the Kesha we've all come to know and love over the course of her career. Who doesn't love a song about a psycho lover?

Boogie Feet continues the upbeat vibe; again reminiscing her earlier work. It's got a pretty solid riff running through the entire song, keeping up the momentum. While it's definitely not the strongest track on the album by any means, it induces a bit of momentum into Rainbow, and I guarantee it'll have you tapping your foot, whether you realise it or not.

Boots goes back to Kesha's partying and sex days. And what's wrong with that? In the narrative of the album, she's overcome her pain, and now she's back to being herself. This track is filled with a grungy beat, one that fits snugly in with the current trends of pop music. Plus, it's got the stand-out lyric: "Wedding bells just made me wanna die." Boots doesn't really fit in with the rest of the album in terms of its sound, but it's one of my favourite tracks, and one I'll definitely be hitting replay on.

When I heard that this album was going to have a Dolly Parton feature, I was super stoked. Kesha and Dolly Parton on the same track? That sounds like something only the craziest fanboy would ever dream up. Thankfully, the dream became a reality in the form of the wonderfully titled Old Flames (Can't Hold A Candle To You). By the time it gets to this track, you know you're not going crazy, and that Rainbow definitely has a large undertone of the country genre looking through it (not that dissimilar to Gaga's Joanne released last year). The difference with the album is, when you've got country royalty Dolly Parton on your album, you definitely get the country token. It's a cover of Parton's song, which in itself is a cover of Sun's. Thankfully, Kesha's tones match beautifully with Dolly's, and by the end of the track you're left marvelling at why the two of them have never collaborated before.


Godzilla opens with the weird lyric: "What do you get when you take Godzilla to the mall?" Um. I really do not know. This is definitely the strangest track on the entire album; bizarre lyrics sung in a sing-song voice. It is a nice song, though running at just over 2 minutes, it's undeniably filler, and I don't think it would've been any worse having been cut from the final mix.

The album ends on Spaceship, swinging the album back to the country vibe. It's a nice bookend to the album; a cute little song, albeit the lyrics are a little on the dark side: "When I'm dead / Don't lay me down with the dirt on my head / You won't need a shovel, you don't need a cold headstone". Oddly, the mellow vibe of the song works well with the heavy lyrics, though I'd have expected the album to end on a triumphant note, rather one that explores what Kesha will think will happen when she's dead. But whatever, that's her prerogative. Besides, there's an oddly joyous aspect of realising your own futile mortality; and it's with this liberation on which the album ends; to the cumulative sounds of spaceships taking off into the night, leaving us wondering where Kesha is going to take us next.

Overall, Rainbow is a nice surprise from Kesha. She's certainly shedded everything that accompanied her persona before, and she's benefited from it. The album takes us on a journey with the singer; it's as if she's invited us into a private, intimate writing session with her; allowing us an insight into how she's found the strength within her. Following the tracklist is like sitting down and having a therapy session with her. It's unusual to feel this sense of intimacy from a record, but this album manages to achieve it to the highest regard. Without the bravado of "Ke$ha", Kesha's true voice and personality can shine. And shine they do.
Kesha is no longer waking up coated in glitter feeling like P Diddy. Instead, she's baring her soul on her new album Rainbow. Fans have been waiting years for new music from the glittered queen, and, after very public legal battle against her former producer Dr Luke last year - whom she claims sexually assaulted her - she's finally back on the pop scene. But was it worth the wait?

 

Kesha's gone through a lot of changes since we last heard from her five years ago. She's dropped her producer, dropped the dollar sign from her name, and dropped the auto-tune. All of which pretty much made "Kesha" into the pop brand that made her a household name across the world. This change isn't only on a surface level, but one that's deep and cutting, mentally and musically, reflected in her new music. Even the album cover is different from her usual style; using art and psychedelic visuals to promote her transition into new ventures. It portrays a more vulnerable side of Kesha, standing naked, ready to begin her new journey. Still, the record feels haunted, virtually on every track. You can feel the angst from the trauma her former producer allegedly forced her to endure. Within every note, every lyric, Kesha is anguished; but it only makes her stronger because of it.

