My album review

This week I will be reviewing one of my favorite Queen albums. Do not worry readers, I do listen to music other than Queen, but they are my favorite band and I have more of their albums than any other band, so I will write what I know.

I think it is time to start at the beginning. Yes, that's right, Queen's first, self-titled album.

This is a foreshadowing of all that Queen was destined to become. For a first album, it is bold and it pushes the envelope. Queen recorded this album in the recording studio during studio downtime, usually between 3 and 7 am.

Queen did not have an incredible amount of studio technology available to them at the time. In fact, many of the songs they had written at the time had to wait for other albums when more of the equipment was available to them.

Overall, this album is edgy for 1973 and very ahead of its time. It is so difficult to describe the intricate and layered sound of this record. It does not sound like a band's first album, it sounds like a mature and seasoned band who already knows what their sound is.

Here is the track-listing with comments:

1 - Keep Yourself Alive - Great opening track with a scratchy kind of rythm

2 - Doing All Right - This is an interesting song featuring dramatic changes from a smooth groove to a hard driving rock vamp.

3 - Great King Rat - A spanish influenced song with a very interesting drum part and complex guitar work.

4 - My Fairy King - A fantasy song and very strange. This song features some odd vocal work and strange syncopation work on piano. This was one of Freddie's strong suits as a pianist.

5 - Liar - This has been considered a precursor to Bohemian Rhapsody. This song has dynamic mood changes and very elaborate studio work. It is not nearly the level of BoRhap but you can surley see the ground work being laid down.

6 - The Night Comes Down - This is a much softer song and it has a beautiful melody. Freddie Mercury shows off his control and range of his falsetto.

7 - Modern Times Rock n' Roll - This is a song written and sung by the drummer, Rodger Taylor. It is the song on the album with the hardest sound, and that is saying a lot, especially in '73.

8 - Son and Daughter - This song has an almost Zeppelinesque riff featuring the bass and guitar.

9 - Jesus - This is a suprizingly not blasphemous song. It sounds like hard rock with a twinge of gospel vocals. Also Brian May has a flurry of scale runs in the solo section of this song. Makes my jaw drop every time.

10-Seven Seas of Rye - This is not what you are thinking, the song wasn't fully written at the time, this features a teaser of the song. The entire song Seven Seas of Rye was put on the second album. Which I will also be reviewing eventually.

Now time for my personal favorite tracks:

Doing All Right - Amazing contrast of soft and loud noises.


My Fairy King - This is a rare sounding song. This is an example of an absolutely complete concept it gets quite strange, but it shows amazing musical work considering the technology available to them.


Join me next time when I (hopefully) review something not Queen!

Picnic in the Sun

Sometimes even two fantastic chefs like me and Daniel get tired of cooking. So last night after Daniel got back from class, we ran off to Fletcher Park to have a picnic. It was perfect weather... a gentle breeze, warm sun but not too hot, and not a lot of bugs either.
















Our picnic was what Rachael Ray likes to call a "square meal." We had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, an apple, a carrot, a few whole grain crackers, a little Babybel cheese (we are OBSESSED with Babybel cheese) Dole's Paradise juice, and a cake! Yum.

We were going to play Frisbee but it ended up getting too chilly to play toward the end of our picnic.

Finals week looms upon us - Daniel and I are feeling the crunch! I have to do a large enterprise piece, have one final exam, have to finish a large resume/job portfolio, and finish up Phase 5 of a research experiment. Yum yum! And this is just between three classes!

Soon, I need to: change my last name on my driver's license (it's been almost a year and I still haven't done it, haha) and sign up for Spanish classes at Cleveland State.

This summer, I need to prepare for being a bridesmaid in my friend Stephanie's wedding (congratulations Stephanie!) and possibly move from our nasty, mold/mildew-ridden old apartment (I just found out I'm wildly allergic to mold and mildew) and get a new job. I will still maybe be working for Phil & Kendra, too... so depending on how pressing that is, will depend on how many hours I can work at my new job.

Also, a trip to Pennsylvania for my friend Greg & Megan's wedding in June, and then in July a week long vacation to Virginia with a bunch of friends.

