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Some very quick thoughts, I'll do a more extensive review when I get back Tuesday after seeing some shows a 2nd time in Mesquite up high. For reference I was row 6 112, so blast zone right on the 50. I'll keep my quick thoughts more positive. I thought everyone was fantastic. There was not a show I didn't enjoy in some way. Sorry if these are a little......disjointed. Pretty wiped today. Like deceased. Dead. Think of these as my gut reactions. I've gone to this show just about every year since 2011 and this is far and away the best one top to bottom I've been to. - Compass was a nice surprise, some powerful sounds and a fun show they obviously love performing. - Aresenal was a little more mature all around, tons of potential there! Some great teaching going on there all around. - Seattle Cascades first hit SCARED THE CRAP OUT OF ME. They had some huge power in the front half of the show, some great music moments in there. - Jersey Surf is so so so much better this year than I've seen them in awhile. The show looks so great and they are really solid across all sections. Aurora Awakes was probably my favorite part of the show. Even if the scores don't show it, this is a hugely improved corps this year. - Music City sounds really really really solid, they have a great brass line and I love the Imagine closer. Maybe a little bit on the cheesy side for me, but we need some of those shows. Fun! - Genesis has a HARD show this year, tons of field coverage and exposed musical moments. The props have some great usage in the show, and the ballad is probably the highlight for me. - Troopers play SO well, that opening Persichetti solo is phenomenal. I think they achieve the space theme pretty well musically. To The Stars is a very pretty ballad. - Madison Scouts have some INCREDIBLY athletic moments, and even if the show isn't scoring super high it was probably the first to get the crowd REALLY going. Jazzy Young Persons Guide is fun. Made me kind of sad in ways, just in that we are seeing the end of an era. - PACIFIC CREST. HELLO. This reminds me of how I felt about Spirit in 2017. A huge step forward in design and performance for them. So many captivating musical moments in there. And seeing this live down low really brought it to life, those members really embody the various characters and moods so well. This was one of my favorites of the day. Bravo. - Colts sound great, they do the ANGRY fire section so so so well, that intensity is awesome. Percussion and guard really stood out in this tier to me, especially the guard in the closer. Love those icy blue silks flying through the air. - The Academy's visual aesthetic is so pleasing to look at, I love shows that coordinate like this. And bravo to that very exposed flugel soloist in the ballad. - Spirit of Atlanta is super fun, I really like the distinct changes in the uniform throughout the show, but especially the white. That whole ballad is just MONEY. Will it push them into finals? I'm not sure it's their year. It's SO CLOSE to being there, but I'm just not sure how they would do it looking at the recap. I wouldn't mind if they did it though. - Phantom Regiment. I didn't give you the grief a lot of other posters did in June, but I did have some big question marks. I love being proven wrong. It's not my favorite show from them but it doesn't leave me devoid of emotion like last year did. It's got some rough spots in there (mainly design related), but wow those kids sell this thing. O Fortuna was the signal that we were in finalist territory. Drums are fantastic as well. They've made some great changes to the show, and while I still have some personal quips design wise, I don' think they're missing this year. Honestly I think they're going to start putting pressure above rather than receiving it from below. - One of my friends said it best last night, this show is a freaking rock concert on the field AND I LOVED IT. I liked this online, but LOVED it in person. Every single person on that field buys into that show. That head drum major especially is a BAD ###! And they've still got some points to squeak out across the board too. I can't believe this show is sitting in 11th, but I think that's a testament to how good of a year this is. Loved the new ending with the guitars just shredding. SHRED IT BRO! - Mandarins also buy into their show on every single level. GEEZ, this is an intense show. Online the guard was good but seemed a bit.......sterile? Especially the flags. But in person. 😳There is so much nuance and characterization there you don't get online, they grab you by the throat and don't let go for twelve minutes. I do think musically they need another year to keep building. I love the ambition there musically and they sound great, I just think that's the weakest spot. But as a production. WOAH. - The Cadets. I hate to see them this low because those members are performing their collective ##### off. As a performance, I really enjoyed this show. Brass didn't sound like a 13th place brass line, even with some issues. I just think that's how the book is designed bleeding into performance captions. I won't harp on what has already been said. I'll end with HOLY MOTHER OF GOD DRUMLINE. They can have my keys and wallet. They were worth the price of admission. Incredible performance from them. - Blue Stars play SO MUCH Better live! I liked this show online, LOVED it in person. Musically there are so many little flurries and nuances, in the Copland especially, that are so impressive beyond the typical loud technical stuff. Them and two other hornlines really blew me away with their phrasing and shaping of musical lines. They have developed an incredible brass sound. Online I kinda thought they could fully commit more to the theme, but in person I got it. And yeah, they're hauling ###. Fantastic job. - Blue Knights are on the cusp of something incredible, and I think they're there in many regards. My biggest take away is oh my GOD they're athletic. If you think marching and playing demand is dead, look no further. They are running and playing constantly in Liquid and in the closer. Bocook and Jackson and Crew create such an ethereal experience musically. One second they're brushing their hand across your cheek, and the next second they're decking you and giving you a black eye. I love how they can turn the tone of a show in a split second. It's hard to put into words that show, but it's something. I'll elaborate more later. - Cava-freaking-liers. WOAH. This was either my favorite or second favorite show of the night. I'm going to talk brass for a minute. No one last night shaped and phrased like they did to my ear. And they did it on freaking technical passages like it was nothing. Pacing crescendos and decrescendos like that or doing terraced dynamics that evenly on both fast and slow passages is NOT easy. Bums Rush especially was incredible. 