Rainbow opens with the aptly titled Bastards, a stripped-back ballad centering on the hook of "Don't let the bastards get you down." It certainly shows Kesha's vulnerable side; it's pretty much just her smooth tones and a guitar. Anyone clicking play on this album expecting something reminiscent of Tik Tok will certainly be in for a shock. While it is a nice song, I do wish that Kesha had opened with something with a little more oomph behind it. In my view, Praying would've been a perfect album opener. It would've still shown the listener that the auto-tuned songs about partying are behind her, and that now her focus is on authenticity, yet it would've opened the album with the inner strength that's bubbling behind her new mentality. Ignoring the placing of the track, it's still pretty solid, with a message that carries on throughout the album. The crescendo doesn't hit until almost the three-minute mark; making it a bit of a slow build, reflecting Kesha's slow journey of self-discovery through the storm; emerging on the other side as a rainbow.

We then move onto Let 'Em Talk, which is just classic Kesha in all its glory. After the mellow Bastards, track two will certainly inject you with a jolt of the fist-pumping, ass-shaking pop princess that we all know and love. A perfect empowering bop that will stick around in your head for hours after your first listen. You'll be left asking yourself: "What was that neat little ass-shaking song on Rainbow?"

The next four tracks were all releases as singles and/or promo singles. Woman follows nicely on from Let 'Em Talk, an empowering song about being a fierce independent woman, complete with The Dap-King's wonderful trumpets. There's a nice little verse where Kesha can't get through the line without laughing; adding a sense of bona fides to the track. This song pretty much epitomises what Kesha is now all about: strength. She's turning what has been used against her in her career; being downtrodden on by those in the industry just because she's a woman, into her strongest weapon.

Hymn is a love-letter to her fans, a quite literal "hymn for the hymnless". "I know that I'm perfect / Even though I'm fucked up" is probably my favourite lyric on the entire album. It's so literal and in your face, but it works so effectively. The reiteration of "This is a hymn, hymn, hymn" does get a tad repetitive after a while, but the solid verses more than make up for it. 


Lead single Praying follows Hymn. The low tempo follows the mellow vibe of the track before, so it flows together rather nicely. Praying is, in my opinion, the strongest track on the album. It really is a phoenix rising from the ashes moment for the singer. The track has been theorised to be about the Dr Luke abuse scandal; and the music video on reinforces this sentiment. Not only does she acknowledge her past struggles: "You brought the flames and you put me through Hell," - but she openly wishes for peace for everyone involved. The best thing about this song, though, is the slow build it has over time. It starts off with just a few piano notes and her lonely little voice, and by the songs ending there's a huge backing of musical explosions and her voice pitching so high it'll make your dog's ears turn. Only Kesha could make that kind of magic.

Learn To Let Go is the perfect track to follow the lead. After singing about her pain, she realises it's time to let it all go; to "exorcise the demons inside me." This really shows the singer's maturity. It's as if we're figuring things out inside the singer's head as she writes the album; feeling her pain, heartbreak, relief and joy all wrapped into one. The track tells a story. No longer will Kesha be a victim, instead, she's going to be a fighter. (Side note: the music video that accompanies this song is literally adorable, go check it out!)

Finding You is the weakest track on the album. It's another low-tempo track, but it gets washed out when compared to the likes of Praying and Rainbow. It's not bad by any means, and it starts out with a pretty sick riff, but it's a track I'd probably skip upon listening to the album again. Maybe it'll end up being one of those tracks that ends up growing on you.

