DrumCorps21

As was stated earlier in the thread, flash intro's came and went in the history of "stuff to do on a website". They're cool the first time you watch them, but they get in the way after that. Other than that, I think the DCA Website is quite functional. I just snicker a little bit when I see the backwards Buccaneer playing a left-handed horn on the side!

Here in suburban Philadelphia the prices are between 2.73 and 2.99... and they get closer to 3.00 the closer you get to the city. But as for lines and stations running out of gas, I haven't seen that at all. But I'm glad that, on Sunday night I ran to fill up my tank when they started talking about what MIGHT happen with the hurricane. So I still have a good deal of gas in my car since what they were talking about DID happen.

You should fit right in if you drive through Lancaster County, PA!

If you drive an SUV or a truck, I suggest auctioning off some small children or body parts.

Just got done watching the tons and tons of stuff on tv about what could possibly happen over the next 6-8 hours in Louisiana and Mississippi and just wanted to wish all the best for everyone down there. Anyone know any drum corps people who are from that general area? Prayers go out to anyone who is being evacuated.

According to www.weather.com at 11:52pm ET, 8/27/05 Friday: Isolated T-storms Chance of Precip: 30% Saturday: Sunny Chance of Precip: 20% Sunday: Mostly Sunny Chance of Precip: 20%

I'm glad they got the show in at all down there. I kept checking the weather channel all day and they kept showing rain, rain, and more rain. Any reports on field conditions or anything like that?

So, I looked at the DCA web site for scores and realized how significant tonight was for the activity. There were four shows happening throughout the country all on the same night, all with different corps performing. 5 in Clifton, NJ 7 in Rockmart, GA 3 in Hastings, MN 7 in Erie, PA I don't suppose someone has the time to check to see if anything like this has ever happened since DCA was founded? It certainly hasn't happened any time since I got involved with the activity in the last half-decade. The senior/all-age part of the activity must really be growing to have two full shows in the Northeast, a show in the Midwest, and a show in the South on the same night. edit: Can't forget the western corps! Dream, Renegades and RCR were being judged on DCA sheets as well, although not "officially" a DCA show, am I right? So I guess that would bring the total up to 5 senior/all-age competitions on the same night with 25 corps competing!

So every show the order is going to be different? I know what it is like to go on first at every show. Did that my first year of corps with the Chieftains.

Another comment about the show... I hear they made a change to the way corps are selected for performance order in DCA this year. I'm not a big fan of this at all. You have a corps like the Buccaneers on first, followed by Sky and Hurcs. Now, I'm hardly saying anything bad about Sky or Hurcs, but this puts a perennial top 5 corps like Reading in a very difficult position in terms of numbers management from the judges. Judges, for those who don't know much about judging, typically manage their scores so that they give points very conservatively in the beginning of the show so they have room to give higher scores by the end. Naturally, a quality judge will be able to award the proper score no matter what order corps go on. But the numbers management business is common in just about any circuit. Does anyone know how order of corps performance has been selected in the past as compared to this year?

Interesting... didn't they just celebrate their 25th anniversary in 1999?

