Keith Laubhan

I'm curious, too. I really want to see those Glassmen uniforms.

Curious to see what new uniform is receiving the best response as we head into the season.

I can't help but think the white stripes will vibrate from up top, as it alternates white and red. I prefer the previous two iterations, myself, but I'll give them credit for looking very much like the Crusaders.

I prefer the 02-04 look, with the steeper stripe, but these are a cool with their homage to a decade ago... a good update to that look. Definitely not feeling to the top-heavy drum major uniforms or the cadet corps unis, though.

Hopefully the green will be darker and more desaturated than that... I think it could look really cool with the cream, assuming it's not day-glo.

Really? I think they're among the most distinct in World Class. Between the color combination, the shakos, and the design of the jacket, they're certainly a lot more recognizable than the all blacks that they've been wearing.

Hmmm... I like the nods towards the late 80s look, especially in the chevrons.... I'm surprised at the lack of shoulder wings, but don't mind it. I definitely like the collar... Not digging the gray trim that terminates behind the sash, or the buttons on the front... they seem a little superfluous. There's things I like about them, there are things I don't... I do thing they'll look better from up top than the previous uniforms, in terms of the overall cut of the jackets.

I'll give it the old college try: 1. Cadets (seems to be a fashionable choice) 2. Cavaliers 3. Blue Devils 4. Regiment 5. Crown 6. Blue Knights (a bit of a homer pick, admitedly, but I'm pretty excited about them right now) 7. Santa Clara Vanguard 8. Blue Stars 9. Bluecoats (I think 6-9 will be the tightest race of the year) 10. Scouts 11. Crusaders 12. Crossmen

That's a fair point... As I said earlier, I'm glad that they've got rid of the tie-breaker. I'm just glad nobody's got screwed out of a championship since it was implemented.

Not true... golfers are keenly aware of their current standing, and it greatly influences their strategy. Down by a stroke on the 18? You're not going to be laying it up in a borderline situation.

The difference, though, at least in my opinion, is that in the Super Bowl, you've got two opposing teams that affect each other's performance. Drum corps is an offense only sport... you can't impede your opponent's progress with defense. Every corps puts up their best scores (or at least tries), and then a panel of judges independently assign numbers through predetirmined criteria. If a tie happens, it's not a cop out, it's not a participation award- it's a coincidence that happens to yield more champions, which I don't see as a bad thing at all. I love competition, don't get me wrong. It's a reason I became passionate about the activity. But if two corps end up crossing the finish line at the exact same time, as it were, I've got no problems congratulating both champions and regarding them as the best in the activity.

I have always thought about it that way... I've never understood the grumblings otherwise. If the sum of the judges' scores (while working completely independent of each other) come out to the same thing, so be it!

I wasn't too excited until I saw the trailer... this will be pure Madison! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOU8GIRUd_g

In reference to Blue Knights? Really? Like their shows over this time period or not, I can't think of a single corps who has taken more risks from a programmatic standpoint than BK... at times to their detriment. You could've made that argument in the early to mid 90s, but certainly not in this decade. If your opinion is that BK plays it safe, mine is that you have no idea what you're talking about... --- As for Blue Stars, I'll reserve judgment until I see and hear their show. As many have pointed out, their show description is somewhat reminiscent of other WWII-era themed shows, but I certainly don't think that the concept has been completely mined out. There's still some unexplored ideas, I think, and I hope Blue Stars have another successful season. It's good to see more corps competing at that level.

I look forward to whatever you're smiling about over there, John....

I hope they move to some sort of HD solution soon... I'm glad they switched to widescreen, but the overall pciture quality of the 2008 set is ROUGH... I realize that it's a tough activity to capture on the limited storage size of DVD, between the amount of motion and range of color, but I can't help but feel that they could have done better. Here's hoping either for feasible Blu-ray, or some sort of downloadable, HD quality file, that will play on my PS3 or other media boxes.

I love the enhanced coordination between all of the aspects of design, and the creativity displayed in bringing a theme or story to the field. I also like the variety of the productions, from "in your face" to subtle, from classical to jazz to pop and everywhere in between. I love the intensity, athleticism, and virtuosity being asked of the corps members. I love that the talent of the members involved continues to increase seemingly every year, and how the depth of the talent is working its way down the standings. I'll echo what people are saying about non-finalists now compared to even 10-15 years ago. I love the passion, debate (for the most part), sense of tradition, and innovation brought to fold by having people from many eras invested in the activity. I like that things continue to evolve and progress, while being tempered by the historical roots. I know some people are vocal about wanting to see less evolution, and I'm sure some want to see more... but for me, it's a "just right" scenario. The activity remains relevant without disregarding why it became relevant in the first place. I love that the effect made on me in high school by shows in the 90s is the same effect made on high school kids now by shows of this decade. I love being a drum corps evangelist, and I like that it brings a sense of legitimacy and prestige to a performance genre that has a rap for being nerdy, dated, or unworthy of praise by much of the mainstream. I've literally never shown a video to someone who hasn't seen drum corps before and had them go "That's stupid." I might not convert them into a lifelong fan, but it's always easy for them to see why we spend so much time and energy on this activity.

I don't disagree... hopefully with Sully on board, and to a large extent defining the philosophy of the show design, we'll see that change in the near future. It'll still be BK, but hopefully with a more accessible twist. :) All that said, I thought 2006 at least had a chance for the top 12. That one seemed relatively well received, especially musically.

There's clearly variety within it, but you really don't see a linear shift in design that all DCI corps have made over the history of the organization? Whether you like it or not is obviously up to you, but there are obvious trends in programming, pacing, theme, demand, etc. that have moved pretty congruously throughout the activity. Elimination of the honor guard is a relative drop in the bucket compared to evolution that the activity has experienced.

I don't think you'll ever see a DCI corps rocking an honor guard again. It's just evolved away from that. Whether you think it's for better or for worse, drum corps long ago started moving away from being ceremonial units rooted in nationalism. I respect the tradition of the activity, but personally I'm quite okay with that. I like the overall direction of the activity over the last 25 years or so.

I would say a lot would depend on where you live. If you can give yourself cracks at a couple different corps auditions, it would increase your chances to march, and help give you some comparison to go off of. Obviously, if you can pick corps that are closer to home, it makes it more affordable. I'd also recommend keeping an open mind when it comes to selecting your corps... even though it's not your current dream corps, don't rule out the idea of staying there if it really fits you and you find yourself enjoying it.

It's on like Donkey Kong... http://fathomevents.com/OriginalPrograms/DCI2009.aspx

I agree... I think it should be mandated that all musical performances henceforth should be made by slightly overweight people, standing absolutely still and emotionless... that would be much better. To each their own, but I'd hardly call playing high school-level beats demonstrating more musical skill than one of the most celebrated rock bands of the last two decades. We all love marching music, and I don't expect everyone to like Radiohead, but lets be somewhat rational and objective, as opposed to being caricatures of ourselves.

Yeah, social networking is much better when you exclude people from it...

I believe that's confirmed in one of the vignettes on the Legacy DVDs... I wanna say like 89 or 90.