Then my friends Jordan and Katherine are getting married next month in Knoxville. Jordan and I went on Lee's prestigious Cambridge trip together. I went right after I was engaged - I think it's really important to know who YOU are as a person before you even begin to think about who you might be with another person forever. Three months away from Daniel did wonders for our relationship and for my sense of self. I recommend separation (not breaking up!) for all couples who are seriously considering marriage. It's not about whether you can live with them, but whether or not you can live without them.

Next month is also my birthday, my 21st. I'm not much for alcohol but I wouldn't mind sipping a fruity drink on a beach somewhere. I wish Daniel and I had all the money in the world we needed to fulfill my travel fantasies.

Over, off, and out.... enjoy some PB&J today. You're never too old!



Peanut... peanut butter.... (and jelly)

Daniel's Music Review

I originally posted this review on Myspace.

This is my first blog so I decided to make it about an album I picked up recently, Cosmos Rocks by Queen plus Paul Rodgers. Now when a person listens to this album, he or she must remember that this is neither Queen nor Paul Rodgers, but it a collaboration and does not sound like Queen or Bad Company material.

That is not to say that there isn't something there for the fans of either group. As a matter of fact, I think that the album represents a good blending of the two sounds. Personally, I am more of a Queen fan and have more recently started listening to Free and Bad Company for some refreshing on Paul Rodgers' sound.

That being said, I really enjoy this album. The very first track starts the album off with a deep vice declaring "Let there be Rock n' Roll!" and the first song is an intense one. It is a little misleading though, because it doesn't really set the tone for the rest of the album. I suppose that is a Queen thing, they just made albums for the most part, and didn't really have a theme or tone. Queen's album Jazz is a good example of this this album contains styles from heavy metal to an almost Dixieland style, but that is another review...

Besides the fact that I have found I dearly miss John Deacon's bass style from the Queen sound; the rest of the album has some good music and it is a very solid album, but allow me to make some suggestions for a sampling of the album.

For the Queen fans:


For the Paul Rodgers fans:


This is a heartbreaking and beautiful song written for Nelson Mandella:

Grace and Forgiveness

This is one of those religious blogs, I thought would preface that so if you don't want to hear our religious meanderings then you probably won't want to read this one. Although if you want to hear what we have to say then please read everything and tell us what you think.

I am going to talk about Christian grace and forgiveness.

Jesus has many things to say about grace, mercy, and forgiveness. In Matthew 5:8 He says, "Blessed be the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." Common sense states that if you are known as a merciful person then you are more likely to be shown mercy. If you are not a nice person and ruthless and merciful then there is a much less chance of somebody throwing you a bone when you need help.

Jesus also brings up the same principle about forgiveness in the prayer he uses as an example for a prayer. Matthew 6:12 says "Forgive us our trespasses as forgive those who trespass against us." This time, Jesus is talking about the interaction between us and God on the subject of forgiveness.

Forgiveness from Christ is so absolute it should overflow from and extend to others. In Matthew 18, Jesus tells a parable about a man who owes a large amount of money and is forgiven the debt, afterwards the man who was forgiven the large debt shakes down a man who owes him a small debt and demands he pay it. The man who forgave the large debt hears this and throws the first man in prison until the debt is repayed.

The point being is that the man who owed the large debt did not understand forgiveness so forgiveness was not shown to him. We should be aware of the grace and forgiveness offered to us.

Grace and gratitude have the same root word and it is no surprise. What other way should a person respond to grace that gratefully? Grace, by definition, is not something to be expected because it is not something deserved or earned.

The funny thing about being filled with Christ's love for us is this: His love for us like His grace, does a greater good shared with others. If we are filled with His love, then love should flow from us to others. Also just as Christ's love and grace is for everyone, so also should we extend our love and grace to others.

Paul understood this and included it in his famous "love chapter" in 1 Corinthians. 1 Cor 13:4-5.

This chapter also state if we do great things, but we have no love, or hold a grudge, or are unkind, or act in any unloving way; than everything we do is ultimately for nothing. How can we be good examples to the world when we are consumed by greed, hate, or even jealousy?

In summary, because we are saved, we are called to love others, show grace to others, forgive those who have wronged us, and show mercy to whoever needs it.

-Daniel

Mind your own business!

Dear God, hey, sorry, it's me again.

Thank you for all the gifts that you continually bless me with whether or not I appreciate them. I know, I know. I'm working on it.

