cactus i.v.

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
In my real life, I had a chance to interview Adam Siska, bassist of The Academy Is…
Super nice guy.
We chatted about the band’s new album, which was released on Aug. 19. We talked before the album’s drop date, and I found out something weird — the day of the album’s release didn’t exist […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
Questioning sexuality seems to be all the rage among teenagers of every generation. Hippies in the ’60s and ’70s broke the barrier with free love. The baby boomers grew up as rebels against flower power children, and that meant stark conservativeness, as far as keeping it in your pants went. The kids of […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
We may have discussed this before, but probably not. I have a problem with sex being in music. Like Geoff Rickly from Thursday sang, “They stole the love from our lives to put the sex on the radio.” And every word of that is true. People don’t meet with the intentions of […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
I’m a Pete Wentz fan. Everyone knows that. If you know me, you know my affinity for the Fall Out Boy bassist. You know who else is a fan of his: Ashlee Simpson.
It’s funny. A few years ago, Ashlee wasn’t on anyone’s radar. She wasn’t even Jessica Simpson’s little sister. No one even […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
I tried to like The Donnas. I read the cover story about the band in Alternative Press, and I went to see them in concert. It wasn’t the chick rock that I hated as much as the way they were just angry, combat boot wearing, men hating women who sang about having sex […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
It was the mid-’90s when Billy Ray Cyrus’ mullet and Achy Breaky Heart ruled the airwaves. It was the biggest crossover hit for Cyus — the only one I can remember, if you want to know the truth.
But he stayed in the entertainment business, probably playing fairs and hoe downs. He moved his […]

By TY FREER
ty_freer(at)yahoo.com
I’ve gotta admit, I’ve been pretty hard on Brett Favre this year. I’ve called him “Grandpa.” I’ve suggested he be the next Cialis spokesman. I’ve wondered if the workers at the Santa Maria nursing home in Green Bay are mad when he comes in late after a Monday Night […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
My brothers got Wii for Christmas. For months, all I heard about how fun it was going to be to play Mario and Sonic At The Olympic Games on Christmas morn — and I also heard how my youngest brother Mike was going to beat my other brother Joe at Guitar Hero 3.
My […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
Dear Blake Lewis,
You beat boxed your way into my heart.
I saw you at your American Idol audition, and although your dye job was a little too pretentious for my liking, I liked you.
I didn’t pick you for my top picks when the cactus made our picks. I blame the hair — and the […]

CrazySexyCactus.
… Baby One More Cactus.
A Bunch Of Songs On The Internet That We At cactus i.v. Enjoy.
Would any of these titles entice you? Make you want to throw in the CD?
Okay, maybe not. The titles are works in progress. And so is the idea. So, we’re throwing this out there: We want to put […]

I’ve been singing If I Could Turn Back Time, but that’s Cher, not Tina Turner.
Tina sang What’s Love Got To Do With It. She also allegedly beat Ike Turner.
I wonder if she ever really apologized.
She won’t get the chance now. Ike Turner died on Wednesday at age 76.
So, we give him the “Newsmaker of the […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
For someone who was unknown a year ago, Jordin Spark’s self-titled debut did well. But, as far as American Idols go, she bombed.
Sparks’ album came out the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, setting her up for big sales on Black Friday. Those didn’t happen.
Sparks, the youngest A.I. winner, has crafted the Worst Album Debut By […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
What a sad week it’s been in the music world. And I don’t mean it because Britney is filming her new video. The music world has a cloud of death over it.
Last Sunday, Quiet Riot lead singer Kevin DuBrow was found dead in his apartment in Las Vegas.
He was pronounced dead there, attributed […]

Kayne West missed claiming the first “Newsmaker of the Day” cactus by a few minutes, but he earns it today.
His mother died three weeks ago today from complications due to plastic surgery.
Yesterday, Evel Knievel died.
Don’t worry: There’s a connection.
Two days before Knievel’s death at 69, he and Kayne West settled a federal lawsuit because Kayne […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
You may still be stuffed with turkey from Thursday. It’s all fill yourself with as much bird as possible, it seems.
I had some, sure, but I’m not a fan of turkey. I’m a fan of chicken. But you know who likes chicken — and not in a deep friend KFC way — more […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
My brother thinks it’s hilarious to poke fun at the fact that my favorite genre of music is also the favorite of middle schoolers.
It’s partially true.
My other brother and three of his friends came to my apartment once because a country concert was playing nearby. We were in the car afterwards when one […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
Those who were expecting Silverchair’s first album in five years to be reminiscent of anything the band has done before will be confused.
The Aussie trio doesn’t do the same thing twice.
Young Modern, released in July, is nothing like Frogstomp, the band’s debut. Sure, that album was released over a decade ago — and […]

