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Finally home! What a great night of drum corps! I'll keep this as concise as possible. Warning: biased opinions ahead. Jersey Surf: Well well, look at them back in uniform and looking like an actual drum corps! I like the uniforms, especially the aqua plume. Great look. The opener and closer were pretty entertaining, but the middle part of the show fell really flat and you could tell from the audience that everyone else felt the same way. I like their aesthetic, but I wish they went back to their fun shows that they're known for. Mandarins: This was my first read on them. I'm a bit lukewarm on the show, mostly because I didn't understand it at all. They were a clear tier above Jersey Surf in all facets, however. Their brass had a really warm sound and the guard was really, really good. The silks complemented the corps well. I would've enjoyed the show better if I knew what was going on. Oregon Crusaders: Only my second read of them, and wow have they impressed me. Their hornline was not as loud as Mandarins, but they sounded more controlled and I think the music arrangements were a notch above the Mandarins. Say what you want about the uniforms, I think they work really dang well live. The pants make the marching look crisp and clear. Their violinist is still there (same one from 2014 I'm pretty sure) and I think it added really well to the show. Did a great job of setting the mood. I was just as confused about this show's story arc as I was with Mandarins, but I think the music made up for it, really entertaining. Also that drumline has attitude. I loved watching them play. Crossmen: What a huge step up from OC. Again, I'm ashamed to admit this was only my 2nd read of the Crossmen. Hornline was the best of the night to that point, and probably the loudest too. I felt that their drumline got lost in the show though. My friend and I loved their silks and the guard was just overall integrated so well into the show. I was a bit nervous about the tarp, but thankfully there were no issues. This was the first corps of the night that had a theme that was properly integrated into the show. I know a lot of people are upset about the quiet ending, but i honestly loved it. The audience was still able to get their applause in before the corps continued and it really gave the show a sense of finality that was missing in the last closer. Music-wise it wasn't my favorite, but that's just personal preference. I wish Crossmen brought back some screamers. Boston Crusaders: My first read of the corps. And I'm left scratching my head why they're sitting in 14th. These guys are good. They were a little heavy on the synth at times, but I just found the whole production to be very enjoyable. Hornline was just as loud as Crossmen (looks like they solved those woes from last year), though I can't speak to the quality of the sound when comparing the two. The guard did get a bit lost in the show as did the percussion. I have to say that I LOVED their uniforms live. The stadium lights reallly brought out the red as well as the black sequins on their jacket. REALLY cool look, probably my favorite uniform of the night actually. The music was just plain fun. If there was a story, I completely missed it, but I liked the general Don Quixote overlay they had. Windmills were in sync for the opening hit, and then were never together after that. Blue Knights: I was very meh on this show. Until I saw them live. WOAH. This show is meant to be seen live. Doing anything else does not do this show justice. Okay I just want to start off by letting everyone know I was blinded for the first few minutes of the show because two mirrors were positioned in such a way that they were directly reflecting light straight into my eyes. I had to wear sunglasses for this portion of the show, I'm not joking. Hopefully they won't run into that issue in Lucas Oil. That aside... This show has the full package. Hornline was aggressive and musical (and plenty loud), percussion writing was awesome (their drumline was one of my favorites of the night), and the guard was integrated so, so well into the show. Musical selections seemed to flow better, and I found it to be overall more engaging. Saturn left a little more to be desired, but I loved the quiet ending. Narration fit well, and I think the show made sense for the most part. I don't understand the guard uniforms in the opener though. Santa Clara Vanguard: HAHAHA are you kidding me? Favorite show of the night (and the season). I had goosebumps for half the show. Crowd really hushed up once the pit started playing and you could tell people were just mesmerized. Opening hit was LOUD even though it happened on the other side of the field of where I was sitting. Mellos were ON FIRE. The whole show was built for the mellos and they really shined tonight. They've improved quite a ton with their intonation from the beginning of the season and they sound a lot more confident. I'd say they had the 2nd best hornline of the night overall. Double tonguing section sounded pretty crisp. Drumline was the most musical of the night, and they had the best balance of being noticeable, but not too noticeable out of all the corps. My guard friend (who marched Cadets) said they had the cleanest guard of the night and one of the most effective. I thoroughly enjoyed this corps, GE scores be ######. Blue Devils: I'm sorry, I'll try to contain myself for this one. SCV still has my favorite show, but in terms of overall sound, no corps came even close to touching the Devils. My guard friend was gasping the whole show everytime BD had a big hit. And for good reason. We sat near the 40 which is around where the trombones in BD's show appear. The timbre of the trombones was incredible, their sound was pure. People have been criticizing the glissandos, but I don't think they understand how hard it is to pull off those glisses in tune with 20 trombones. They sounded flawless, and when you hear this show live, they just seem to make sense. Someone else described the corps' sound as professional and sterile, and I just can't understand that latter description. They sounded so alive, the sops in the opener were unreal. I seriously can't express enough how amazing this corps sounds. I can't really tell anyone how clean each drumline was, but I loved how aggressive BD's percussion writing was at times. I have to admit the guard didn't really impress me, and my friend felt similarly. They had some uncharacteristic drops as well. Speaking briefly on the theme, I found all the little references to the Tempest to be really well done. I know they're not really telling a story, and I think that's what gave me a peace of mind while watching the show. I was not a fan of the new narration in the closer, I really hope they end up cutting atleast some of it by finals. Cadets: My feelings are so, so mixed. My Cadets alum friend felt the same. Let's start with the positives: the statues on the side of the field don't get in the way and aren't distracting. I really liked the overall look of the field given by the black uniforms and colorless guard unis. It matched the mood of the show. The Cadets brass sounded awesome, the low brass really packed a punch in the opener, and I'm not talking about thunderous goo (more on that later). The drumline was very strong as usual and my friend found the guard to be the cleanest or second cleanest guard of the night. Getting rid of the stage was a really good idea. Okay, now some negatives: what the hell was up with the bass coming out of the speakers?!? I occasionally noticed some bass from other corps, but the goo in the Cadets' show was overpowering on every single big hit. They need to get that fixed soon. The drumline is, much like 2014, staged very badly. They were lost for much of the show except the drum feature. They need to be farther upfield. Another thing is that this show hasn't programmed many good places for the audience to clap. After large hits, the corps quickly transitions into something else, and I just think that's unfortunate for the corps members. Finally, the show story "arc" is confusing. Not sure why Adonis is sitting for most of the show, not sure why the other guard members became human, and I'm really confused why the humans killed Adonis. I know they're trying to reach it, but clarity is still not there. I only emphasize this for the Cadets and not, say, the Mandarins because the Cadets have higher standards.