Wildwood was a rough show. It was rough in many ways. But then again, it's still the beginning of the year, the first show of the 2004 season. In any case, welcome back to the greatest activity of the summer! I got to Wildwood a little less than an hour before the show started to pick up my ticket and grab a good seat. After going inside, I saw that there weren't a lot of people in there, so me and my date for the evening decided to go wander outside and try to find some hornlines warming up. Once outside, we listened hard for the sound of G bugles pounding out lots of sound. Didn't hear a single note! We checked a couple of the closest parking lots but still didn't find anything. Still don't know where the corps were warming up for the show... We went back inside to get our seats at almost 5:30(the show was set to begin at 6:00). Still not a lot of people. Over the next half hour the crowd did thicken a good bit to make a pretty decent drum corps audience. As I sat there, I got to wave "hi" to some old buds from Bucs and Cabs. I explained to my date how different a DCA crowd is from a DCI or band crowd. So many faces are there every week, every season for years. And the people are hardcore about their corps. The gentleman and his wife next to me had kids in Brigs. After a discussion of our past in drum corps, he asked if I'd help him cheer for his daughters even though I'm a Bucs fan through and through. I gladly obliged. Drum corps is great. 6:00 came and went, and we still sat patiently in the crowd. After what seemed like an eternity, Fran Haring came out and explained, again, that he is from Baltimore, MD (Nice shirt, Fran). The show got underway with the Bucs taking the floor. Reading Buccaneers - 44? horns, full percussion section. "Innovations! The Passions of Shostakovich" was the show. The Bucs came out with these white props used to hold colorguard equipment, I think. I didn't quite notice how they were used in the show other than for framing the corps in different shapes. I'm sure the details will be worked out at a later date. Loud hornline, strong drumline, and a guard that is a step up from last years. Connecticut Hurricanes - 32? horns, 13 or 14 battery. Their show is "the Magnificent Fifty"... for their fiftieth anniversary. Some old goodies in this show, and no one can forget their theme, Mag 7 which makes a full appearance in their show this year instead of just a quotation or snippet. The show is built largely around two sop screamers. New York Skyliners - (I didn't take any notes at the show so I'm doing this all from memory, so forgive me if I don't remember all the details) Can't remember their numbers, but they had a really nice sized colorguard. In fact, the colorguard that Sky is fielding this year is probably the best they've had in a long while. They're performing the music of George Gershwin. Syracuse Brigadiers - 56 horns, full battery, 40 guard! Yes, they have a slightly smaller hornline this year than in the past, but they make up for it with a massive colorguard. Their show is "Caravan". Most of the productions come directly from the 1997 Blue Devils horn book. Brigs were by far the cleanest corps on the floor, but it looks like they haven't finished their ending yet. The very end of the show the corps just stood still and wailed very very LOUD at the crowd. Hawthorne Caballeros - 64 horns, full batter, full guard. Cabs are back with another original show by Key Poulan, this one entitled "Pamplona, the running of the bulls". Like last year, this is still in the typical Cabs tradition of spanish/latin music on the field, lots of loud, and another strong showing from Gary Gil's drumline. It didn't seem that they were moving as much or as fast this year as they did last year. They weren't as clean as Brigs, but, for this point of the season, they pose a real threat to keep the Brigs from getting on track with another undefeated season. Also in performance were the Crossmen and the Cabs Alumni Corps. Seriously, in the enclosed space of the convention center, my ears were hurting sooo bad from 5 quality DCA corps blasting full out that at the end of the competitive section I wasn't paying as much attention as I would have otherwise. Crossmen look great in their new uniforms, but they need the red cross back over their chest. It's their 30th anniversary, and it's a different show for them this year... not as much jazz. Cabs alumni... well, tradition dicatates that if you've ever seen them before, you know what to expect. Go to the Clifton show, they'll be there. Closing observations... It didn't seem that a lot of the corps had their colorguard uniforms done. The corps were either wearing all black, white tops with black pants, or red and black. Only the Hurricanes had any real uniform on their guard. As for the center itself as a drum corps venue... I think I'll pass next year. This early on in the season there are going to be ensemble problems. And the conditions inside made those ensemble problems so much worse. It was difficult to hear some of the hornlines clearly, especially when the drumline was playing. Reading, due to staging, was impacted the most by playing inside. Their very, very significant drumline really made it difficult to discern what was happening in the hornline with the volume of the battery. Other than those, it was a fun time. It's gonna be a great year for DCA, especially looking at the list of all the corps coming to Scranton this year. Hope the review was helpful. Now if only my ears would stop ringing...

Well, there is always a fear that a top student with a great attitude in high school will go off to drum corps and come back with a new perspective. "Well, at corps we do it this way" or "when I marched, we didn't have this problem" etc. Plus, what was once a great attitude is now more apathetic because, most likely, the high school program the student is in is probably much lower in performance quality than the drum corps experience. There are some downfalls to having a student march in a drum corps over the summer and then return to band camp in August. It depends on the student though, and most can handle the transition.