By TYLER DURDEN’S STALKER
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
This is the week for celebrities to announce they’re pregnant — which is basically Hollywood’s way of assuming that fans have no eyes or common sense (which, when you think about the crap that comes out of that state often, the latter might be true).
So Christina Aguilera, who has always been slim, […]

Photo Credit: Jeanne Shaw
By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
The kids of today don’t need to know every hit song from yesteryear, but they should know the big ones, the songs that shaped generations.
Listening to classic rock stations won’t give that kind of education because it’ll throw in the junk, too.
Save yourself the trouble, and pick up Shaw Blades’ […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
I went to a concert this weekend. I’m not going to mention the name of the band because I don’t want anyone to be offended by my commentary.
That’s probably going to be unavoidable, but you can come back and rip on my pop punk. It’ll be fine if you have valid points.
So I […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
If you take Firefall’s Colorado to Liverpool - A Tribute to The Beatles at face value, you might be disappointed. The album says, “A Tribute,” but it’s more of a collection of covers than a tribute.
Quick aside for the confused [[and those who haven’t seen Rockstar]]: A tribute band is as close of […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
It’s the album Dave Matthews meant to write.
The Dave Matthews Band used to put out huge rock albums that could fill arenas — and fit just as nicely inside a college kid’s dorm room.
But then it got softer, lighter, lamer. As long as there will be college boys, there will be an audience […]

By DIZZ TATE
dizztate(at)hotmail.com
I love the way music affects fashion. I love the way you see the “ghetto” girls, blasting rap music for the entire world to hear, walking with a confidence and style that seems unattainable almost.
I love the indie chicks with their hoods and skinny jeans; the big headphones protruding like Dumbo ears from […]

By TYLER DURDREN’S STALKER
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
Britney Spears gets more face time around here than any other celebrity — and more body time too, if we’re poking fun at her.
But, last week, the poptastic train wreck released the video for her “single” Gimme More.
If you haven’t had the “pleasure” off seeing the video, consider yourself blessed. But, allow […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
So you wanna be a rock superstar and live large… Well, Cypress Hill did. If that’s also your goal, one of the most important things [[just shy of actually finding people to be in your band]] is to have a demo so you can get it “into the right hands,” as they say.
Last […]

By DIZZ TATE
dizztate(at)hotmail.com
Hello, my lovelies! How are we all? Please tell me, as my comments have been in short supply recently! *hint hint*
Anyway, the fashion advice for this week spirals around a very interesting film I happened to see recently, Across the Universe. Has anyone else seen it {besides Michelle L., the movie columnist here […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
Stevie Ray Vaughan knew his death was coming.
It wasn’t that the guitarist killed himself, first detailing his death in a suicide note. Actually, it was more of him conjuring Ms. Cleo and tapping into the psychic network.
On Aug. 25, 1990, Vaughan had a dream. He saw mourners at his funeral and, according to […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
I missed my brush with greatness. Well, greatness by association.
Max Bernstein, the son of Nora Ephron (who wrote When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle) and Carl Bernstein (the man who co-broke Watergate and was played by Robert Redford in All the President’s Men), was supposed to be in my town with […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
I would be great if Name That Tune was still on the air. Give me a simple description, and I can name that tune in zero notes, Jim.
Point in case: Jordan [[ex-s&r, as I think she will be forever called]] imed me. “I need your help,” she wrote. She was looking for a […]

By LISA SOKOLOWSKI
cactusiv(at)gmail.com
AARP — yes, the group for seniors — named Chandler, Ariz. one of five great places to live in its latest issue.
It sounds good for the baby boomers who are nearing in on retirement age — not a rock band like Neba, which happens to call Chandler home. At least, the band’s PureVolume […]