Title track Rainbow doesn't disappoint. It's a song that Kesha wrote while she was in rehab for an eating disorder, apparently after begging to be able to use a piano for just an hour a day. This was the first song that blossomed for Rainbow, and in turn inspired an entire album campaign. Much in the same way of Praying, this is a builder; starting off with just her and a piano, before a booming orchestra accompanies her. Signifying not only her own inner strength growing, but the support of those around her building like a crescendo. This song is also filled with lyrics that'll make the hairs on your arms stand on end: "Deep down inside I'm still a child / Playful eyes wide and wild / I can't lose hope / What's left of my heart's still made of gold." Imagining Kesha singing these lines, alone in rehab, really does convey her sense of vulnerability; and from that she now draws her best strength. When her tour kicks off, she'll be singing what she once sang along, in her darkest hour, to crowds of thousands and thousands of people. A truly inspiring feat. 


After Rainbow come a series of (mostly) up-beat tracks; again a tactful track-listing. She's stronger now; over her pain. Which is why it's a nice change to hear Hunt You Down, a fun track with its boots firmly in country soil. It reminds me of Kesha's Cannibal days: "Baby, I love you so much / Don't make me kill you." It's sung with her tongue firmly planted in her cheek, and shows us a flash of the Kesha we've all come to know and love over the course of her career. Who doesn't love a song about a psycho lover?

Boogie Feet continues the upbeat vibe; again reminiscing her earlier work. It's got a pretty solid riff running through the entire song, keeping up the momentum. While it's definitely not the strongest track on the album by any means, it induces a bit of momentum into Rainbow, and I guarantee it'll have you tapping your foot, whether you realise it or not.

Boots goes back to Kesha's partying and sex days. And what's wrong with that? In the narrative of the album, she's overcome her pain, and now she's back to being herself. This track is filled with a grungy beat, one that fits snugly in with the current trends of pop music. Plus, it's got the stand-out lyric: "Wedding bells just made me wanna die." Boots doesn't really fit in with the rest of the album in terms of its sound, but it's one of my favourite tracks, and one I'll definitely be hitting replay on.

When I heard that this album was going to have a Dolly Parton feature, I was super stoked. Kesha and Dolly Parton on the same track? That sounds like something only the craziest fanboy would ever dream up. Thankfully, the dream became a reality in the form of the wonderfully titled Old Flames (Can't Hold A Candle To You). By the time it gets to this track, you know you're not going crazy, and that Rainbow definitely has a large undertone of the country genre looking through it (not that dissimilar to Gaga's Joanne released last year). The difference with the album is, when you've got country royalty Dolly Parton on your album, you definitely get the country token. It's a cover of Parton's song, which in itself is a cover of Sun's. Thankfully, Kesha's tones match beautifully with Dolly's, and by the end of the track you're left marvelling at why the two of them have never collaborated before.


Godzilla opens with the weird lyric: "What do you get when you take Godzilla to the mall?" Um. I really do not know. This is definitely the strangest track on the entire album; bizarre lyrics sung in a sing-song voice. It is a nice song, though running at just over 2 minutes, it's undeniably filler, and I don't think it would've been any worse having been cut from the final mix.

The album ends on Spaceship, swinging the album back to the country vibe. It's a nice bookend to the album; a cute little song, albeit the lyrics are a little on the dark side: "When I'm dead / Don't lay me down with the dirt on my head / You won't need a shovel, you don't need a cold headstone". Oddly, the mellow vibe of the song works well with the heavy lyrics, though I'd have expected the album to end on a triumphant note, rather one that explores what Kesha will think will happen when she's dead. But whatever, that's her prerogative. Besides, there's an oddly joyous aspect of realising your own futile mortality; and it's with this liberation on which the album ends; to the cumulative sounds of spaceships taking off into the night, leaving us wondering where Kesha is going to take us next.

Overall, Rainbow is a nice surprise from Kesha. She's certainly shedded everything that accompanied her persona before, and she's benefited from it. The album takes us on a journey with the singer; it's as if she's invited us into a private, intimate writing session with her; allowing us an insight into how she's found the strength within her. Following the tracklist is like sitting down and having a therapy session with her. It's unusual to feel this sense of intimacy from a record, but this album manages to achieve it to the highest regard. Without the bravado of "Ke$ha", Kesha's true voice and personality can shine. And shine they do.
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While anime popularity is on the up, viewers surprisingly don't have a vast amount of choice when it comes legally streaming their favourite shows. In the UK, there are two frontrunners: Funimation and Crunchyroll. But before you delve in and take the plunge, you need to discover which of the streaming sites suits your needs.