4th in brass was VERY well deserved, there were a lot of lines that PLAYED LOUD AND FAST THE WHOLE SHOW and did it well, but not not much else. Bravo to Cavaliers and a few others on that. Now, the ballad. Dear GOD. That was probably my favorite moment last night. As soon as they face forward......they hit you like a freight train. And it made the show make sense. It's one of those things where I can't put my finger on how to say what they're conveying, but I got it. Well deseved mid show standing O. That's gonna be a riot on finals. Also, colorguard and drums are fantastic too. Cavaliers guard does athletic tricks like no one else out there, they're wildly entertaining to watch. Drumline is fantastic, and I love seeing another really cool split marimba feature. Of 4-5-6......this show felt the most complete to me. They very well might end up 6th and if they do it's because the five ahead of them are just so good. But they're creeping up. And I don't think that's going to stop. I'd love this show in 4th. - Boston Crusaders are LOUD. Geez. They really push your hair back. I'll get the obvious out of the way, the guard is incredible. As an ensemble and as solo performers they are so captivating and portray the theme very well throughout. I love the front half of the show, some of the best drum corps out there this year. Back half I enjoyed but I do have some thoughts which I'll share later. Percussion was the sore spot on the recap, but I think that's mainly due to how deep that caption is. They're playing well, just needs to cross into that next level of clarity. - Carolina Crown's first note is WOAH HOLY CRAP. I wasn't ready for that, even knowing how good their brass is. That note alone is worth seeing them for. This show is non stop energy and excitement from top to bottom. Drums are very solid again this year and I was pleasantly surprised by the colorguard. As a production it's still not really doing it for me, but as a performance. Wow. Top notch. - Santa Clara Vanguard has a championship tier corps. Brass sounds amazing, drums are still insanely good, colorguard is phenomenal, and they perform so incredibly well. Musically, I bought this more live. It's incredibly quirky and agressive, and then the closer just SOARS triumphantly over all of that. Like Carolina Crown it's not really for me as a production, but as a performance I'd totally watch it again. Don't really have any thoughts on the tarps, was too low. - Blue Devils.......I thought they were going to do it last night. That show is so fun, so entertaining, and so expertly crafted by both the performers and staff. I totally get it live, it's a ghosts of performances past coming out to play. I have known all season that is what the theme is, but tonight I got it in context for sure. There is something both scary and downright fun about their colorguard. At the beginning of the show the ones depicting the Zeus type stuff just slowly turn their heads around to the crowd with these CREEPY masks on and just pulled me right in. That's an example to me of the kind of individual performance of even the smallest detail that makes BD what they are. Just a slow about face made me shooketh. Katchaturian is ALMOST there, and when it does holy crap. The ballad is INCREDIBLE. The exposure and clarity there is just mouthwatering. Closer isn't done, I can tell they've got more planned. The prop usage in this show is incredible, the amount of variety they get out of them is mindboggling. This show just sets a mood so well and keeps at it the whole show. Brass was a little loose, that's my only slightly critical observation. But other than that, bravo. Can't wait to see where it goes next. - Bluecoats. Blue.Coats. Maybe a little of a loose run last night (which I thought well before scores were announced so don't come @ me), but WOW. No one else this year has a show that is so top to bottom seamless and knows what it is at every waking moment. Dean Westman said it best on opening night, this is a Beatles concert that never happened. That's how it feels, it's a concert that just embodies what the Beatles were and are today. The build to the opening hit, all of Elanor Rigby, the brass licks, BLACKBIRD, Come Together, etc. I can just name moment after moment in this show. And they perform on an individual level like no one else. They PERFORM, if that makes sense. Brass is incredible this year, with a cleaner run they can win brass. Percussion was great too, I think the score last night was a pretty good representation. COLORGUARD! They are great this year, the individual characters throughout each section are so great, and as an ensemble they have so much chemistry. I've seen words like synthetic, choppy, etc. thrown around about this show. And if you don't like it, hey! That's great. Not everyone is going to like every show. But those are the farthest words from what I'd use to describe this show. It just feels so.......authentic. They know what this show is and believe in it every second they perform. Again.....sorry if that's a little bit of word vomit. I'll do a combined one when I get back home mid week. Every show had something great in there, and again, those kids and staff doing this are incredible people bringing something incredible to a football field. If I didn't have drum corps to follow, I'm not sure what I'd be passionate about. Love this activity.

