Thomas Samph

Film Review: The Karate Kid — A Preteen Rumble

June 25, 2010
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The remake follows the same plot as the 1984 original, but the new version is more like watching a bunch of twelve-year-old kids in a steel cage death match. Reviewed by Tom Samph In a time when baby-faced Michael Cera and whiny John Mayer are cultural icons, Americans still can’t get enough blood and guts.…

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Popular Music Review: The New Pornographers Celebrate ‘Together’

June 17, 2010
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Joining snow blowers, the goaltending mask, peanut butter, and Pamela Anderson on the list of indispensable life-saving things from Canada, the New Pornographers have solidified their position on the charts with the release of their latest album. As far as Indie-pop goes, you won’t find another band associated with the label “Supergroup” as often as…

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Coming Attractions: Popular Music in June 2010

June 4, 2010
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By Thomas Samph This month’s music selection is all about trying something new. One of my selected artists recorded her entire album in a church. One guy kissed another guy on stage at an awards show that was on live TV. And another group brings together nine solo acts under one dirty name that has…

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Coming Attractions: Popular Music in May 2010

May 3, 2010
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By Thomas Samph This month’s music is all about catchy, sing-along, pop music. There are girl groups, guy groups, throwbacks, and teenage YouTube celebrities coming to Boston in May. With summer right around the corner and the heat returning to Boston, these shows will help to celebrate the changing seasons. May 3, Gold Motel at…

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Coming Attractions: Popular Music in April 2010

March 30, 2010
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By Thomas Samph Vampire movies, dirty whigs, Wilco beer, peace bombs, Russian retrograde, tappin’ khakis, and sweaty Soviet soirees are just a few reasons why April is a great month for music listeners in Boston. The month starts off with a performance by the illegitimate love child of two musical genres, heavy metal and opera…

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Book Review: Digging Mud, Sweat, and Gears

February 16, 2010
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Joe Kurmaskie’s latest book, Mud, Sweat, and Gears, is funny, genuine, and inspiring. And it isn’t just a memoir about the Kurmaskie family’s epic bike trip across Canada one summer; it’s about the mud, sweat, and gears that keep a family together. Mud, Sweat, and Gears: A Rowdy Family Bike Adventure Across Canada on Seven…

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Music Review: Brandeis VoiceMale Gets Serious

December 17, 2009
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In their latest collection, “Suit Up,” Brandeis VoiceMale have yet again produced an eclectic mix of passionately sung, expertly mixed A Cappella covers. Reviewed by Thomas Samph The title of the album tells us to suit up. Evidently that’s what the all-male group did before going into the recording studio, because they have a truly…

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