 Funimation is one of the leading anime distributors in Northern America and Europe. It boasts an impressive catalogue of the most sought after anime shows including Fairy Tail, Attack On Titan and My Hero Academia. While it does have hundreds upon hundreds of options to choose from, some notable entries are missing, such as fan-favourite One Piece. Though this isn't completely down to the company (purchasing rights can be a tricky business), it does become one of Funimation's shortfalls. However, they combat this by offering a 'suggestions' section of their site, similar to the recommendations on Netflix. Once you finish binge-watching all 300-and-something episodes of Fairy Tail, it gives you similar shows that may fill that void. It's not a bad system; the recommendations usually do fall within the same genre as their predecessors, meaning you'll likely get sucked into their web of anime choices. Plus, added to the fact that you can stream them in either subbed or dubbed in a range of languages, it makes Funimation pretty accessible globally.
However, most of their shows air two weeks after their release in Japan, meaning that avoiding spoilers is pretty difficult.

Funimation do offer a free version, though the library is rather limited and you'd be met with a hefty amount of ads. However, the premium version is only £4.99 a month (or £49.99 for an entire year). At that price it seems like a pretty good deal to be able to binge-watch hundreds of shows, right? Wrong. On paper, Funimation is a ground-breaking site with a huge range of titles to choose from, making the low price a pretty good steal. Unfortunately, it's let down by the technical side. The mobile app is clunky and unprofessional. Turning the screen leaves half of the icons out of view, before the screen quickly resizes. Whilst not app-breaking, it certainly doesn't leave a good impression. Then comes the chrome-casting. What a disappointment! I can't tell you how excited I was to no longer be confined to watching anime from my laptop screen and appreciate it in all it's big-screen glory. Unfortunately, the images get ridiculously distorted and pixelated every time a character so much as moves. It really ruins the entire viewing experience.

But the technical difficulties don't stop there. When I eventually got sick of the pixelated nonsense that was plaguing my screen, I took to their website to cancel my subscription. After following the steps to cancel my plan effectively, I came face to face with a big red cancel button. I pressed it, ready to free myself of the website's ties and... nothing happened.
Thinking it was just my web browser, I tried cancelling it from the app itself. Nope. I even borrowed a friend's phone. Nada. I'm now eagerly awaiting the support team to manually cancel it for me, but, while error or not, it doesn't reflect well on them.

It's a shame, because if Funimation was tweaked and all of its bugs were removed, it actually could be a website I could see myself subscribing to for years to come. It's recently been purchased by Sony, so know knows! Maybe all of its faults will be rectified. But as the company's been running for 23 years and it's still let down by obvious pitfalls, I won't hold my breath.



This brings us to Crunchyroll. With an impressive 800 shows in its catalogue, streaming all over the world to 21 million online community members, it's a pretty big deal in the anime world. Similarly to Funimation, it offers a free version to members, but with ads every 10 minutes or so, it basically renders the service useless. The premium, ad-free version is also priced at - you guessed it - £4.99, meaning that the two services are literally competing together head-to-head.

Crunchyroll's catalogue is roughly the same as Funimation's. While Funimation have older gems on offer, Crunchyroll boast an abundance of newer shows, airing only an hour after the original Japanese broadcast. That makes avoiding those spoilers pretty damn easy. The site also has One Piece on offer, if you fancy dedicating hundreds of hours of your life to some animated pirates (who wouldn't?!). There's also a 'Viewers also liked' segment, ready for you to find other shows you hadn't necessarily considered before in genres you enjoy. Overall, though, as far as choice goes, I'd say the two sites are evenly matched. It really comes down to what anime you're after feasting your eyes on.