People kept joking about bringing chik-fil-a in the facebook live warm up videos Crown does. So tonight, I brought them a giant bag of chik-fil-a and delivered it to Roxy before the show. :)

An appeal to posters on DCP: Can I ask that posters keep in mind that this is a non profit youth activity. The kids pay money to participate, work incredibly hard in the boiling sun, practice for long hours, perform for you and then take over-night bus trips to do it all over again. The organization raises money, contributes money and does everything that they can to provide a great experience for the kids and hopefully the fans. Perhaps these kids on the bus trip to the next stop pull up DCP on their phone and they read your post. I can only imagine how deflating that is. They are not paid professionals, this is not Major league sports in the sense that they are being paid big salaries and under performing for you. They are just really good kids working hard every day to make their show better. You may not like the show, you may disagree with the design, you may not think they are putting out enough for your satisfaction but they are working hard at their craft every day. The constant recycling of the same negative complaints is pretty tough. Perhaps you have made your point by now? The season is almost over and I am asking, on behalf of the kids and their parents, to be please keep all of this is mind. You can always send me a PM and tell me whatever you want. I have been at this with BAC for 38 years and I know first hand that we are not perfect. I know some of you marched or taught the corps, some support the competition and wish to benefit by knocking the kids. If you are an alum, please think back to when you marched and someone either put you down or perhaps lifted you up. If you disagree or want to bash me - please send me a PM and I promise I will take all of your constructive critique and feed it back to the organization. Have a great rest of the season!

BTW, behind me was perhaps the most annoying guy ever at a drum corps show. After the announcer welcomes Crown, he stands up and yells, EVERYBODY:MY DAUGHTERS COUSIN IS ON THE FIELD. HER NAME IS ______. ON THE COUNT OF THREE WERE GOING TO YELL, GO _______! ONE, TWO, THREE! Crown should have shot him instead.

Tell Roxanne that she doesn't have to put on the red sauce!I'm here all week...

Academy had a pretty good run. A brass player did trip on a headstone and overturn it (vandalism) but didn't appear to be hurt. They didn't draw nearly as positive a response as usual. I think the crowd is sitting on their hands until S outs and Crown perform. I hate that.