So now we have to have rings to have an opinion? What a load of crap.

My favorite moment in San Antonio last night didn't happen on the field. Last night would have been the second year that San Antonio was the "home show" of tuba player Dayton Bryant. He died in a skydiving accident this past Spring. Last night his family was invited into the Cavaliers horn circle to be honored by the Corps. There are multiple images/videos but this one kinda says it all. And for the cherry on top, that's my son conducting the brass line. THIS is Drum Corps to me. I can get as competitive as anyone about numbers on a sheet. But this is the spirit of Drum Corps I fell in love with back in 1978. Couldn't be prouder of the Cavaliers for the way they take care of their own.

That was unexpected: After the show, The Wife commented of the top 6 Corps, her favorites were Carolina Crown (duh!) and ... wait for it .... Blue Devils. Blue Devils???? BLUE DEVILS??? 1-800-DIVORCE can expect a call shortly. j/k of course.

You win the Michael Boo award for most comprehensive, positive and thoughtful review on DCP.

Tarps should be banned from drum corps. I know that sounds harsh but they are a danger to the kids, and are almost always a waste of money.

I have read/watched literally 0 of BD's info about their show but ... a "ghostlight" is the light the last person to leave a theater puts on stage. The ghostlight is turned on at the beginning (when the field is seemingly empty) and the show is what the ghosts do while the light is on. That's why we hear a bunch of Shakespeare quotes, and snippets from past BD shows and such. I thought it was reasonably clear as BD themes go. The real head-scratchers for me theme-wise in the top 6 are SCV (I couldn't tell you a single way in which a "voice of destruction" is depicted in their show) and Crown.

Doesn't SOA have something to say about that?

Just do a great drum corps show. Why have Cadets consistently tried to make social statements in a band show? It almost NEVER works. No one enjoys social studies class, except perhaps the teacher...and she already passed the class.

This is a post of two tales... Lists everything that is the EXACT OPPOSITE OF THE ENTIRE DIRECTION OF THE ENTIRE ACTIVITY RIGHT NOW (except a failing Madison) Then says that all this is based on having competent designers. BRUH. Competent designers wouldn't do literally ANY Of the things you've listed, or they'd be unemployed.

Remember: Benz stadium prices are not what you'd expect. They are MUCH cheaper by decree of the ATL Falcons owner -- bless him!

I'm the last person who should be pointing out typos ( I end up editing almost every post!) but this one made me smile!

thank you. The sense of entitlement in here, without remembering the entire picture is astounding. Cavaliers 2012-2018. perfect example, and the corps down there are better than ever. said it before, i'll say it again...this is going to be a several year rebuilding process. to think anything else is foolish, and you may see steps backwards from time to time.

they need some work for that. Look i have said it a 1000 times, so here's 1001....the competition around them is better than ever. this isn't the "glory days" of BD/SCV/Cavies/Phantom all rotating in and out of the top 3. the old big drop off from say 6th to 7th place aint like it was. And cadets do not need to go spend a lot of money they don't have. it didn't take one year for the corps to get in this position...it had been at least a 5 year downward spiral that truly wasn't noticeable til 3 years ago. Sometimes you have to fix back office things before you can truly fix what everyone sees. and right now, IMO, that is where the Cadets are. I am sure they would have liked the sow to end up better. History is littered with show ideas that looked great on paper that ended up tanking.