Crunchyroll doesn't suffer from the same technical issues that haunt Funimation. Its casting service works much better, the quality not suffering tenfold for it. The app doesn't crash often, and the quality is always pretty high, depending on your internet speed. The video player is simple, and actually adapts to fit the screen of your phone, unlike Funimation. It's the attention to the smaller details like this that really helps it stand a step above its competitor.

Furthermore, included in the premium deal is online manga available to read. There's only a small range of titles to choose from - 50 to be exact - but it's a nice little addition that shows the streaming site cares about the needs of its users. After all, who doesn't want something for nothing?

The website itself, however, does look a bit dated. In fact, it oddly resembles the illegal, third-party streaming sites that are floating around somewhere on the web. An odd choice for such a visual form of media. Funimation certainly looks more clean and visually appealing than Crunchyroll, but the devil's in the detail. I'd sooner take a less attractive but fully-functioning website over a pretty but dysfunctional site any day of the week.

One of the major drawbacks for Crunchyroll is the lack of dubbed anime to choose from. Out of its 800 shows on offer, only a tiny 53 are available in English dubbed. As a viewer who only watches dubbed anime, this a deal-breaker for me. Their website claims that they hope to expand this number in the future, so if they eventually do I may come back to the service. Until then I, unfortunately,
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won't be using it.

Overall, Crunchyroll comes out on top. Offering a huge array of anime, a functioning site, and free manga is a pretty sweet deal. If only they'd spruce up their site a bit and add a bigger choice of dubbed anime, it'd be leagues above its competition.

I do feel as though there is a gap in the niche market of anime streaming. While both are adequate, they don't come without their flaws. A Netflix-styled site, offering a huge range of dubbed, up-to-date releases would surely go down a storm in the anime community. We'll have to see if either of these sites manage to fill that gap in the coming years.

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If you time-travelled back to the mid 90s, took a splash of grunge, a helping of hip hop and added a dash of modern punk - you'd get What If Times, the latest single from Brooklyn rockers Shinobi Ninja. 
For an entry point into the band's discography, this is a fine place to start, learning who they are, where they come from and what they're all about: spreading the love.

The music itself is stellar. The riff running throughout the song is like a heartbeat in itself, pumping out the underlying uplifting themes, inviting the viewer on a journey into the band's struggles, hopes and aspirations. Each transition leads into another slice of the band members' lifestyles, constantly accompanied by the question "what if times don't get no better than this?" A loaded question indeed.

The humble beginnings and pure intentions of the band are matched by the video's imagery. The video is littered with little nuggets of heart-warming scenes: donating money to the homeless, children singing, reflecting on their childhood selves and everything they've overcome. No good music video would be complete without visuals that match and strengthen the song's lyrics, and it's a skill that the singers have down to a tee. It's enough to make even the iciest heart melt, almost lulling their fans into a melodic state of emotional tenderness, urging them: open up to us as we've opened up to you.

The video itself stands out for two reasons. Firstly, the entire thing was shot on a mobile phone. The quality doesn't suffer for it by any means. In fact, it amplifies the group's message of humble beginnings, making them seem more authentic than the detached singers that dominate the charts today. Secondly, every shot has a fish-eye effect surrounding it, making the view distorted and stretched. Not only does this add an alternative grunge-inspired vibe, but it speaks volumes about the song's key message. While reminiscing about your childhood self, more often than not we remember the past through rose-tinted glasses; choosing to take the good and discard the bad. Similarily, when looking to the future, we tend to think about the good things that are yet to come our way; rather than focusing on the advertisy we'll have to face to get there. It's with this simple yet effective method that What If Times reminds us to stay in the present. Live in the moment; take everything that you've learned from life, and use it to create a better future, not just for yourself, but for everyone around you. An uplifiting, hopeful message that resonates with the band's core identity.
 