Well DCP we failed to create a thread for this show and I'm too tired to think of a witty pun at the moment. Just some brief thoughts. The venue wasn't the best, getting into the stadium and to my seat was quite a hassle and the bleachers were just really crowded, seemed like more crowded than normal to me at least. However, it was a packed stadium and the crowd was great! I also met a fellow DCP guy that just happened to be sitting right in front me, made for some excellent conversation between shows with him and his friend. As a newer generation guy (I started following DCI in 2004) it was great to talk to a Cavies alumni from the G bugle era! I missed Cincinnati Tradition because I was in the lot watching some warm ups and then I missed Pacific Crest as well because getting into the Stadium was a giant cluster :( But they sounded great from behind the stands! Spirit of Atlanta: For all the troubles they've gone through, and I don't really know much detail on that, I was impressed. I think they had a better run than I was expecting them to. They had some nice moments and really started grooving a couple times which the audience enjoyed. I'm really hoping they make a nice comeback for next year, the kids are definitely performing their show. What I liked the most: Seeing that the kids believe in their show and were having a blast performing it! The Academy: Well what can I say other than WOW! I already thought this was a great show from watching the live streams, but live I was just absolutely blown away! They have come SO far! I was really impressed with their guard, the guard had a couple moments that just WOW'd the crowd and got them cheering as though the brass had just done a company front in your face block chord! That was great to see people enjoying the smaller details in a show. The chairs/gravestones are awesome and got another WOW and some laughter out of the crowd when they started playing the xylophones looking like rib cages. What a great GE moment. Brass is really coming along too, I really enjoyed the music and they're starting to play it with more confidence. It's a cheesy show but in a good way, it just works for Academy and the whole crowd loved it, huge standing O from the crowd for Academy! What I liked the most: The colorguard had a couple awesome moments and the rib cage xylophones. The Colts: They've taken some heat here on DCP about their props and I'll admit I wasn't a fan of them either until tonight. Tonight it was dark enough when they came on the field that you could see the lights from the props and it actually made for some pretty neat moments. Thank you colts for not having all that narration this year! What I liked the most: The brass has a great sound this year and seeing the props live changed my mind, I like them now! The Blue Stars: I like this show SOOO much better than last years show! Love the unis this year too. Guard is fantastic! Another guard that had some very nice moments tonight. Front ensemble sounded amazing to me and so did the brass, especially the lead trumpets. Mellos took me by surprise tonight, good stuff! The drill is really coming along in the back half of the show, it's getting cleaner! What I liked the most: Those lead trumpets! I could listen to them all day. Bravo! Colorguard was on point! The Madison Scouts: Well, they had a good run tonight, but it just doesn't feel like the Madison I know and love. On the positive side their run tonight was a big improvement from Atlanta and the crowd loved them. So much so that when they announced Blue Stars ahead of Madison a lot of people in the audience actually disagreed. I feel like the blue stars are definitely ahead of Scouts right now though. Their show is just more polished imo. Back to the scouts though, like I said tonights run was much improved. Brass has a big sound, percussion sounded great to my untrained ear. To me the guard felt like an after thought at times, they just didn't really grab my attention much. What I liked the most: Screamers were playing with confidence tonight! Sounded great! Was nice to hear the trumpet duet without amplification! Carolina Crown: Well what can I say? Just wow from front to back! Guard was absolutely on FIRE tonight! That guard is just on another level imo....absolutely stunning. Brass of course was incredible as usual though there were a couple errors (a couple missed articulations and a stick out at a cut off), maybe mental or fatigue seeing as they drove from Winston Salem NC to Centerville Ohio last night after a long day rehearsal to do it all over again today. But I'm just being nit picky as a brass guy and having come to expect the absolute best from Crown Brass. They had us sucked in from the very first note. Crowd went crazy at the Medea hit in the opener. The brass gave me chills multiple times during the show. The soloist were brilliant tonight! Roxxanne got a great reaction from the audience. The new closer is in and yes there is a crown set! YAY! The new closer is fantastic! I really think the crowd at finals is going to absolutely LOVE it. Not a percussion guy but #### they sounded amazing to my untrained ear! Percussion features were really tight, and I loved how the battery and pit really compliment the ensemble sound throughout the show. Standing O from the crowd before the show was even over! GREAT show that I still think has the potential to win it all in Indy! What I liked the most: I'm a brass guy, Crown brass is as good as it gets IMHO. So much power and attention to detail in the music, their phrasing and articulation is astounding. However, guard stole the show for me. Again I'll say that they were absolutely stunning! Wonderful job!

