Pretty Little Liars: The Big "A" Reveal

*WARNING- CONTAINS SPOLIERS*

We all knew that the reaction to the Pretty Little Liars season 6 finale would have three possible outcomes.

Unfortunately, it was none of the above. In fact, it was more like this.

As much as I am a die-hard PLL fan, the answer to who A is was, well, disappointing.
I feel like I’ve come to the end of a relationship that I put so much into, yet didn’t get anything back from. I put five years of my life into this TV programme, endless gasps, endless “no ways,” and endless “what the F is Aria wearing?” all for a mediocre finale. So congratulations Marlene King, you’ve made me feel like a scorned lover.

If you’re reading this and haven’t watched the finale yet, and didn’t take heed of the massive spoiler warning at the top of this post, look away now.

So, CeCe is A. Why? Who the hell knows, but she gave us an impressive back story full of so much bullshit; we would have believed anything she told us at that point.

It wasn’t that the back story was necessarily bad, it was just kind of pulled out of nowhere. This is a backstory that has only really been pieced together in the last season, so it makes the other 5 seem like a complete waste of time.

So let’s get this straight. Alison’s Mum and Dad had a first son called Charles, who apparently was a problem child who tried to drown Ali in a bath when she was a baby, even though we later find out that this was an accident. So what do the parents do, have the poor kid sectioned, of course. I mean come on, my brother knocked my front teeth out once but my parents didn’t put him in a straightjacket.

His hapless Mother is the only one who visits him, and tells her husband and Alison and Jason that he’s dead. To complicate matters further, Charles decides he wants to become a Charlotte.

To cut a long story short, Charles’s friend Bethany pushes Toby’s Mum off the roof, blames Charles, he seeks revenge but ends up mistaking Bethany for Alison and hits her over the head with a rock instead.

Back in Radley, she manipulates Mona to be her puppet, and is pissed at Spencer, Aria, Emily and Hanna for being pleased that Ali is dead, hence the years of torment.

Fans took to Twitter to express their bitter disappointment:

As I said, the backstory wasn’t bad, if not blown way way out of proportion. As twisted as it sounds, I just wish A had been someone I had more of an emotional attachment to. No one even liked CeCe, and she wasn’t exactly a major character, she was actually pretty irrelevant. And her accomplice is little girl lost Sara, who we’ve known for all of what, five minutes? THANKS A BUNCH FOR NOT PULLING OUT MY HEARTSTRINGS, MARLENE.

There would have been so many other characters that would have made a better A. Look, I’ve even made a list.

Spencer Hastings 

Man, I wish I was Spencer. Photograph: Tv Live

We all know she never liked Alison, has a drug habit and is also a teeny bit mentally unstable.
She’s also brilliant, so would have made a great criminal mastermind. She’s one of the liars, so there’s that whole issue of self sabotage, but you know what they say; keep your friends close…

Mumma Hastings 

Veronica is one bad ass mother. Photograph: Pretty Little Liars Wiki 

She’s had a rough time of it. Her husband had a child with Alison’s Mother, who’s also kind of a bitch. I’m also not convinced she likes anyone that much, so would have no problem throwing some serious shade.

Caleb Rivers 

Getting Caleb to cut his hair- the ONLY good decision the
producers made. Photograph: hypable.com 

He’s a mastermind with computers, and Hanna’s a total bitch to him most of the time.

Emily Fields 

This face. Every. Single. Episode.
Photograph: isthiswhyimstillsingle.com

Well, at least it would give her a job to do. All she’s done is stand there all wide eyed and got with every girl on the swim team.

Toby Canvanaugh

That Toby smolder though. *swoons*
Photograph: Pinterest

He’s been accused of leading the A game twice now, so he seems the most obvious suspect. Just know it would have broken my heart if this had been the case. Spoby forever.

Jenna Marshall 

Has anyone seen this girl? Photograph: abc family 

Whatever happened to her? Is she still blind or?

Ezra Fitz 

How could you not get lost in those eyes?
Photograph: Alloy Entertainment

It’s a possibility, but let’s not even go there. With his puppy dog eyes, he can teach me English Lit any day.

Mona's Mum 

Ah yes, that moment when she slapped Alison DOWN.
Gif: Speakeasy 

Does she even exist? Because she takes Mona “out of town” an awful lot.

The Guy that Dated Hanna in Season 1 

Who are you again?
Photograph: pseudomerism

Anyone? 

The Guy that Dated Emily in Season 1 

She's just not that into you, Ben.
Photograph: Sentimental Movie Marathon 

Bet he’s still pretty pissed that she dumped him to go bat for the other team.

See? Literally anyone. Luckily, the series didn’t just end like Gossip Girl (which I’m still mourning the loss of,) series 7 is set five years into the future and the executive producer Marlene King hasn’t ruled out an eighth. So I’ve supposed we’ve got something to be hAppy about.

FIVE YEARS OF TORTURE LADIES. FIVE. YEARS.
Photograph: E! Online

What did you think of the finale? AmAzing or AmAteur?