It's this theme that makes the opening shot, ever important to catch the attention of a distrait youth, even more relevant: "You're only given one little spark of madness. Never lose it", from the late Robin Williams. It then switches to a shot of a child, innocently welcoming us into the video with his melodic sing-song voice. Clearly, the band want us to resonate with our basic needs, the "little spark" we've been carrying around ever since we were kids, something we can all relate to. Right off the bat, the band hit us in the feels. And that's what great music and their accompanying videos should be about, making the listener feel.
Perhaps unintentionally, Shinobi Ninja have firmly put their stamp on their own little corner of the rock genre. The music video has its own distinct vibe to it; small little details reverberating in every shot. From the "Love Yourself" t-shirt that singer Baby G is rocking, to the big ass nineties boombox that pops into view in the first shot.
At the core of the song itself is an undeniable lust for music from the band. The passion for their craft underlies every beat, every lyric and every shot used. It's for their pure authenticity at wanting to create music - not a brand, not a name, but pure, good songs - that sets them apart from their competitors in an ever changing and unpredictable music industry. It just shows what you can accomplish with nothing more than a mobile phone and big dreams. We think that times will only get better and better for Shinobi Ninja, and we can't wait to see them. 
 
Check out the music video for What If Times, and let us know what you think in the comments below.
  

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Out with old, in with the new. Unfortunately, not every title can stay on Netflix forever (we wish!), as due to licensing rights some titles have to get the boot. Check out our list of what's vanishing from your screen this month. Get ready to catch up on those last minute shows or films that've been on your list but you've never got round to watching.


August 1st
The Green Hornet 

 After a whopping three years, The Green Hornet will no longer be gracing your screens. Quite frankly, if you haven't got round to watching it by now then you never really would have, right?

August 2nd 
According to Greta
Black Dynamite
Black Sheep
Bright Young Things
Good Hair
The Good, The Bad, The Weird
Immortal Beloved
On a Clear Day
Oranges and Sunshine
Project Nim
Rogue 

August 3rd
Shaolin Soccer

August 5th
Wild - our pick.


Say it ain't so! Wild is a unique cinematic experience starring Reese Witherspoon, about a woman who ventures into nature in order to find herself. It's a thought-provoking film based on the best-selling memoir, the perfect film to watch if you're planning to have a lazy afternoon. We suggest you log on and watch this one quick, before it slips off your screens.  

August 7th
Big Game

August 23rd 
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion

August 24th
Wolf Hall

August 29th
 Lockup: Women Behind Bars

And there we have it! You'd best priotise your list and storm through these titles - you won't get the chance once September rolls around! To see which titles are heading to Netflix, replacing the ones listed above, see What's coming to Netflix this August. 

Which titles are you most devastated about leaving? Any that we've missed and should be on this post? Let us know in the comments.

With thanks to New On Netflix UK for the information and BBC One and Perez Hilton for the gif.
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Another month, another mix up to your favourite shows and titles. Clear your calendars, because August is shaping up to be a good month to pop up your screens.

The Defenders

Okay, this one goes without saying. Ever since we've binge watched Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, Dare Devil and Luke Cage over and over, we've been dying to see what's going to happen when the gang team up. Thankfully, the wait is almost over, and they'll be back on our screens on August 18th, ready and waiting to save New York City (why is it always New York?!) Star Sigourney Weaver has signed up to play the season's big bad, and we can hardly wait to binge all eight episodes - probably in one night - no judgement... - as Netflix are dropping the whole season in one go, bless them.



The Mist

With The Dark Tower getting a cinematic release on the 18th, Stephen King's novella The Mist is coming to the small screen just a few days earlier, on August 15th. It's already been airing in the US, so it's about time for us Brits to get on that hype!
It's already gone down well in America, where they've watched as the residents of a small town battle against a mysterious mist, hoping to keep their sanity in the process. (We don't know if we can handle so much horror in one month... we might be watching it from behind the sofa...)






