Can Bluecoats win gold?

[zigzigZAG]

With a few DCP members predicting the Bluecoats make a huge surge and take gold this year, and with me enjoying that kind of talk for the first time, I've taken a bit of time to study the show again.

All those who are fans of the show (and one poster here who's on the board of the corps), help me understand the show a bit.

I'm going to play devils advocate here (and I don't mean I'm advocating for the Devils either). I'm a longtime fan of Bloo, as I had a number of friends from my high school and undergrad days who'd drive down from Cleveland to Canton every week to build the corps into a perennial top-12 group. In fact, I first heard about DCI because of Bloo when I was in middle school in the early 80s, and they were recruiting kids entering high school as they were building the corps.

My question here is - do they have enough to win gold? I'm comparing them against past gold medal winners' shows.

As I read it, there's not quite enough content and demand to pull it off.

They've taken many pages out of Cavies' brass and drill book - minimal playing and marching simultaneously. Hard passages are standstill, or sitting/leaning on the props. I timed nearly 5 minutes of the show that the entire horn line was not playing (I'm not including the couple brass features with only one-third of them playing, like the brass feature with quick runs when they were leaning or sitting on the props). Or one half of the horn line will play standing still, and the others run into the new set. I call that sleight-of-hand. Others call it "staging".

The consequence - the brass book in general doesn't have the content that I've seen in past gold medal shows.

I see lots and lots of body movement, maybe more than Crown usually has, but it is demanding? Doubtful. Leaning right and left isn't as hard as marching and playing, not to speak of doing so at a high tempo (as we've seen from many past champions).

The big WOW moment isn't particularly difficult for the corps. They play three chords and do a bit of slow body movement, mostly moving when they're not playing. Very cool, but doesn't take much skill. And again, we have the final 30 seconds of the show without anyone playing, just like we have for the first 30 seconds of the show. Body movement and running into position, or manipulating props.

I don't hear demand in general from the brass book. Reminds me of some Cavies shows that were all about the visual, and the music was minimal, and what music was there, was hardly very challenging.

The percussion book is more demanding, I concede. And they have some of their most difficult stuff while moving pretty fast, and doing body movement. They do have enough here to take the drum trophy.

In general, this show is about props and the 'tilt' concept, rather than music or drill.

"Tilt" is about how much DCI has leaned towards WGI, and how WGI judges score body movement as highly as demanding drill. In my book, difficulty should count for something.

I see more content and demand - even, surprisingly simultaneous marching/playing demand a for a few features - from BD, Crown and Cadets.

As much as I'd like to see a first-time champion this year, I'm skeptical that there is enough 'there' there in Tilt to beat the others in the top 4.

So, devil's advocacy over. How am I wrong?

[superOOk]

You are just wrong on so many levels.

[ajlemm]

Hey superOOk, I think the main problem isn't that ziggy ziggy ziggy is WRONG, but that so much of his/her assertions are opinion only.

Statements like "but it is demanding? Doubtful." and "but doesn't take much skill." doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in Ziggity Ziggity Zoo's "read".

[charlie1223]

In general, this show is about props and the 'tilt' concept, rather than music or drill.

It's really interesting you say this because the designers have said that with this show the Music selections and music design came first before the concept of "tilt" was even discussed.

Edited July 22, 2014 by charlie1223

[Cappybara]

I think Bloo has one of the most cohesive shows on the field this year. There concept is solid enough to take it with lots of Mr. Clean

[quietcity]

I agree with zigzig here. BC has a lot of neat things going on in the show, but music is not one of them. The musicians seem to serve the visual and the effects at the expense of a coherent musical program. This is the reason I don't find BC's total package as compelling as BD, SCV and Cavies. Mind you, I am very musically-oriented, and in general, I don't care as much for fancy visuals as I do for the lyricism of a show.

[tim_brandt]

I say yes, but then again, I've been saying it since my first viewing, so I probably sound like a broken record.

The Bluecoats have the intangible on their side this year & the full support of the crowd.

It fully reminds me of PR '96/'08 & CC '13 in that respect.

As such, if they 'remove all doubt', and clean the show, I can see momentum & crowd response propelling them to Gold Championships week.

That being said, we have a monster top 5 this year, and Cadets / BD are certainly forces to reckon with.

But, what Bloo has this year is that special something, and I see it being very powerful down the home stretch.

I see them no lower than Silver, and I think that there's a good chance that they'll surprise everyone and take the top prize.

Irrespective of placement, their show is just plain amazing, and is certain to live on and influence the activity, going forward.

This show makes a statement away from the conceptual & cerebral & harkens back to the core elements of music & form with a simple hook as a drum corps motive.

I can't wait to see the final product in the theater.

Edited July 22, 2014 by tim_brandt

[Relics]

Yes, I think it can win gold, but my gut tells me no. It is not in the same ballpark in level-of-difficulty as the others in the top 5 (BD, Cadets, CC, SCV). However, cleanliness is next to godliness. They have a shot in any given night. With that being said....their show is beyond cool!

I think Crown has the exact opposite problem. My hope for DCI is that Crown can clean their show and medal this year. I want level of difficulty to be rewarded because I love nothing more than a demonstration of excellence and skill.

[Fred Windish]

I would very much like to see Bluecoats take the gold. I just can't see the Blue Devils running cold. Bluecoats have made the biggest 'statement' of the year, have momentum, the audience, obvious determination, etc. I have an easier time seeing them in Second Place, but who knows? Maybe someone can start to discuss what specific captions they can count on winning, over Blue Devils. Are there enough of these smaller victories to pull it out? Is there a particular caption that can given them a decent spread over Blue Devils to cover for losing, 2 or 3 other captions?

I have no music background, so I'll need some help here. Let's just say, if Bluecoats DO win it all, I'll be most happy, even though there will be so many FANTASTIC corps placing under them. Seems to me, whatever corps wins Semi-Finals will have a HUGE advantage this time around.

[ajlemm]

I agree with zigzig here. BC has a lot of neat things going on in the show, but music is not one of them. The musicians seem to serve the visual and the effects at the expense of a coherent musical program. This is the reason I don't find BC's total package as compelling as BD, SCV and Cavies. Mind you, I am very musically-oriented, and in general, I don't care as much for fancy visuals as I do for the lyricism of a show.

Wow do I disagree with this. I find the music to be coherent and thematic throughout. I guess that's what makes this idiom so interesting.