Ok, it's almost 2 AM and I'm tired, but I'll make a few comments on Allentown tonight, Saturday August 2nd. Troopers are still small this year... some reason I had thought they were going to be coming out with a bigger hornline this year. Lots of ticks, but the crowd loved the pre-show entertainment (starburst and all). I don't like Glassmen's new uniforms. I did enjoy their show more than I have in previous years, especially October(which I heard twice tonight). Cool seasons show, not music I've ever seen done to this theme before. Spirit was a killer tonight. The show concept worked really well, lots of clocks and time and bells and stuff. One drill set was an hour glass with the guard running through like sand. October (again) was beautiful, this time set with images of people and corps that aren't with us anymore. Touching, and the crowd really really appreciated seeing Bridgemen and 27th mentioned. Appalachian Morning is one of my all time favorite drum corps charts. Seattle Cascades had a fun show, but nothing incredibly memorable. It's a shame, I was hoping they'd keep up with the progress they were making over the last few years. I don't remember much of the show, so I can't comment on it. Sorry, folks! Blue Knights are back with lots and lots of dancing. It looks cool, and I was starting to really dig it. It's different, but it's enjoyable too. I've never seen drum corps hornlines move like that before... the closest thing I've ever seen was Blast. Neat stuff, need to see it again to job my memory. Crown blew me away. I've never ever ever seen Crown this good before. I'm not too keen on the new unis, especially the off-set plume, but the show rocks. The bells with the rifles is a neat effect. I was sitting there trying to figure out where that was coming from before I figured out it was the rifles. Neat show. It's gonna be killer in Orlando. Crossmen are always a crowd favorite in Allentown. I was talking with the gentleman next to me about where Bones is gonna appear, because there weren't any opposing stands on the other side of the field. Next thing I knew, good ol' Bones was rising up on a mechanical lift from the other side of the wall. The crowd (and the corps on the field) went nuts. Probably my second favorite moment of the night. The show was Crossmen jazz... hot stuff, especially the closer. It's gonna be tight at finals. It took me a while to get into 'Coats show. I had to turn to the older gentleman behind me to explain about the "blooing" vs. "boooing" thing. Capture and Escape it their theme. Lots of play acting to make the concept work with the music. Mix of symphonic and jazz styles. Madison... hmmm... not sure exactly what to say. It was Madison, yet it wasn't Madision. Maybe it's just the uniforms. I dunno. A good, clean show, but lacking the trademark energy that usually gets people going. At least they'll make finals this year. Cavies had a fun show, more approachable than last year's Frameworks, and far less intellectual. Spin Cycle is a good show, but lacking the finesse that the Cavies have had in the past few years. And, after finally seeing the guard unis live... they aren't offensive looking, but I do have to wonder if there is anything out there that would have suited this show a lot better than those things the guard was wearing. Overall, the show was clean, but was pretty flat, emotionally. Of course, they had just followed the Devils, so I'll get right to that. Blue Devils were amazing tonight. Everyone who knows me personally knows I'm not a big BD fan. Tonight, through next saturday I am a BD fan though. Wow, this is one killer corps. About the end of the opener the excitement is just incredible. The horns have incredible tone (except for the trumpets which sounded weak to me), and the drums are doing some crazy stuff too. Best of all, I think BD is actually doing more interesting drill than the Cavaliers this year! Hands down, BD was the winner tonight. It's gonna be close next weekend in Orlando, and it's gonna be close between Cavaliers, Blue Devils, and the outside shot of the Cadets, Regiment, or SCV. I put my money of Blue Devils though. I think they got the package this year.

