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Open Class Finals Review


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I know this review is a bit late. I had typed this up on my iPad, and forgot all about it until just now. After some last-minute editing, here you go. Better late than never, right?

First off, I want to say what an honor it was to be in the presence of all these groups. What a great year for Open Class it was.

Racine Scouts - 12th Place; 70.400

"From the Ashes"

I don't know about the rest of the people in attendance, but for me, the Racine Scouts put on the best show of the night. In the activity nowadays (not so much now, but it still happens on occasion), there are so many shows that seem derivative of others. The shows that "stick out" in our memories are the exception. We have a hard time remembering other shows, and sometimes outright forget about them because they all seem the same. Like I said, in recent years, corps have moved into a new era of very diverse styles between each corps. But that exists mainly in world class, and in open class, we tend to see the derivative show concepts more often.

However, the Racine Scouts' program, "From the Ashes" had a certain "freshness" to it that I didn't expect from this small, but powerful corps. It told the tale of Racine's glorious rebirth "from the ashes" of their 2012 season, which, as you may remember, ended early around mid-July, along with Teal Sound and Forté (interesting side-note: of all those corps that ended their seasons early and "folded," the Racine Scouts were the only ones that bounced back. From a beautiful opening of what resembled "You'll Never Walk Alone," (their corps song) to a gorgeous ballad with some magnificent flag work form the drum-line (yeah, that's not a typo), to a spectacular rifle feature from the horn-line (again, not a typo), to a triumphant, "in-your-face" closer, this show had it all, and then some.

The Chrome Domes are back with a vengeance, folks. I'd wager that they're going to surprise us in a couple years.

Les Stentors - 11th Place; 76.650

"25tentors"

Les Stentors celebrated their 25th anniversary and did Canada proud with their program, "25tentors." Racine was a tough act to follow, but I'd say they were up to it. They put on a fantastic show, and I believe they enjoyed their most successful season in years, perhaps ever.

They had a show full of entertaining tunes. It was a relatively simple show (in terms of design), but sometimes those are the most enjoyable.

Well done, Les Stentors.

Taipei Yuehfu - 1st Place (International Class); 77.350

"The Butterfly Lovers"

It is always a treat to see Taipei Yuehfu. They told the story of The Butterfly Lovers, a sort of Asian "Romeo & Juliet." This corps put on a great show, and demonstrated the precision a sort of precision we come to expect from such a magnificent corps.

Colt Cadets - 10th Place; 80.900

"Red"

The Colt Cadets sported some snazzy new uniforms, and presented what was probably the best Colt Cadets corps we've ever seen. I might be wrong, but is this the first time they've broken 80? That's pretty fantastic by itself.

As I mentioned before, a lot of shows in open class tend to be a bit derivative, and this was one of those shows. Not to say these young people weren't very talented, but the show just wasn't terribly memorable. They rightfully earned their fantastic season.

Raiders - 9th Place; 84.950

"The Raven"

The Raiders put on a rather unique show, bringing the iconic Edgar Allen Poe poem, "The Raven" to the football field. I'm not usually a fan of narration, but the Raiders used it quite effectively. A lot of open class corps surprised us this year, and the Raiders were one of them. If they continue this upward momentum, I'll be interested in seeing what they accomplish.

Legends - 8th Place; 85.700

"Ichabod"

Legends....WOW. This corps is spectacular. I remember when Legends was just on the better side of "okay," but now...again I say, WOW. Why can't this corps seem to get off that 7th-8th Place island?

Legends is an organization that seems to be doing everything right. I hope to see them grow and become even more spectacular.

7th Regiment - 7th Place; 86.600

"Luminous"

Where did this corps come from? A big, powerful sound in a medium-sized package. I was simply blown away by 7th Regiment, much like I was with Legends. While this struck me as another one of those "derivative" shows, what it lacked in uniqueness, it made up for and then some with pure, loud, powerful drum corps.

7th Regiment was definitely a contender for a top 6 spot, but they were faced with some stiff (and i mean STIFF) competition.

Gold - 6th Place; 86.750

"East Meets West"

This show was...different, to say the least. And holy cow, was it fun. This is another organization that seems to be doing everything right, and are on the right track to becoming a powerhouse in the future.

Gold employed a martial arts school (an idea that probably never occurred to show designers before, so bonus points for being COMPLETELY original), and this group of martial arts students ended the show with some crazy, mind-boggling stunts. The whole show was just one magnificent spectacle after another. Definitely a crowd-pleaser.

Music City - 5th Place; 90.350

"Postcards from Havana"

Music City treated us to some great Latin music (a genre that just can't go wrong in drum corps), and sported a nice, sharp update to their uniform. The corps was loud, crisp, and clean, and it was no surprise that they ended up advancing to the World Class semifinals.

While this was without a doubt the best Music City corps we've ever seen, this was one of those shows that was extremely derivative of other shows. It was a great show, but not exactly a fresh one.

Spartans - 4th Place; 90.500

"Break Free"

Unfortunately, I left the stadium to relieve myself, and met some old people I marched with, and ended up missing Spartans, much to my dismay. I'm sure they were as fantastic as ever.

Genesis - 3rd Place; 91.550

"mOZaic"

If this corps keeps doing what they're doing, I wouldn't be surprised to see them winning some championships in the very near future.

Genesis' program "mOZaic" sported a "Wizard of Oz" theme that was both very accessible, and very unique. It was a very fun show, and it was masterfully performed.

Blue Devils B - 2nd Place; 95.700

"Warped"

While we're on the subject of derivative shows, we should take a look at BDB. I wont deny that the Blue Devils B were very clean (in true Blue Devil fashion), but this show seemed to be a bit similar to a show the Raiders performed in 2012 (what was that show called, again?).

This show was very well-performed, but it wasn't very memorable for me.

Santa Clara Vanguard Cadets - 1st Place; 96.150

"The Art of War"

While the show was a tad on the derivative side, it was very well done, and a pleasure to watch. My personal favorite moment was when the entire corps saluted the crowd with the drum major. It was a very striking visual, and had me on board immediately. SCVC's championship title was very well-deserved.

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