Finally some explanation of show design by Andy Toth Dear heavens! After watching that video (thanks BTW) I now know even less than when I started! The tuba guy represents an outcast? The members are building a safe space?? The uniforms represent kilts??? Man, if they are building a safe space why don't they just play Great Gate of Kiev and be done with it! At least I like the music. 😎

Looks like some additions coming to the show this week. A couple of days in Memphis for the corps o solidify said changes and will not introduce sometime this weekend.

The best analogy that I’ve heard about bringing James Elvord back was, it would be like bringing Vince Lombardi back to coach in today’s NFL.

Just want to jump in here to say Santa Clara’s tarps really damaged my enjoyment watching them on Flo. Maybe it’s better in person, but I doubt it. The glare is distracting, of course, but so is the dominance of pattern. The effect of such a giant circle was overwhelming my concentration. Whatever movements the performers presented were fogged out of mind. This is what I assume Macular Degenerative disease to be, as folks describe that condition. Still, I like SCV’s music better than all the rest and hope they find a way to a podium finish.

Let's see if I can the rest of these to post from my viewing partner... The Cadets - 7/10 -- loved the whole performance and then it went down when the "do better" part happened Blue Knights - 7/10 -- ...I remember nothing about this performance Blue Stars - 8/10 -- good show, it all flowed, I was entertained, "when you they're supposed to be in a straight line, they were in a straight line" The Cavaliers - 9.1/10 -- most emotion, cohesive Carolina Crown - 9.5/10 -- so quick, so much happened, they are great Boston Crusaders - 9/8/10 -- best show, best music, best everything so far The Bluecoats -- I feel like none of my scores count now. That was amazing. Santa Clara Vanguard -- That was a 10 and nothing else counts. That was a show! Blue Devils -- Least favorite of the top 3

I just watch! And watch, and watch lol. Because i know BD is taking that lead soon. I listen and read what everyone is saying and i dont flinch or even nerd to defend the inevitable. but i keep watching and watch and watch some more. In all honesty if i know without a doubt that BD couldn't and wouldn't catch and pass them then i would clearly admit so and just cheer them on just the same. Mind you that everyone is coming with changes and final touches along with final closures to their shows. But that wont change BD position to take the lead seeing how this show have more legs to maximise. I actually want every group to maximises and get so much better than they are tonight.

July 20 Run-Down The night we were all waiting for! I'll do a more detailed year over year comparison post in a bit but first I'll do a quick summary of the night here. DCI New Hampshire - Goffstown, NH Spartans came out guns blazing with a 11.150 point increase over its last competition on July 1. Spartans and Legends are now in the Open Class #2 and #3 spots among corps heading to Indy. Les Stentors returned to the field of competition after a yearlong hiatus. Gold Showcase - Vista, CA Blue Devils B and Vanguard Cadets went out with strong scores placing them #16 and #17 among all corps and #1 and #2 in Open Class on their last night of competition. Their scores were high enough to have been in medal contention at last year's Open Class championship so these two corps' names will likely remain high on the ranking list even as they stop competing. DCI Southwestern Championship - San Antonio, TX Bluecoats continues to find a way to win, maintaining an undefeated season by a 0.200 point margin. Placements stayed the same all the way through the top 6 although Boston Crusaders narrowed the spread with Carolina Crown to just 0.350 points. Blue Knights and Blue Stars proved their victories over The Cadets were real. If these placements hold through finals, we will see historic finishes for Blue Stars and The Cadets -- on opposite ends of the experience spectrum as Blue Stars would have its highest finish since returning to World Class and The Cadets its lowest placement ever since first joining the finalist ranks. Mandarins bested Crossmen by 0.300 points and Phantom Regiment earned the #12 spot with a pretty good lead over Spirit of Atlanta. Madison Scouts are down in 17th place which would rank the lowest finish for that corps. There were very large score increases down at the bottom of World Class with Genesis breaking 70 and coming out ahead of Music City and Jersey Surf. Despite a nearly 4-point increase, Seattle Cascades remain several points back at the bottom of the World Class standings.