DCP Review - Reading, PA 7 - 12- 2003 It's been a nice day all today. When I left West Chester on the trip to Reading it was pleasant and sunny. About halfway there, I noticed some dark clouds and there was a brief shower on the turnpike. I kindly reminded Mother Nature that it wasn't supposed to rain tonight... not for my first drum corps show of the season. I suppose Fate didn't like that reprimand too much. I pulled up next to the curb on Bern St. near Albright and was excited to see some of my old buds from Bucs. East Coast Jazz was warming up on the other side of the road. My thoughts... "ah drum corps, it's good to be back". I grabbed my notebook to start taking some notes and to catch up to my friends from Bucs and possibly chat with some people in other corps. Unfortunately, I needed to sit next to my car and wait for AAA since I had locked my keys in my car in the rush. I wasn't happy. Good thing I got there an hour early. Anyways, AAA comes and I'm saved. And I can start writing about drum corps. Whoohoo, what an adventure so far! I haven't seen East Coast Jazz in a while, not since 98. I like their new unis a lot better than their 98 versions. Very green, but very Cesario too. Whoever thought of the whole DCA, div II/III thing for these shows has got it together. It's a great idea to have these junior corps at the same shows as senior corps. It works out pretty well. I enter the stadium... I'm on the 45 yard line side 1, so my view isn't completely obstructed by THE POLE. First up, Lehigh Valley Knights. Still a small corps this year, 18 horns or so. To begin the show off, they had the lovely situation of having the sun right in the eyes of the corps, while the DM was in the shade. Kevin, timp player in the pit, look like he was struggling with the sun in his face the whole time. There were some tempo tears in Firebird. I could hear a lot of feet in the sound... typical for such a young corps. The drill doesn't look like it's finished in places, with the hornline just standing around. Probably footwork or other kinds of motions are planned. Ave Maria was pretty, but the climax, or anti-climax, just didn't do it for me. I'll have to wait to see how the show comes around in the month left of the seaon. Overall, better than their corps last year. I'm glad they're doing a more original show than the Millenium Celebration in 2002. The show needs to get completed ASAP, and a good bit of tracking for the horns would do them good, I think. My placement, 3rd place. On second tonight, East Coast Jazz. Did I hear Carry On My Wayward Sun for an on the field warm up? Sweet. A bigger corps than LVK, and a much more experienced one from the moment the stepped on the field. I got a chuckle as the drum major turned to salute and I could barely see him thanks to THE POLE. This was a pretty clean show, but lacked somethign emotionally. I just couldn't really appreciate a lot of the music until It Ain't Necessarily So. In that number we had the first real volume of the evening, as well as the first (but definitely not the last) park and bark. I heard a couple people around me recognize that tune. A solid ending with a company front with lots of volume gave the crowd something to enjoy. Conclusion: A solid little corps, but hate the guard uniforms... so did everyone else around me. Bright blue and yellow... I dunno. It just didn't seem to fit in at all, and really was an eye sore compared to the green and white of the corps proper. As the show gets closer to Orlando, I'm sure the energy will get bumped up and it will be a lot more enjoyable all the way through. My placement, 2nd. Jersey Surf What a cool corps... but I do miss the old white uniforms. This show has everything to do with the shore... lifeguard chairs for the podium, surfboards, beach blankets, you name it. And a "way-to-go" to Todd, one of the DM's for Surf and a fellow WCU student. The best opening of the night. Loud sounds right in the audience face with School's Out. The audience really was digging it... I was too. There was a great arrangment of On The Waterfront, Wipe Out and some other tunes. Really neat stuff. I didn't have very high seats, so I really couldn't see much in the way of drill, but what I could see wasn't too impressive. If their visual were as strong as their horns, they'd be kicking some drum corps booty this summer. The guard work wasn't done in parts of the show. Overall, really really fun show. Audience favorite of the evening. Clean your drill, finish the guard work and keep the horns blasting out fff. This is one show I'd love to see in Orlando. My placement, 1st. Intermission Time. I took the time to introduce myself to the people around me and got to meet some interesting folks. The man on my right, an older gentleman, a teacher in the Reading School District, hadn't been to see a DCA show in decades and had all kinds of questions about the judging and criteria and things like that. I tried to fill him in to the best of my ability. His wife had been to see the show in Hershey last weekend and enjoyed it. She was asking me if I had my tickets for DCI East or DCA finals. I laughed and said I usually just get everything at the door. In front of me was a couple who had never been to a drum corps or marching band show before. They really were curious about everything, since they only came because a friend had bought two tickets but had to be out of town tonight. Their overall impression... they loved Surf. I told them that, once the seniors gor started, it was gonna get a whole lot louder! Skyliners Bigger