Blackadder (Season 3 + 4)

Thankfully, ready and lined up after our horror trip, Blackadder will be added to our list, ready to laugh away the horror blues. It's added on the same day as The Mist, but only season 3 and four (boo!) will be available. Season 3, otherwise known as Blackadder The Third, is set in the Regency Era, where Rowan Atkinson serves as a Butlet to the Prince. What's not to love about that?!
Season 4, stylised as Blackadder Goes Fouth (they're seriously inventive with these names), is set slap bang in the middle of World War One, where hilarity ensues.  If you've never seen this gem before, you're in for a treat. 


Fantastic Four

No, not the old one (you know, the one where Jessica Alba lost all of her clothes and Chris Evans played a superhero other than Captain America), but the new(ish) 2015 version of the superrhero clan. While it got a dismal 9% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it'll still be perfect for getting your superhero fix after you've binged The Defenders, as it comes a week and a half later on August 29th. It's a complete reboot of the franchise, so don't worry about dusting up on your Mr. Fantastic knowledge; this one eases you in gently. Perfect for sticking on in the background on a rainy Saturday night.



Dallas Buyers Club

Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto - winning Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor respectively - will kick off your month with an uplifting picture that critics raved about. When Ron Woodruff (McConaughey) is told he has AIDs and only 30 days to live, he seeks out alternative forms of treatment - even if that means smuggling in unapproved drugs into the United States. In the process he distributes them to fellow AIDs sufferers, thus creating the 'Dallas Buyers Club'. The biographical film, based on Woodroof's true story, is sure to tug on the heart strings, as it shows the plights of those affected by the disease in a time where sufferers were shunned and misunderstood. 




Death Note

This one is a bit... controversial. The hit anime Death Note is getting a live-action remake! Yay? It follows a high school student who discovers a deathly notebook that allows him to kill anybody he knows. Creepy.
Anime to live-action transitions usually don't go down too well - let's not even mention The Last Airbender, we'll pretend that never happened - but we shall see if Death Note hits the right spot. After all, it is a Netflix Original, so our hopes are slightly higher than they would be otherwise. We'll cast our judgement on it on August 25th. 



Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

Idris Elba plays Nelson Mandela, the first president of South Africa. Based on the 1995 autobiographical book of the same name, this biopic follows the icon from his humble beginnings. It outlines Mandela's imprisonment, showing how he rose from the ashes to become the face of a democracy - the first of its kind in South Africa.  The struggle of Mandela facing against tyranny are sure to stay with you days after your watch, so be sure to check out the tale of this remarkable revolutionary. You can follow Mandela's journey on how he became a global world icon despite all the odds on August 28th. 

 So much to watch, such little time! Those are just seven highlights out of a huge number of titles being added to Netflix this month, with many, many more TV shows and films coming to grace your screens over the next 31 days. Our 'Watch Again' section isn't gonna know what hit it.

What do you think? Are you excited for the new additions? Did we miss anything you think will be a highight this month? Let us know in the comments below!
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And there we have it, folks! Big Brother 2017 is over. (Don't cry! Celebrity Big Brother is back on screens on Tuesday)! As per usual, it's been a tumultuous season filled with tears, laughs, drama and more arguments than I've had hot dinners. But - out of the 22 housemates that have graced the house over the summer - is Isabelle a worthy winner? Is she worthy of carrying the Big Brother legacy on her tanned shoulders?




In short, yes. Yes she is. The fan-dubbed 'Tangerine Queen' showed personality traits that some past winners could only dream of. Humility, hilarity, honesty - Isabelle is the full package. Not only that, but she's the first ever female late entry (day 16, to be precise!) to win the civilian show, so she had even less time to win over our hearts. 

But let's take it back to the beginning. We first saw Isabelle in the Blind Date style challenge, where Lotan, Chanelle and Kieran got to pick two out of three potential housemates to join the cast - Sam, Savannah, and Isabelle. Of course, the boys chose to pick to the two girls - kicking Sam to the curb. (Who later came back later anyway as a second chance housemate, go figure).
If I'm being completely honest, seeing her bright, orange tan and her long, fake, blonde hair extensions left me less than impressed. (Shame on me! It just goes to show that you should never judge a book by its cover). Added to the fact that she'd slept with housemate Kieran in Ibiza before the show, I was hardly excited to see what Issy had to offer.