Don't forget to hit me up on social media. Just please don't start stalking me and signing off with "A." Thank you. 

As always, thanks for reading!

Album Review: PVRIS- 'White Noise.'

PVRIS is not your average alternative rock band. Made up of front woman and lead singer Lynn Gunn, along with bassist Brian McDonald and guitarist Alex Babinski, it’s easy to excuse them as ‘The New Paramore,’ of the post pop punk generation.

PVRIS is different for a number of reasons, from their quirky name (pronounced Paris) to their unique fusion of electronic rhythms and emo punk. But notably, after their signing to Rise records in 2012, they became the first female led signing of the label. This is revolutionary in a genre that is almost exclusively fronted by men, with Paramore being the only major band of note to reach superstardom in the alternative sphere with strong female lead Hayley Williams.

Gunn is actually a huge fan of Williams, although is quick to dismiss their similarities music wise. Talking of issues she’s faced in the music industry as a woman, Gunn is very vocal about it. Talking to Fuse, she says she deals with “pretty much the same shit,” accounting a time between songs where a male audience member said he wanted to ejaculate over her face. “I was like, ‘Excuse me sir, please fuck off,’” she recounts, “You’re disgusting. Have some manners. That’s not how you talk to anyone.”

Lynn Gunn performing live. Photograph: fuse. 

Evident through her loud and excitable vocals, Gunn is not afraid to speak her mind, either publically or creatively through her music, which hasn’t gone unrewarded in the music industry. Earlier this year on June 11th, the band won the Relentless Kerrang! Award for Best International Newcomer, which they modestly “didn’t even think [they’d] get nominated for.”

The band, from Lowell, Massachusetts, released their debut album White Noise in 2014, but their success was yet to cross the Atlantic until earlier this year, when BBC Radio 1 gave their first play to “St. Patrick,” ironically around St. Patricks Day on March 17th. Interest in their music grew, and Radio 1 gave their follow up single “Fire” their renowned “Track of the Day” title last month.

The sound of the album is a kind of refreshing balance between mainstream pop and hardcore rock that no other alternative band has been able to achieve as successfully before.

‘Smoke’ is the opening track of the album, and really acts as an introduction telling you what the PVRIS sound is all about. Combining repetitive guitar rhythms and whispy Paramore ‘Decode’ like background noise, it makes for an inspiring first track. ‘St Patrick’ is their first single taken from the album and you can see why, it’s the most ‘poppy’ of their pop punk sound, and its hum worthy electronic sound wouldn’t go amiss in a Calvin Harris set. I watched the video for ‘My House’ on YouTube, and I was surprised by what I saw with shots of the trio lying on a sofa and playing video games, its passiveness the complete opposite of the anger in this song. Gunn’s silky sweet yet bitter vocals give way to this temper balance, which stops the song from being too teenage angst. ‘Holy,’ is my favourite song on the album, and I still can’t put my finger on exactly why, but I can try. The heavenly rhythm accompanied by Gunn’s girly background vocals are swayable, and it’s the first time PVRIS reveal how expansive they can be lyrically, repeating “poor unfortunate soul,” so much that I felt like I was watching the Little Mermaid all over again. Here, the lyrics aren’t directed at a particular person or idea, but rather a general concept of faith, controversially singing “I think your chest must be heavy from the cross on your neck.”

PVRIS's debut album 'White Noise.' Photograph: Rap Genius 

The band performing in BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. Photograph: BBC. 

'White Noise,’ is the track which name is given to the album, about wanting something so badly that you can no longer know how to express yourself in a way that anyone understands. The chorus can get repetitive, but it’s the guitar rifts which keep this song afloat. ‘Fire’ is their second UK single, and is my new ‘getting over an ex’ anthem, with lyrics like “just drop dead,” and “you can’t cheat death when you’re digging your own grave.” Sounds extreme, but it’s more feisty than psychotic. ‘Eyelids,’ is quite droopy in terms of the instrumentals, but it’s definitely one of PVRIS more exposed lyric and far more personal, with a Taylor Swift ‘We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together’ style spoken word at the end of the song. ‘Mirrors’ continues the album’s theme of obsession with the otherworldly, but unfortunately is the only song on the album eligible for the filler category. ‘Ghosts’ is similar to ‘Mirrors’ in terms its theme, but with that addictive drum beat that was missing from its predecessor. Finally, in ‘Let Them In,’ Gunn gives a stellar vocal performance, jumping from her shoutier verses to her operatic highs.

With such vocals, it’s easy to forget that the other two band members exist, but the music behind the vocals is really what makes this entire album. An impressive first effort from the band, who I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of. And when they get their own headline tour, I’ll be the first to buy tickets.

Rating: 4/5
Killer Track: Holy
Filler Track: Mirrors (just!)
White Noise is out now. PVRIS will be playing Reading and Leeds this year.

This review is also available on #SpiceUK online, with tons of other cool stuff, so go check them out --> www.spiceukonline.com/

On Wednesday, I review the Pretty Little Liars Season 6 finale- I'M SO FRICKIN HYPE!

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As always, thanks for reading.