You have to move forward. Your roster changes every year, kids have no clue what history is or what it means. You create your new history.

I’m gonna go check out some rehearsal tomorrow but wow. What a show on all levels. Every little thing is just essence of Bluecoats and Beatles perfectly married into a seamless package. It’s incredible. I don’t care if they keep up the streak or not, this is a SHOW in all regards. Love it.

Yes you are the only one that loved 2017.

Ok, it’s time for a little sunshine and rainbows.... congrats MMs on your undeniable improvement. A testament to your strength and dedication. Two qualities that will serve you well in whatever endeavors you take on in years to come. Keep pushing!

I agree. You in particular called it. I guess I'm the "eternal optimist" I'd also add - I *thought* it in April and *said* it in July Guess I'm a bit more guarded - once I heard the music from the April camp I was very concerned in terms of show arc / transitions and arrangement The members remain terrific.

If you think that tarp is going to make this a gold medal show then I will bet my house and all my kids lives and wait to see who is right. If anything it will push them out of the medals.

Boston’s coastline tarp last year was an important part of the design and I’d say it worked really well and it was off to the side so it posed no danger and minimal glare.

I have said this before and i will say it again.........BD and Bloo need to start a symposium on Swag. No one has swag like they do. I sure as heck would be in the front row at that symposium with a pen and pad taking notes. Lord knows i need some swag in my life lol.

We just don’t possess your drum corps genius. Maybe someday. One can dream.

Predicting finals night can be simple. IT'S THE JUDGING PANEL. Look at who the panel is and their past history (point spreads) between each corps. That can tell who wins. Judges tend not to change their "opinions" much once a pattern is set. Did this analysis when the panel was announced for finals, the year Crown won. Was off by one or two tenths between 1 and 2 for finals night.

Just got back from the show. The scores were all over the place, but the fact remains that BD again closed the gap with Bloo to .2 and BD is still dirty. I want to congratulate Bloo for staying undefeated tonight, but I can almost guarantee you that by the next show BD will leap frog them and not look back. The biggest surprise for me was Blue Stars. They have a show that is not only terrific, but fun as heck to watch. My biggest disappointment was SCV. I felt their show was too esoteric and also a bit boring at times.

For my money, it's Crown/Bloo/BAC. Compelling performances. They have something to say. To me, Crown brings the complete package. BD: Have loved them the past few years; this time around it's sterile brilliance once again. I absolutely cannot fathom their stratospheric GE scores. They are distant, clinical. No sweat or emotion. SCV: drum corps on a platter. Not too hard to set an arc when it's drawn on the field for you. Like 'em better than BD, but with all the prickly antennae bristling and the shine from the tarps and the blah unis and the neon guard . . . it all kind of hurts the eyes. Was kinda let down by Cavies, tbh, after hearing so many great things about them during their West Coast Tour. Love their power and their command. Visually it was on the ordinary side. BK had a strong run, it looked like. Brass in "Liquid" sounded the tightest yet in competition. Kina wonky scores across the captions . . . guard had been beating Mandarins on the W Coast, but tonight was behind; drums were like 0.4 behind BD a week ago, and tonight were a point behind; brass was a whisker 0.05 behind Blue Stars brass, yet MA scores were a combined 1.05 above Stars . . . just lots of turbulence in the captions from corps to corps and show to show. Need to keep cleaning the visual. Oh, and this was the first read of the battery in a dome, and the echo effects in "Hurt" were amazingly effective. Stars sound very good as usual with that super-well-coached, balanced sound. I think their visual is underscored, and their GE is overscored. I'm just not getting whatever it is they're selling. They're not especially "wild," if that's what they're going for. Cadets: Just give me those tenors for 11 minutes and I'll be happy. Honestly, their GE is way too high. Behold . . . what, exactly? Nice and clean visual for the first regional. There is a lot of brass not playing all at once in this show. The Mandarins vibe just isn't my cup of tea, and I discount them accordingly, and I understand that I am not a judge, so if they say 10th, then 10th it is. But I'll take the Crossmen over Mandies, and Crossmen over Cadets and maybe even over Blue St -- nah, but Xmen are flesh and blood and heart and soul this year, which is a welcome change for them. Phantom: They impressed me tonight. I think it's absolutely in their power to put pressure on Crossmen and Mandarins. Will see everyone several times in Indy, so I have to remember that the impression I get from the computer screen may change dramatically when I see them in person. I especially expect to love Cavies when I finally get to see them up close.

