¡viva la graham!

here’s the second photo in what is apparently a homoerotic series from fall out boy pete wentz. last week i posted a pic of him getting affectionate with cobra starship’s gabe saporta. here he is at a recent rolling stone soiree showing some love to hitmaker/rockstar butch walker, who i’ve actually been meaning to feature on ¡viva la graham! for a while…

only time will tell who pete wentz seduces next. maybe he’ll make nice with brandon flowers and they’ll “pretend” to make out on the red carpet. dare to dream.

they came out about the same time as the spice girls, and they had a hit with a song called “never ever.” i know, i can barely recall as well. i was preoccupied with “2 become 1.”

anyway, they’re trying to make a big comeback at the moment over in the u.k., and their new single is actually quite good. it’s called “rock steady” and i like it even if the name was stolen from a no doubt record.

soooo, if you’re feeling nostalgic, give it a listen. besides being fab, it also makes me wish geri halliwell would sort things out with mel b. c’mon!

i saw the scissor sisters last night and the show was fantastic!! they opened strong with “take me out,” and kept going for two hours. i’m really glad they were able to perform in music city… i know the crowd was really into it, so hopefully we’ll be a regular on their tour itinerary.

besides jake shears’ gradual striptease (yes, please!), one of my favorite parts of the show was ana matronic’s comedy interludes. she told the audience that she had made her hair extra big that night, in honor of nashville. “it’s up to jesus,” she said, “like dolly parton.”

i’m super excited that ta-dah has been received so well (comparitavely) stateside. and i was happy to see that people were singing along to the new songs. all in all, it was an energetic, memorable performance - well done!!

what has debbie harry been up to? not much, i don’t think, at least not until recently. she’s the featured vocalist on moby’s latest track, “new york new york,” from his upcoming greatest hits album.

the only moby song i ever really loved was “southside” with gwen stefani. debbie is definitely doing him a favor by appearing on this, and i must say that the resulting dance track is pretty cool.

the video is high camp at its best, as it features four outrageous dancers doing their thing in various places throughout the big apple. this of course made it a prime candidate for the ¡viva la graham! video of the week. check it out!

did anybody catch the new logo reality show, jacob & joshua: nemesis rising, last night? i actually missed it… though i did record it! after seeing previews, i was wondering if anyone noticed who appears to be one of the only other cast members - jacob’s boyfriend, nick (there was one shot of them in bed together that you would definitely remember!).

if you didn’t know, the three of them used to live in nashville - and i enjoyed the pleasure of their company on several occasions.

here’s an old photo of me and nick at a party from forever ago. when he was still in nashvegas he was working behind the desk at our library’s beautiful main branch. we used to call him the hot librarian… i don’t know what he’s doing these days - all i know is that he moved to los angeles with jacob - but i’m happy to see that he’s still hot as ever. jacob’s a lucky man.

anyway, give the show a shot! jacob and josh really couldn’t be any sweeter, and i wish them the best of luck with their music and the tv gig. i’ll be rooting for you guys!

mika has always wanted to be a popstar… and now it looks as if he’ll get his wish.

part scissor sisters, part robbie williams, mika has come up with something that is immediately engaging and gleefully buoyant. take lead single “relax, take it easy,” for example (you can hear it and several other keepers over at mika’s myspace page). it showcases his versatile, distinctive voice - which often veers into an appealing falsetto - over synths and a killer beat. naturally, “relax” sticks around in your head after just one listen, which is the true sign of a good pop song.

if you’re like me, you’re thinking, mika sure sounds gay! yet surprisingly, mika has remained mum on his sexuality. he told one reporter that he used to get called “fag” while he was in school, but then he coyly declined to be labeled one way or the other. never mind the fact that he’s got a song called “grace kelly” (need i say more??).

regardless, i say good luck to him. if you can sing a song and make me smile, that’s more than enough.

these days, everyone seems to be bisexual - or at least bi-curious - especially the new breed of upstart rockstars.

here’s a prime example. check out this campy-yet-sexy shot of cobra starship’s gabe saporta and fall out boy’s pete wentz. sure, they’re just mugging for the camera… but they both seem very comfortable, don’t they? it makes you wonder what happened when they put the camera away.