corps, an actual field drumline, and a significantly improved guard over last year greated the fans at the start of the senior half of the show. The guard has these sliver/green prop... thingies, spun like rifles. They do some interesting stuff with them, like hanging them from the hornline while they march around. The sop soloists seemed to be really struggling tonight. Most of the show was ok, but once NY, NY came around, the corps was visibly running out of gas. But, that's just a problem all the northeast corps will be dealing with, due to the lack of outside time this spring thanks to all the rain. Conlcusion: Far better than last year. I'm not worried about Sky this year, and it's going to be a fun show by the end of August. My placement, 4th, 66.0. Bushwackers New Unis, very very Cesario. Dark blue pants, dark blue and dark purple tops with a psuedo-keyboard pattern across the torso. Opener was 12 Seconds to the Moon. Some parts were exciting, others lacked umph. There was a really spectacular moment at the end of the opener with a guard pass through of the corps. The crowd oo'ed and ahhh'ed. In First Contact, there was a flugel duet. Bb flugels? Anyways, the climax and impact in First Contact was just gorgeous. The visual program included a lot of running throughout the show which definitely added a bit of energy, but at the expense of the sound. Again, there were endurance issues towards the end. I did have some issues with staging, as for a good bit of the end, the hornline was playing at the 30 yd line, side 2. Guess I'll need to see it again to figure that one out. Conclusion: Solid corps, didn't like 12 seconds too much, but the guard has come a long way since last year. My placement, 3rd, 71.1. Hurricanes Ok, did I ask this question last year? When did Hurcs start wearing black pants? It makes them look so much smaller on the field. The guard is really flashy with lots of sequins. I had the enjoyment of having my hair parted by one #### of a soprano soloist, the best of the evening. The brass was very top heavy, thanks to great sops and only 3 contras. All though, I have to admit that those 3 contras put out a lot more sound than I was expecting. Ok, I know the music is Godzilla Eats Las Vegas, and I love Eric Whitacre and all.... but I don't know if this actually fits as a senior corps show. I just didn't feel much connection from the music to what the theme was... etc. I'll keep my eyes on Hurcs to see if I feel better about it by finals. There were also a couple of cool visual moves yanked from the DCI Green Machine from last year's Frameworks show. Conclusion: Please bring back the white pants! This show will be enjoyable, especially if there is more programming done to make the show seem to flow a little better. Until then, I don't see how Bacchanale, Mag 7, and lots of jazz fits together too well these days. My placement, 4th, 70.2. Caballeros Huge. Huge was my first impression when they took the field. And here comes Mr. Sequins himself, Jimmy Russo. At the start of the show, there was some incredible backfield playing which I'm sure is still reverberating around Mt. Penn somewhere. Then, at the turn around, one #### of a blast from the horns. Ok, I'm not a drumline person, and never pretend to be. But I KNOW that that drumline was not there last year. Holy cow! Neat trick (audience ate it up) with the basses on the sideline. A great Hawthorne show, one that will be remembered for a while. Conclusion: Possible contender for DCA Champion. My only conerns is that the show is starting to get really clean already. Cabs might plateau a little too early and get passed before August 31. My placement, 1st, 75.6. Buccaneers I'd say this corps has about close to 100% when it comes to brass... more than any other corps. There is all of 38 or so horns on the field, and yet they play louder and more in tune than I'm sure a lot of other bigger corps will play this summer. This is definitely a departure for the Bucs this year, a combination of modern and vintage Reading. Pirate get-ups for the guard, jazzy tunes in Russian Sailors Dance, and in your face loud chords throughout the show. There are still holes on the field, but in my years of marching, the hornline was never filled until after the Reading show. Conclusion: Fill the holes, clean the drill. I really wish Russian Sailors Dance were longer, but it's good that Reading is trying to delve into their history a little bit to come up with a show. It'll be a top 3 or 4 show at DCA this year. My placement, 2nd, 74.3. At retreat, there were a few shake ups. Surf lost to East Coast Jazz, bringing down a chorus of BOOO's from the audience. I'm pretty sure that Surf has made some new friends in Reading tonight. In the senior half, Reading caught Cabs in percussion with a tie. This could be a sign of things to come if Reading really really starts cleaning their show. Other than that, the corps played themselves off, except for Surf and East Coast Jazz who just walked out. I tell ya... junior corps these days... they don't know how to play themselves off. And, if LVK weren't associated with the Chieftains, I'm sure they would have just walked off too. Oh well. Overall, it was a fun show with a great crowd on an absolutely beautiful night for drum corps. There were plenty of first time drum corps fans in Reading tonight and I think they had a good time. Hopefully they'll all come back next year, and I think they will. I hope everyone enjoyed the review. Hopefully I'll get out to another show sometime this year before DCA champs.