No idea if this is what they're hearing but after watching the run a few times (on tape delay -- I was out all day and just got in) , this is all that occurs to me: Transparency is not a very good design element. Intellectually it makes sense. Visually it just doesn't translate at all to the medium In fact LACK OF CONTRAST (from the box) is probably the single biggest issue facing the design. There are also too many repeated effects in the flag work. How many times do we need to see sequentials or A/B? Some of it could stand a rewrite. Look at how the GE scores are tracking guard scores right now. If they're saying "this doesn't work because it's visually washed out", that's a color palette problem and has little to do with excellence from the performer. Is the show doomed? Heck no the performers are BRINGING IT. Some new flag work and new guard unis. It's not too late.

San Antonio Analysis The Medalists Since the mid-season analysis one week earlier, Blue Devils passed Santa Clara Vanguard to move into the silver medal spot. No medalist positions changed from San Antonio to finals in 2017 or 2018. That said, the spread from 1st to 2nd in 2019 is just 0.200 compared to 1.350 in 2018 and 0.475 in 2017. Third place is closer to first place in 2019 at 0.738 points than in 2018 (1.650) or 2017 (0.925) as well. Despite the tightness of the Top 3, the 4th place corps is further away from medalist position this year (1.612) than 2018 (0.587) or 2017 (1.150). Conclusion? For an undefeated corps, Bluecoats sure has its work cut out to maintain that lead for the remainder of the season with both Blue Devils and Santa Clara Vanguard hot on its heels. Based on trends in previous years and wider spreads to 4th place this year, it seems unlikely that Carolina Crown or Boston Crusaders will penetrate the Top 3. The Top 6 No changes at all in the 4th-6th spots since the mid-season analysis. No corps moved out of this grouping in 2018 or 2017 from mid-season to San Antonio or from San Antonio to finals although there has been movement within the group in each of those years. Carolina Crown leads Boston Crusaders by just 0.350 points for the #4 spot, the tightest in the past three seasons at this point (1.675 in 2018 and 1.025 in 2017). The Cavaliers narrowed the gap to 5th place from two points at mid-season to just 1.013 points in San Antonio. The Top 12 If the current Top 12 holds, the corps will be the same for two years in a row. There were no changes in the make-up of the Top 12 from San Antonio to finals in 2018. In 2017, Madison Scouts moved up from 13th to take the last finalist spot from Mandarins. From mid-season to San Antonio this year, there was some minor movement within the groupings of three (7-9 and 10-12). The spread from 1st to 12th right now is 10.600 points compared to 11.475 in 2018 and 11.775 in 2017. There has been some commentary about the overall strength of the Top 12 and the tighter spreads suggest that to be the case. Bad news for corps trying to break into finals, though, as the spread from 13th to 12th is larger this year (1.738) than in 2018 (1.125) or 2017 (0.300). Largest Changes from 2018 (San Antonio to San Anton) +6 - Gold (26th to 20th) +6 - Shadow (43rd to 37th) -6 - Guardians (30th to 36th) +5 - Southwind (34th to 29th) +5 - River City Rhythm (39th to 34th) 4 with +4 (Blue Devils B, Golden Empire, Vessel, Incognito) and 2 with -4 (Troopers, Music City) The Battles Here are the tightest spreads in the 2019 Top 15: 0.200 points - #1 Bluecoats over #2 Blue Devils -- How exciting to have the closest spread at the top! 0.300 points - #10 Mandarins over #11 Crossmen -- The corps have traded wins so this makes sense. 0.325 points - #7 Blue Knights over #8 Blue Stars -- Bad news for The Cadets to see these two corps battling it out for 7th place. 0.350 points - #4 Carolina Crown over #5 Boston Crusaders -- These corps have also had some back and forth throughout the season. 0.538 points - #2 Blue Devils over #3 Santa Clara Vanguard -- Would generate a lot of excitement to see this stay tight. Here were the tightest spreads in the 2018 Top 15 and what happened: 0.163 points - #5 The Cavaliers over #6 Boston Crusaders -- Boston moved into #5 by finals. 0.187 points - #8 Blue Knights over #9 Blue Stars -- Blue Stars moved into #8 by finals. 0.288 points - #9 Blue Stars over #10 Phantom Regiment -- Blue Stars moved up and Phantom Regiment moved down. 0.300 points - #2 Blue Devils over #3 Bluecoats -- Held. 0.363 points - #14 Spirit of Atlanta over #15 Colts -- Both corps moved up over #13 The Academy. And for 2017: 0.200 points - #10 Crossmen over #11 Blue Stars -- Blue Stars moved into #10 by finals. 0.300 points - #12 Mandarins over #13 Madison Scouts -- Madison Scouts moved into #12 by finals. 0.450 points - #2 Santa Clara Vanguard over #3 Carolina Crown -- Held. 0.475 points - #1 Blue Devils over #2 Santa Clara Vanguard -- Held. 0.600 points - #6 Boston Crusaders over #7 The Cadets -- Held.