Please help me keep my thoughts to myself... but I also pray that you will keep people I care about from making stupid life decisions!

God, with the blessing of discernment, I ask also for the blessing of self control!

Thanks, The ever flawed Jennifer Martin
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Tomorrow I am attending the Mary Ellen Locher Foundation "Inspire" Luncheon. Expect pictures from that.

I think I failed to mention that I am an intern for Phil Stacey right now - another one of God's blessings. I didn't bury my talent in the ground and now it is prospering! Praise the Lord! Well, he's going to be singing at the luncheon tomorrow. I may even get to pick him up from the airport. It'll be a fun, wonderful day.

Today, Daniel did all the laundry even though it's not his job. He is a sweetheart. He also went into work. Bless his little peapicker!

I steam cleaned the rug and our couch THOROUGHLY and sprayed everything with anti-allergen spray. I have terrible allergies and pollen is just soaring through the air right now and into my nostrils, plus my cat (how terrible for a cat lover to be allergic to cats!) seems to shed more and more each year.

More work tomorrow: bathroom and my room. If there's time, of course.

Oy vey! That phrase seems to describe my life right now. I dated someone who was Jewish in high school, and he only said that phrase every now and then. I think I'm going to start saying it all the time. Maybe whenever someone tells me something ridiculously moronic, instead of giving my immediate opinion, I will say "Oy vey!" And then chew it over with Twix! And escape...







Over, off, and out....
Jennifer

Insomnia much?

Thanks to side effects from some of my many medications, I have developed fairly bad insomnia over the past few months. Since it's Friday night, it's not so bad. But during the week it can get in the way of my normal routine.

I've always wanted to be one of those people who gets up at like 5:30 or 6 AM and goes to bed at 9:30 or 10. But every time I try, I can't fall asleep and then when the alarm chimes its "merry" tune at me before the sun is even shining, I cannot justify being awake. I sleep until the very last minute and sometimes after that. And then, throughout the day, it is as if I'm not there completely. Edward Norton's anonymous, infamous character from Fight Club put it best:

When you have insomnia, you're never really asleep, and you're never really awake.

With insomnia, nothing is real. Everything is far away. Everything is a copy of a copy of a copy.

This is what it's turning out to be, in my mind. Of course, I have a flair for the dramatic and I may be exaggerating this, even in my own mind. I just have that kind of tendency, I guess.

I think about how much I let things affect me. Minor arguments wound me. Rude judgments pierce me. Side glances, condescension, pretension in general - whether imagined or not - cut me to the core and leave me unsure and angry. I'm very, very sensitive, and I really hate to admit it. People see emotion as such a weakness these days. Maybe they're all wrong.

I was also thinking today how glad I am that my parents introduced me to so many different types of movies, books, music, and other types of media. They rarely explicitly said, "You can't watch/do this." Now I would be banned from watching/doing things when I had gotten in trouble, but I was never.... censored, so to speak. I didn't go crazy as a result. I got to watch MTV and I thought it was horrendous.

I learned to watch movies from a Christian perspective - what I mean is, I would be able to take away something valuable from a movie no matter what it was. I developed a (very) critical eye toward all types of media.

"Garbage in, garbage out!" The James Dobsons of the world will protest. Well, how much credit are you giving your child then? If you read the Bible, and if your parents teach you wrong from right, at a certain age - you have to live and let go, right? I'm glad my parents deemed me intelligent enough to tell what's "wrong" with a movie or book (cursing, violence, nudity, etc) and what's "right" (love, forgiveness, philosophy, intellectual stimulation, relationships, good ol' entertainment). Thanks mom and dad for never "banning" me from anything and letting me make decisions for myself - I don't watch crap TV now, I read all the time, and I find something valuable in EVERY movie decision I make. And I listen to almost EVERY type of music!

I don't think I would be one of those crazy people who lets their kid watch/do/read/listen to WHATEVER they want, but I will educate my children - I think education and discretion is a much better defense than out and out censorship. At least, when these awfully sheltered kids come to college and then go crazy - and I see this happen over, and over, and over again - that is what I've come to believe.

I'll try to go to sleep, now, maybe.

