Allentown Day 2 Review

[cadetzoid]

Well night 2 seemed more exciting to me overall than night one, I still recommend that:

“BRASS, PERCUSSION, MUSIC ENSEMBLE PEEPS, use this video for the next week’s planning. On the web cast I heard every tiny little timing rub, brass stick out, tuning issue, etc., much more so than any other web cast.” Though not always in agreement with placements, thought tonight’s scores and spreads were pretty accurate. My disagreements-

Cavies should have been MUCH closer to Crown or over them and Coats won the show tonight, NO question.

My impressions:

SURF: The approach toward a serious theme is fine, but nothing more than that. As I stated yesterday, I am not a fan of emotional, inner self-seeking show themes. Played fine tonight, marched fine, spun and drummed fine. I just wasn’t pulled in at all. My favorite part of the corps is the guard, Some clean stuff tonight and some extremely musical flag writing.

Mandarins: I enjoy the show theme and aggressive approach very much. The sound did get up to the stands a few times, though quality was questionable. The voice over wasn’t always clear though I thought minus some small edits, it was appropriate for the production. Based on fan network only, seems they have cleaned the least of their peer grouping. The props are not as effective as probably intended. Guard writing at times is as good as most anyone’s. The drum tuning worked well in the stadium. Some real promise for the future.

The Academy: They have cleaned a lot and have really planned most every detail of the show quite well. The European pompous theme of Vanity Fair comes through starting at the preshow. Lots of Ts crossed and Is dotted. When some aspect of the show isn’t at a solid level of cleaning, it really sticks out. The overall pace and lack of real big moments cause the program to come across as quite vanilla overall. There are however several long phrases that hold our interest well and have good payoff when all is resolved. The use of moderate tempos for much of the production hurts their overall GE. Pleasant enough to want to se it again. Wishing for a bit more “umph.” This is the type of show that I wonder if they will get enough GE reward for creating a show design that has development, attention to programmatic elements, detailing, etc., though the overall performance may not be as good as let’s say, the Troopers? To some degree, seems the judging should reward and say, this is fundamentally how you design a good show, though it may lack the level of detail of BK, SCV, or BD, . . . yes.

Spirit: Think the corps’ announcement came at the wrong place. The audience was caught a bit off guard, as I think the corps was as well. The preshow music and intro are extremely weak in establishing interest, theme, confidence, and intrigue. In this day and age, that seems impossible, with so many good examples available in drum corps and marching band. Like Academy, too much at slow tempos. “Willow Weep . . “ (though isn’t the show about a magnolia?) is the best part of the show, but rests purely on the shoulders of the brass to carry the moment. Though the sound got up into the stands at times, it was overblown and severely out of tune. The fugue in the next to last tune shows some promise, but is extremely underdeveloped. There are so few applause moments and a lack of a sense of being taken on a journey that I felt uncomfortable much of the show. Where is the sense of musicianship? Style? Other than playing loudly? Not sure they won’t drop. What is the last move/set? Rough ending. Good soloists. Sorry to be so negative, I just am so surprised after the past year’s well produced and entertaining shows.

Troopers: There was a big jump in quality from the previous groups. Great communication for most of the show. The three or four times there is a drop in designed focus, it is extremely noticeable. The Americana feel works and all sections of the corps came to play. I kept thinking, Crossmen would have to really be good to stay ahead of this. They not only have the bigs, but plenty of lower volume moments that are handled with great finesse and musicianship. Some of the rifle writing is disappointing in that the performers are capable, it is just that I am bothered by filler work, especially when it is play acting when it isn’t working (pairs of rifles battleing to then immediately be working in tandem?). The ending is huge and communicated as well as most anyone tonight. More depth in design next year? We’ll see Crossmen.

Crossmen: This show is crafted to a level of detail and coordination more than Troopers. The visual program, though at times cramped, is special. That said, overall, Troopers communicate moment to moment better than Crossmen. When Crossmen let down emotionally, when there is an awkward show seam, or an individual mistake, it really stands out. I do very much enjoy the show and the gypsy theme has developed well. The Carmen portion of the show, my least favorite over the summer, has improved a lot. The added sounds, colors, feels, provided by the front ensemble were all good choices. Would like it to develop more; it doesn’t fit the rest of the program as much as it could. Were there a few new members on the field tonight? There were a few too many mental errors for this late in the season. If there are new members, hang in, I am sure you will get it. This battle between them and Troopers will be interesting.

Crown: Before being a bit negative, I should state that they are a great drum corps and do amazing and at times outlandish stuff. I hope the staff and members are not using the act of winning as the measuring stick for having a good summer (think BD has finally stopped doing that, at least in part). I feel fairly safe stating that this was not a good showing for them tonight. They are probably better than what I saw and heard. Some changes, including all of the ending drill, have improved the show. With all of the direction changes and exposure to error, it is pretty astounding that they are pulling it off this well. Individual blow-ups throughout the production. Some ensemble tears and balance issues tonight. They were still plenty loud and have a great brass line. I may be over stepping by saying that it seems the designers forgot to look at our well-established drums corps history to see where other first time winners have succeeded and not succeeded the year after.