Just a few performance photos form SA...

I agree that we have to go someplace, but at this point I'd rather take a year and do a "vintage Cadets" thing and get 8th place than keep trying and failing to play someone else's game. Also, our kids know our history. More than anything else, they know our history.

OK... for the record, I can't recall George Dixon ever mentioning that "Nearer My God To Thee" is one of his favorite songs.

Understatement of the century!

Yes!!! I will be at the Atlanta show as well!!! So ready to see them live and hopefully with changes!!

The net competitive effect of this would be zero. There's a sentiment I see often where the "solution" to a competitive slump is for a corps do "something, something, tradition". "Tradition" is nowhere on the scoring rubric. In terms of actual effect on placement, it has none. What *does* is show design that either keeps up with or improves on current design trends. A 9th place Cadets that walks out with maroon and gold tomorrow is a 9th place Cadets that happens to be wearing maroon and gold.

The SCV tarps also looked terrible close up. Huge wrinkles/folds, that got worse whenever someone marched or rolled a prop over them. The only way I've seen tarps used effectively in DCI is as decoration at the edges of the field. It never seems to work well if people are going to march over them.

This one here and I disagree about drum corps all the time.

It is interesting that as the San Antonio Regional is dissected by the DCP brain trust, little is being said about BAC now being only .35 behind Crown. Just two days ago some folks were still saying that Crown was only one point behind SCV and that could easily be made up to medal.. Now comes the Boston Crusaders....now what? A blind dog with a note in its mouth can see that BAC is moving. Just like 2018. Just like 2017. And, even in 2016, an otherwise tough year, they went from 14th in Allentown to 12th in Semis six days later. History shows that Boston does, in fact, surge during the last weeks of the season. Call institutional groupthink, or bunker mentality, or inspiration from what is arguably THE most supportive alumni network anywhere in DCI, but Boston is able to draw strength during the final part of the season. For members of this drum corps, as corny as it may sound to some, being a "Boston Crusader" is a thing. Spending an evening in the Most Precious Blood Church in Hyde Park is a thing. And having 80 years of alumni who have their back without reservation is a thing. QueenAnne may not like it, but BAC quite likely has not yet landed in its final competitive spot yet. Eat'em Up, Boston! Keep that accelerator right to the floor guys!

I aged out 30+ years ago. I'm assuming I got the email because I paid $150 for my child to attend to the November 2018 camp to audition for Cadets2. The corps was disbanded three days later. Another example of poor timing?

That’s not what I meant. I meant the role of designing not shoving a message down our throats. The message is trite and moronic.

Blue Devils have a Sousaphone? I need vodka. Danger Will Robinson - Danger!

Well, in fairness when the recaps strictly match the placement of each corps, people complain about slotting. I much prefer judges calling it like they see it. The recaps SHOULD be all over the board because there's honestly very little reason for a corps to have the same Placement in every single caption. With that said, I'm really hoping crown can hold their ground in 4th. I'd hate to see BAC overtake them

Does anybody know, do the kids read this stuff on the bus is late at night when they’re traveling from show site to show site? Because maybe I shouldn’t type when I’m drunk…

Congratulations BK on an outstanding show at San Antonio. What a strong musical program this year. You guys really made a statement this evening. Keep building on that. Look forward to seeing you in Atlanta.