Signing off and out,
Jennifer

Crock Pot Island Pork

Today was a good day. Daniel got off of work early and we went to see State of Play with my Uncle Terry who is in town and my parents. It was a good movie and I really recommend it - very intense and NOT predictable! Russell Crowe is a good actor even if he is a complete jerk in real life. Best of all, there was lots of journalism in the movie, which I looove. If only I was as good at reporting as I was about writing and talking about myself all the time.

So anyway, we came home to a wonderful, warmed pork roast that Daniel made in the crock pot on his lunch break. He made it after he had gone to a crock pot cooking class at the church his mom works at. But of course, he changed the recipe a bit... and here's the end result, a perfectly tender and delicious carved up pork roast. Here's the recipe:

2 pork tenderloins (we only used one since it's just us, and we used a Boston pork roast instead - you could really use any cut of pork or chicken)

2 tbs. olive oil

Spice Rub:
Salt & pepper
1 tsp all spice
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme


Stuffing (optional)
2 sprigs fresh thyme
3 cloves garlic

Glaze
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tbs. minced garlic
1 tsp tabasco (we used local Cleveland, TN brand Kahn's Island hot sauce - recommended)
1/2 cup orange juice

Directions

• Cut slit in middle of roast, stuff cloves and thyme sprigs (optional)
• Mix spice rub ingredients together in a small bowl and rub into pork tenderloin(s.)
• Heat oil in large skillet, brown spiced tenderloin on all sides, about 5-8 minutes. (we actually skipped this step and everything turned out fine)
  
• In small bowl, mix glaze ingredients. Place meat in the bottom of the crock pot. Cover with glaze.
• Either cook on high 2-4 hours or on low 6-8 hours. Enjoy!

(Adapted from Amanda Varnell's recipe)

Daniel enjoyed his pork roast with a baked potato, stuffed with one of the roasted garlic cloves and cheese. Because potatoes are my LEAST favorite food - I know, weird, right? - Daniel doesn't often get to eat them. But my parents were kind enough to bring him some to work, just for him!

On Sunday I may try another crock pot recipe - a dessert. ^_^ I love desserts, I have a major sweet tooth and I think fake sweeteners are of the devil and I've never had a cavity and I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with sugar! It should stop being grouped with "fat" on the food pyramid! It should go down another notch, at least.

I also love garlic.... I mean, LOVE it. Last night I made garlic bread with FIVE cloves of garlic and I could smell it on my body for hours afterward. Mmm. There's still a roasted clove of garlic that was stuffed in the pork tenderloin that I need to find something to put on that isn't a potato!

Signing out!

Jennifer

Daniel's First Blog

Hello internet! This is Daniel making his first post on our blog. I suppose I should think about something to write...


wait, it's coming to me.....



Eureka! My muse has hit me once more with her mallet of inspiration! I shall begin my rantings with some information about me and the kind of things I will be posting on this here blog.

First I will probably be reviewing webcomics every week or so, but I will also be posting my muzings on life and such. I am going to try to keep this from being a "Hey check out this website/cd/comic" posting place. I want to have serious things here too. Such as my wife's amazing cooking skills and my cooking skills which are less about cooking and more about improvising.

Enoough of my ramblings, have fun exploring our site, and read my wife's stuff!

Jennifer's First Blog

Signing in, our first post. This is Jennifer. Both Daniel and I will be contributing to this blog, and we'll sign off with our names so you'll know who is who, though you should be able to tell the difference between our writing styles soon enough.

I've been suffering with severe clinical depression lately, and it's taken a toll on my life. Most people tend to be ashamed of such a diagnosis, but I have come to accept it and am trying to work through it. Having a husband like Daniel is a great start.

This blog will probably consist of cooking adventures and recipes (something we both enjoy doing greatly) video game or online comic or music reviews (Daniel's cup of tea) or movie reviews or political rants (conservative - sorry, liberals) or book reviews. A general diary as well.

As I take a photography class next semester and work on it through summer, you'll see an increase in pictures too. Probably just the general musings of students and a little Spanish culture as Daniel and I take a Spanish class together this summer.

In addition, we'll discuss the future - our future - and what God has in store for us. We're both devoted Christians and will talk about Biblical issues and praise God in our posts as well - but not in an argumentative, preachy way. We don't think uppity argumentative Christians do much good for anyone.

Anyway, I hope you learn a lot about us - and maybe enjoy our chronicles of young newlywed students who are head over heels in love with each other.