if you live in the states, chances are you aren’t too familiar with robbie williams. if so, you probably completely missed the debacle that was “rudebox.” it was meant to be disposable dance-pop, but it was way off the mark… many, myself included, wondered if robbie had lost it.

i’m pleased to report that it was a temporary lapse of judgment on robbie’s part, as his brand new single, “lovelight,” is positively sublime. yes, it might sound a bit like something of justin timberlake’s latest album, but futurelove/sexsounds isn’t all that original either, is it?

check out the video, and you’ll see what i mean. it’s got a nice groove to it… ah, it’s good to have you back, robbie! i was about to put you on notice.

they’re both on the d-list. but that’s not all - they’re both dead to me!! yes, it’s that time again! here are a few things that get on my nerves:

ON NOTICE

“mcdreamy” - nothing against patrick dempsey, but this has got to be the most ridiculous nickname ever. shame on us for allowing it to become part of the vernacular.

the killers - they used to be so cute in their matching suits and eyeliner! then they decided to make an album about the great wide open or some bullshit, and now they’re boring.

endorsing proactiv - why is this in vogue?? lindsay lohan and puff daddy are payed millions of dollars to tell you they use this shit. yeah, it might actually work, but not because these idiots say so.

jared leto - if you weren’t so fine, you’d have been dead to me a long time ago. now stop with your silly band and even sillier makeup experiments! it makes you look like the biggest poseur ever.

snl - it’s not looking so hot now that tina fey jumped ship. thus far, the new season has pretty much been a snore. amy poehler, we’re counting on you to save us.

tila tequila - the latest dame to be famous for absolutely no reason. this bitch makes paris hilton look like meryl streep.

mark foley - no, you shouldn’t have had naughty online chats with 16-year-olds… but what really irks me is that you didn’t decide to come out ’til after you were caught. thanks for the great p.r., buddy.

employee of the month - dane cook is terribly overrated and jessica simpson is totally annoying. maybe together they cancel each other out. i can guarantee i’ll never watch this to find out.

DEAD TO ME

fergie - inexplicably, even beyond the horror that is “london bridge,” she keeps getting more intolerable. who else would use a former meth addiction to get publicity for their album? classy move, honey.

celeb fragrances - we really don’t want to smell like you, i promise. plus, i don’t think it’s very admirable that you prey upon stupid consumers just so you can buy your own private island or a house in the hamptons.

emo - will it ever end? if i see another guy in his sister’s jeans i’m going to scream.

ken paves - not only because of his bad hair and that ugly mug, but also because of that horribly pretentious accent mark he insists on using over the ‘e’ in his last name (i refuse!).

drawn together - this show is absolutely disgusting, so there’s no reason why i shouldn’t like it. but, for some reason, i’d rather take a cheese grater to my forehead. i can’t explain why.

dina lohan - don’t even get me started! first of all, sweetheart, you make heidi fleiss look like a model. oh, and you won the lottery when lindsay got famous! don’t forget that.

kim jong-il - you have got some serious issues, little man. if you promise not to start a nuclear war then perhaps i could move you to the other list. think about it.

hairspray movie musical - yes, i know it will be different because it’s a musical, but it will never compare to the john waters original! and john travolta is only making matters worse.

i am in love with the sugababes song, “easy,” and not just for its suggestive lyrics. you may recall the aforementioned: “got such a pretty kitty, boy / know you wanna pet it.” but the ‘babes also want you to know that “the weather’s nice and wet just south of the border.” ooh, and let’s not forget: “hey mister postman, where’s the mail for my mailbox?”; and another favorite: “i wanted sex on the beach and i don’t mean on the rocks.”

the hyper-stylish video accompaniment might not make much sense, but i love it, too. of course with such dirty things coming out of their mouths, keisha, heidi and amelle have been placed in the only suitable environment - ultra-modern toilet stalls! ok, it’s almost unforgivably silly, but doesn’t the dripping red nail polish make up for it just a little bit?

the song is fantastic, but the promo clip is genius for sheer comedy value alone. as you might guess, it’s the video of the week. now that i feel completely debauched, i’m off to take a shower…