Just to be clear, the kids are in very strong spirits, they are not down - they are focused on improving their performance level. From my perspective, BAC has had their best touring season ever. From planning to operations, fleet & food, volunteers, housing sites & stadiums, brand new Yamaha equipment, staff & coverage, commitment to school & free days, incredible experiences including performing with the Pops, and they have worked incredibly smart & hard as a team. Organizationally we have never been stronger: Inspire Arts & Music is in sound financial shape including a building, Music festival business, New Great East Music Store (GEMS) retail store partnership with Yamaha (official dealer in Boston), partnership with SAC, local programs with HyPE - Hyde Park Percussion and Hyde Park Brass (free to kids off the street), and the Fleetwood deal announced yesterday. We have strong leadership in Executive Director Chris Holland (in just his first year) and a supportive 45 person BOD. We are not limping home to Boston, we will be roaring into Quincy, Allentown, Buffalo, Erie and Indi. I expect performance levels to keep improving with the cleaning and performance tuning that is underway. We will fight through the end and finish as strong as we can. We are Building A Champion and will continue to look at what we need to do to get there, including listening to our fans, supporters and in some cases the counter view.

#TheWife says PC and Madison are sharing evening snack after the show.

So after every major catastrophe, "I Go On..."?

Much more visual work this morning at Newark...clean is getting cleaner! Doug Thrower and Tom Rarick also in town to work their magic. Don't forget the corps is running an open rehearsal tonight from 7:00-10:00 No admission, but donations accepted and appreciated.

Well done in Annapolis Boston! Not that a score means everything but it does mean something and that number was needed if only to validate to the MM's that all their hard work can pay off. It also keeps things really interesting in the 10 - 14 group. Keep up the hard work and clean clean clean and be loud loud loud.

Pardon my french but what the hell is wrong with some of you? Like the ending of not, there is NO need to be hostile toward one another.. aren't we here for the same reasons?

No need to apologize for another person's passive aggressive judgment.

Crown 92.05 BS 85.8 MS 84.15 Acad 82.4 Troop 81.35 Colts 79.85 PC 73.7

Well, it IS the government... Is that wrong? Isn't this what you want?

WOW!!! I loved the new ending Crown!!!

I thought Pacific Crest had a really good run. I like how the show's come along with cleaning and they did sound very balanced. Love the golden spike moment. Crest and Madison are sharing dinner and snacks tonight.

This show is years ahead of the rest of DCI this year. They have the total package and are paving the way a very bright future for their organization and further creativity of DCI. Well done and well deserved Bluecoats!

And used mannequins. (I kid!)

Low scores?

Bluecoats aren't the only ones knowing how to fly. Quiddich anyone?

I don't care what they do, as long as they do it well.

see now. that's where i think the concern is. There are those who engage in constructive criticism and discussion of the shows, design, colors, dance, horns, drums, etc etc etc. And there are those who post degrading comments. Some don't understand which is which. There's a report button for the latter. Destructive comments are not useful to anyone. They are simply there for the writer to flex their keyboard muscle and gain attention. The constructive comments and discussion many of us enjoy. Because we can't always discuss this activity with anyone in our immediate homes or lives, because many of them don't understand it. They like to watch it, but don't really get it. I love to talk design. Because I work in entertainment, as a designer and production manager, and I love the idea of art in motion. I love to talk hornlines because I'm a trombone player who plays more than my wife wants to let me. Some of the people on here have some great points about performance and the art of this activity. And its always great to chat with them about it. so as long as its congenial discussion, what's the problem?

Slide? What slide? Who sez I need a slide in order to fly? Another great photo by Ben Stanfield.

I was at Bluecoats' ensemble rehearsal last night. Just a quick update: they are laser focused on cleaning right now, particularly the visual book, and they are making good progress in that regard. Several spots that were highly exposed are looking much tighter now. We will have to wait and see how that translates into scores.

Well what do ya know, the Crown design team actually ended up implementing something similar to what Channel3 suggested earlier in this thread

Brian Blume does a great interview of Tom Rarick that touches on some subjects in this thread. Electronics, monitors, pit spread, etc for PAS's Rhythm Scene magazine. http://www.pas.org/publications/latest-issues/RhythmScene.aspx Click on Access the Rhythm! Scene Digital Edition

http://www.dci.org/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=33500&ATCLID=211098792 For the first two DCI championships, Bob had each corps include two adults on his committees. He took a gamble on a few of us and made the thing work, not counting the tornado winds and rains that drowned out the last two scores (Blue Stars and Anaheim Kingsmen.) Because he did his job so well, DCI worked and we are all better for it. Yes, as Michael Boo's wonderful article states, at times he could be stern even rigid, but he was principled and making it easier for the MMs and the corps (plural) was his first standard. And it had to be professional standard. My condolences to his son Kenny (Cavs alum) and to all those who helped shaped DCI in those early years. Sooooooo many lives have been touched since.