Boy, was I wrong. Though she wasn't involved in every major drama of the house, and she certainly wasn't the loudest (that award goes to Chanelle, without a doubt), she still made her prescence known.

The first moment that sticks out in my mind for when I began to support Isabelle was when she had to do her 'sexy' dance. Don't get me wrong, Isabelle is beautiful, but you can tell she turned a task that was supposed to be sultry into something utterly side-splitting. Who couldn't laugh watching her stumble around the garden in her wedges?



 Funny and doesn't take herself too seriously? Check.

Then, in a house divide - the likes of which we've never seen before - Issy was seemingly abandoned by Savannah, who chose to hang around with the 'clique'. That left Isabelle with the 'outcasts', where she met some friends (namely Chanelle), though her bonds weren't quite as strong as those already formed. Ah, the curse of being a late-comer. Therefore, she spent a lot of her time observing, watching the drama unfold while she wrapped herself in her bed.


Loveable underdog? Check. 

Tensions were already high in the house; after Lotan placed a fake mouse in Hannah's bed (whom he'd been arguing with previously, who also had a phobia of mice), Isabelle rose up to the alpha male and simply told him it wasn't a very nice thing to do. True. Of course, Lotan didn't take kindly to someone challenging his authority, and proceeded to gossip about Issy behind her back with the rest of the clique, asking what the shortest amount of time anyone had been in the house before, and saying Issy would likely break that record. Ironic, then, that she went on to win. Of course, housemates bitching about housemates is at the very core of what Big Brother is, so it's not to be expected. Still, this season made us feel empathy for those who the "popular kids" were bitching about. The divide was very real.

Then came that night. You know, the one that people were talking about all over Twitter (even the ones who abadoned BB for Love Island). It was during another task when Issy made a comment to Lotan about not being a good role mode to his son. To which, Lotan responded to throwing a bottle which, consequentially, got him removed from the house. Bye Felicia! While all Hell broke out, our Tangerine Queen simply stood and smirked.


Sassy fighter with a backbone? Check, check and double check.

The drama died down a bit over the coming weeks, but the tasks kept on coming. One saw the housemates spend some of the houses' "power" on seeing friends and family (or in Sue's case, her dog). When it came to the last two housemates to have their turn - Queen Is and Charlotte (she was the one that didn't do/say anything until her Mum came back, remember? No?) - they had to choose which one of them got to see their family. Isabelle offered it up to Charlotte, which she accepted (even though she came in with her mother, but whatever).

Later on in the show, there came a choice between her and Sam of who would face eviction that week. Again, Isabelle put her housemate first and said she'd put herself up. Sam obliged (straight away, he basically snatched her hand off), and Issy faced the pubic vote.

Thankfully, she survived, but it showed a selfless side to her that the public obviously appreciated. In a house full of game players and snakes, it was nice to see real, kind people. (Shout out to Deborah here, she was lovely to them all, too!)

As the final approached Isabelle, who usually only reacted to things in her own hilarious way by laughing awkwardly or saying "alright... haha... yeah..." began to open up and show us her vulnerable side. Crying in the diary room about how ugly she thought she was (no girl! You're beautiful!), opening up about how much she missed her family, and saying that she didn't realise what she had until she left it all behind to come into the house.

By this point, the final was looming, and Isabelle's uniqueness, humility and kind soul had seemingly won over the public and became the bookies' favourite to win. And win she did! WIth a whopping 52.71% of the vote, compared to runner-up Raph's 22.02%, she stormed the competition, and walked out of there £65,000 richer!

While the ratings for this season may have been dwindling, I personally had a blast watching this season, and was pleased that (for once!), my favourite won the whole damn show. Good on you, Is, now think about how much fake tan £65k can buy!


What did you think? Was Isabelle a worthy winner? Or would you have preferred an early favourite, like Ellie or Kieran? Let me know in the comments below!


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