I want to talk about the opening for a second- It doesn’t work. Other than the loud unison

note, what does it offer to pull us in and shout “this years champions”, or last years

champion for that matter?” Okay, so the show is loosely (I think loosely) based on the

space race. Too similar to last year. An exciting time in America and a topic that still holds

great interest and fascination. The David Bowie vocal stuff is too comparable to last

year’s beginning, and is not sung well (besides all of the pitch issues, there is a female

voice that is never in balance and is sharp night after night). The original David Bowie

video is quirky, odd, eclectic, well . . . David Bowie. In this show opening, done the way it

is done, it us monotonous, uninteresting, almost drudgingly awkward. Then we have a

count down. It too is done like David Bowie did it- soft, unemotionally. Count downs

build excitement, lead us to something, we are pulled in emotionally. If the idea is

just this, absolute monotony and drudging beginning that has a unassuming count down

and then the unison blast is supposed to shock us, it doesn’t because the rifle tosses look

like they are done to an exciting count down, not the one we are hearing through the

poor vocals. We see the brass moving into position to play loud, the loud note will not be

a surprise. We expect Crown to be loud. This is one of those things where a corps is

always compared to itself and it either matches, exceeds, or falls short. If in critique the

staff were to say, YES! Just like the David Bowie video. Space Oddity, odd opening, get it?

Umm, I say I get it, but it doesn’t really interest or excite me. It is just that, odd. If the

entire show is built on that concept, it is odd, but doesn’t connect- a guess a trait of being

odd.

For this show, they kept lots of their Crown-isms, fine. The kept many of their go-to GE effects, fine. But I feel they let go of what many love about the Rach show, Triple Crown, Finis, etc. The heart. Recognizable melody. Visceral raw energy. Though I heard and saw the performance, I never felt it.

Cavies: I think this show is exactly what the doctor ordered. Some have stated it seems like many past different Cavie’s shows with new music. Okay then, GREAT! The reason it works is because it is so structurally sound, logical, impeccably paced, written to the members' skill levels, and it communicates the theme clearly and pulls you in right away so you can enjoy the show right along with the performers. The brass have not only improved over last few years’ offerings, but over the course of the summer as well. A lot! They were getting up into the stands just fine. The marimba stuff is all just fantastic and a great idea (everyone else is kicking themselves for not thinking of it). Guard costume, colors, props, etc are work perfectly. Getting very clean. The percussion writing is the best of the summer, hands down in my opinion, and they really played well tonight. Though very different shows, this GE offering works much better than Crown’s. I also love that features are really features in that it isn’t just exposing a section playing well, but playing something difficult, well. Great use of electronics! PLEASE, add counts to the last note. IT IS TOO SHORT. YOU COULD HAVE US ON OUR FEET SOONER. REALLY. Should have been third tonight.

Bluecoats: I was so excited to see them tonight, and so was the rest of the crowd. WOW! Blew the place down. Made a mark high on the wall. Cadets did not come close to reaching it tonight. Holy smokes drum line. Nearly flawless, and so fearless. Top drum trophy in a week? Holy smokes brass line. Nearly flawless and so fearless, and so delicate and finessed when called upon to be so. Doug Thrower! Thanks for such unique colors and sounds. Now this brass book doesn’t sound like everyone else, in a great way. Thanks for not backing away from difficult chords to tune, or difficult intervallic relationships. Nearly flawless guard show, and so fearless. Last minute is the best minute in all of DCI this summer. If forced to find flaw, visual program could be more developed, but on the smallest scale of consideration; it is a fantastic visual program. Interesting to see how next week plays out.

This is so good, I do not have a problem with saying this was better than my own corps. Bravo!

Cadets: Everyone around me was reacting the same way after Bluecoats, though wanting Cadets to be better, clearly better, that task was just so difficult to pull off. It is rightfully said that no one does simultaneous demand better than Cadets. This year’s production is no exception. They make some things look so easy that I sometimes wonder if they go unnoticed. The All American theme can’t be missed due to the Copland and the narration. The narrator does a fine job. All sections are great and the guard most improved over last season. The brass do loud really well. Some of the softer and more exposed brass areas were rough tonight. I think the stage is way under utilized and I dare say not worth the time and energy that goes into moving and putting it up every night. The mello solo section has been rough all summer and continues to be the weakest part of the show. The play acting that follows on the stage is disappointing. Good corps, very good. Didn’t connect as well with the audience as I had hoped. The ending seems to be a last-minute reach for points. Not sure that is where they will get them. Great show. Eager to see where next year goes. Time to be the innovator again?

[dcm_alum]

Thanks for these very, very well done reviews. You clearly understand how the judging of the activity works to a higher level than most folks (me included). In cases where you were critical of some of my favorite corps, your analysis of their show's weak points were fair, and pretty darn accurate.

Great work!

[George Dixon]

thanks for the review(s) - very enlightened and I really enjoyed reading them!

[Fred Windish]

I agree!

VERY good review, from someone who truly seems to know his/her stuff! Fully concur on Cavaliers. They have rapidly inserted themselves into all the chatter about the 'top' in 2014.

[TexasPRfan]

another great review. You totally nailed my personal thoughts on Crown as well - especially your closing comments on Crown. This is not the Carolina Crown I fell in love with over the past 10 years.

[TchMuzk]

Did you not watch the Scouts? or just not have any comments about them?

[Magbo]

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SCOUTS?

[Jeff Ream]

great stuff!