I just got back from Newark, OH where an estimated 2000 spectators enjoyed Bluecoats' ensemble rehearsal. Once again, the focus was clean, clean, clean. A lot of time was spent on the visual program, as you would expect but a lot of time was also spent in fine tuning the brass, mostly balance issues. It is a good position to be in at this juncture of the year.

I'm down. Especially if you devise a cocktail called a Hoptini and instruct the bartender. Would also accept: Bloody George, Tom Hopkins, Garfield Iced Tea, Grasshopkins, Slow Comfortable Screw(ed Out of a Medal).

I really hope The Academy hasn't peaked, yet. That show so deserves to be in the top 12. On the super positive, The Blue Stars score continues to rise and they are definitely keeping pace for the 7th spot.

What are you talking about? Jeff stated he left for personal family-related things. Stop letting the naysayers on this thread bring your thoughts to the gutter.

you can credit recovery skills. but drops still matter, some more than others. a lot of it has to do with when/where the drop happens. last person in a long sequential series has a drop -- that can kill an effect. flag in a flag block moment drops and takes 64 counts to get back in -- BAD! otoh some random person in a saber line drops and gets back in well -- not such a big deal. of course NOT dropping is a really good thing :-)

So in short I like Crowns new ending once it gets going and I think it REALLY works thematically, but I do not like how it just HAPPENS, and I really really really miss the field being absolutely covered with flags in exchange for all rifles waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down in the end zone. That ritard not being there totally kills any tension for that Medea reprise. That's the only thing that I really don't like. :/

Crown

Funny lot moment: older guy with tennis racket and a thing of tennis balls walks up to fenced in courts where three hornlines are doing visual warmup and just stares for a minute, then walks away.

I think the universe is controlled by volleyballs. I think kittens are secretly demonic entities. I think cacti are actually soft but no one knows. I think Crown will play musical instruments I think I am a bear trapped in a mans body. I think if we all flossed, there would be no wars. Anyone who disagrees with my post will be proven wrong when Crown plays musical instruments.

They're in Frostburg right now. With all apologies to Jon Snow, brace yourselves... A new ending is coming!

I'm coming over. Now.

This venue is amazing for drum corps. And, the last time I went, they also sold beer! Always a nice companion with drum corps. Anyone know if they sold beer last year? I was last there in 2014.

I could not agree more with SuperSaderFan and Red & Black. There have been a couple people in this thread who are alums and/or former staff who may have some not so subtle axes to grind. I find the "friendly" digs about the organization less than helpful at best and downright disingenuous at worst. Yes, it's a discussion board and yes we all have free speech. For my part, I reserve the right to be disappointed with an couple individuals' negative comments from afar. I never complain about the judging and I don't bash Boston, or for that matter, the Crossmen, Madison, Cavies and Blue Stars, et al. It is clear to me that everyone is having a great year. Congrats to those other teams on their recent vast improvement, but I still believe in Boston's ability to max out their production in the next 10 days. Competitively, I naturally hope to see BAC RISE by Indy. But, I know one thing...should this drum corps somehow not make it back into the top 12 for their 18th consecutive year, there is no way Boston will end up like those other World Class drum corps that Guardling was referencing. With one of the strongest organizations in all of DCI, the Boston Crusaders will absolutely return next season, and many more. Dead Corps International will have to wait another 75 years for BAC to join it.

Check Cappybara's dorm room. It's his new wallpaper.

They are old pros. Remember Coates was director of Crossmen there before he pitched them to Texas. Lately Crown has been renting Franklin Field at UPenn for a practice day during the week of (West) Chester and Allentown. Crownies are even getting good at spelling Schuylkill while they snack on their Tastycakes. Putting mustard on pretzels may be the tipping point.

Well done in Annapolis Boston! Not that a score means everything but it does mean something and that number was needed if only to validate to the MM's that all their hard work can pay off. It also keeps things really interesting in the 10 - 14 group. Keep up the hard work and clean clean clean and be loud loud loud.

I knew I left something out about Academy! Thank you! You're absolutely right about that! The flugelhorn soloist was incredible and you hit the nail on the head with "emotionally satisfying". My apologies it's been a long day lol.

Nice Review Das Tuba. Particlarly enjoyed your comments regarding THE ACADEMY. Yes the guard is quite strong this year the lead "actors/Wedding Couple" have so much chemistry and artistry between them. Those Xylo's skeletons, is another annual Classic Academy Front Ensemble feature. Surprised you didn't mention the Closer...IMHO, Their full, extended version and fluegelhorn solo of "Unchained Melody" is one of the most fan pleasing and emotionally satisfying of the summer.

someone bring the man some