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spatula67

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Posts posted by spatula67

  1. Just got back from the Niles, Michigan show. Had a great time till the tornado anyway ! The show officials did a good job of warning the corps & crowd about the impending bad weather. Sounds like everyone was safe. I really enjoyed all the corps that I did get to see. Here are a few thoughts:

    Gold - Very nice sound from a large brass section - counted 11 contras. Very talented flugelhorn soloist in the middle tune. Show got a great response from the crowd. Kept wondering to myself.... could this corps might be the next big corps from California ??

    Blue Saints - very small corps once again, but performing pretty well. I think they just need a little more confidence in their ability & sell the show better. The drum line has two snare drummers who are featured - very talented kids.

    Les Stentors - This was the first time I had seen this corps in three years. Wow..what a shock. So much improved. Performing a fun 60's rock show complete with a "wipeout" percussion feature - a big hit with the crowd. A few individuals sticking out in the horn line but overall very nice. A five member guard but very talented and selling the show well.

    Colt Cadets - Saw this corps at Whitewater - very much improved since that show especially in the brass section. Battery plays musically & have a well written book. Colt Cadets always a crowd favorite in the open class did not disappoint again this year. great job !

    Raiders - Nice upper brass ! Very sophisticated show design. Nice volume from a horn line with less than 40 performers. Pretty sure brass was the strongest section of the corps till the percussion feature - Holy Cow !. Nice well rounded corps. Loved the show.

    Legends - Never shy away from challenging their performers. Nice show concept that the crowd can relate to especially in the Midwest. Very nice low brass section & a much improved color guard this year. A huge response from the home state crowd.

    Music City - What a clever show design. Performing songs the average audience member can relate to but still presenting it in a new & fresh way - excellent. All areas of this corps are pretty strong. The color guard was a definite standout. One of my favorite shows of the year.

    7th Regiment - Daunting task going on after the much bigger Music City but Regiment pulled it off quite well. Small horn line but have nice volume & play very musically.

    Genesis - My first viewing of this corps ever. They did not disappoint. Very complex show for the open class. I wonder what kind of damage this corps could do if they were full ?? I'm a fan.

    Bummed out that I couldn't see the rest of the corps. Someday I will get to see the O.C. perform - live !

    photos from the show: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4465359833620.2185800.1278502144&type=1

    • Like 2
  2. Talked to my son on the phone last night who is a Blue Star trumpet. He said yes their were a few collisions but their is NO off the field drama going on. In fact most of them were laughing it up at the Subway restaurant near the stadium when I called. Sounds to me like a certain "Alum" has some sour grapes going on and is trying to stir up trouble where there is none.

    • Like 5
  3. Sometime in the early 90's, my wife and I were on the way to a DCI Regional in Bloomington, Indiana. Our car broke down on the interstate and since it was before the days of the cell phone we had to hike to the nearest house to use the phone. Luckily, a very nice & trusting lady let us in to use her phone and wait for help to arrive. She asked where we were going. I hesitated before telling her we were going to something called a "Drum Corps Show". Her jaw dropped - it turns out her daughter had been a color guard member of 27th Lancers for five years. What's the chances???

  4. Roman needs to fly me in to have a serious discussion. Thats the start. Where would my vision take Pioneer? Finals.

    Jersey Surf, a weekend only corps, whom I aged out from, and whom I also love dearly, has beat Pioneer, a full touring corps now for how many years now?

    The pain of losing all these years must be because of a ton of waste top to bottom, and I want to be the one to bring the broom in and let the members expeirence the joy of winning again. Pioneer has been there before....

    If I have to make my feelings public to make this happen, fine. Whatever it takes.

    Two years is all I need. I don't wake up everyday and operate with a part time hobbyist bowling league mentality.

    Pioneer MUST make a comeback.

    on a side note- We've already got them playing the best drums now ;)

    Wow...this has that Indiana Eclipse kind of vibe going.....

  5. I spent Sunday afternoon and evening with the corps in Centerville, Ohio. The kids had just spent 12 hours on the bus traveling from Atlanta. They had a short meeting and had sectionals for two hours. The corps seemed to be in good spirits despite their on-going transportation issues :thumbup: They were working very hard in their practice and the drumline was enjoying their new Mapex drums ( sound very nice !!) Sunday night they did laundry which gave us time to spend with our son who we had not seen since the Carmel show.

    I think Pioneer is going to keep fighting till the very last show. They are a great group of kids !

  6. For a long time I've wondered what would happen if Pio had all of their winter camps in Chicago ? A good chunk of the corps already comes from Naperville & Romeoville and almost all the other kids either drive thru or fly into Chicago. I mean how many corps did Chicago support in the 50's, 60's & 70's ?? The corps could still use Pioneerland for everydays in the summer. I know they would not want to make a permanent move because of the bingo but they could do something similar to what Blue Stars and Madison are doing. just a thought........

  7. I hope everything is ok with our friends at Pioneer. Teal Sound had some bus issues last night as well that impacted our rehearsal day, so we know how that goes. Here's hoping Pioneer makes it to Broken Arrow safely and throws down for the crowd.

    Thank you for the kind words... you guys are a class act !

  8. I just wish they would get rid of the 45 second speech in the middle. It adds nothing to the program, gets a tiny splatter of applause, and while I understand the meaning of it, alot of people in the audience are rolling their eyes at it.

    Kind of pointless to do a show about the Corps Prayer if they don't actually say it.....

  9. Does anyone know if the corps even made it to Broken Arrow ?? I know they are having some bus issues and didn't make it to their housing site last night....but I can't find out anything today. :laughing: I hope everything works out for them they have been doing so well !

  10. Shouldn't all this pre-season hype go under the heading of a press release? I recall you making some similar observations last year around this time. Casual observer or staff member? Which is it?

    I guess we will have to wait and see. I was at all the winter camps but one and I can tell you they have lots of very talented kids in the hornline and drumline. Kids that could easily get spots in top 12 corps. I admire these kids because they are staying at Pioneer because they believe in Pio and what the corps stands for. Best of luck to Pioneer you guys are awesome no matter where you place !!

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