I got a review to post... it'll be on later today. B)

I personally liked Bluecoat's guard. They had a lot of lovely ladies in there, and the uniforms went along with the theme and with the corps colors. Plus, short skirts on colorguard girls is always a plus! :D --Miker

Our truck has showed up safe and sound, no thanks to the Pennsylvania DOT. Again, thanks to all the corps who helped out! Hmm, no one ever has anything good to say about PennDOT... I wonder why? --Miker

No problem, you guys deserve a great review. And I'm looking forward to Scranton just as much as anyone else. So far, we have a convoy of 11 or so people leaving from West Chester on Sept 1. --Miker

Ok, last night when I got home, I started writing this review up, but everyone's favorite ISP, AOL, decided it was time for me to get kicked off... so I lost everything I had written. Time to try again. I was worrying a lot about the weather tonight. It was drizzling on and off during the day, and I was hoping it wouldn't end in a messy night for drum corps. I took my wet seat (without having a towel of course) on the 50 yd line, 4 rows up. It wasn't the greatest view point to watch visuals, but, hey, it was great to listen to the hornlines. First up, Carolina Gold. I wasn't sure what I was expecting from these guys. To start off with, I've seen worse groups who've been around for years and years. This is a very smart corps. They could have come out with a super difficult show, with jazz running and lots of stuff that's unattainable. Instead, Gold gave the audience a lot of what drum corps fans want... entertainment... and loudness. Performing "Goldspell", they did a collection of music from Godspell. For a group of about 27 horns, they sure didn't sound like it. No one is hiding behind their instrument in this corps. There are some design issues I would like to see changed... the tenors having a feature totally obscured by the hornline for one. But otherwise, a thoroughly enjoyable show. The corps spent most of the time playing full out, with little dynamic contrast. However, there was this one moment when the hornline played down at a mezzo forte, and it just sang with musicality. Major props for that! And there was one guy in purple in the colorguard that definitely stole the show for me at points. You rule, man! Overall... was the show difficult? No. Was it clean? No. Was it an incredible vehicle for a first year corps at their first competition ever? Hells yeah! As better brass, percussion, and visual technique programs are developed, and the colorguard is grown, Carolina will be making moves up the ranks in DCA very very quickly. Great job, Gold! Can't wait to see you in Scranton. Next up... Skyliners. Ok, is this the same corps I saw at Reading? Much much more confident in the music they played, tons more energy, and best of all... new Uniforms! I heard they got them last week, but this is the first time I saw them. Sky looks like Sky again. Forms are a lot more readable now, either due to more horns or closing the holes in the drill. Probably the second most crowd appeal of the night. If I had any doubts about Sky after the Reading show, I feel a lot more safe with them now. This show will be a real crowd pleaser by Scranton. Next... Hurricanes. What a great colorguard in this corps. It looks like I'm watching a great WGI group on the field with the Hurcs hornline and drumline. I only saw 4 mellos on the field last night... I thought I remember there beind more. The hornline seemed to be lacking in that middle range, and the energy wasn't quite as high as it was at Reading. A definite change in style from the previous two corps, with the music of Copland, Bernstein, and Holsinger. However, the presentation didn't ring through the audience, as can be expected. Still a great corps, and I can't reiterate how much I like this corps better than last years. I just wish that there had been full corps retreat, so I could hear Mag 7 as Hurcs play themselves off. That's my favorite part of any show with the Hurcs. The Caballeros. The definite crowd favorites. Perhaps it was the massive showing of Red, White, and Black support around me in the stands, maybe it was the fact that this was a Jersey show... in any case, the Cabs were the main event tonight. From Jimmy Russo tossing off his cape, until the last strains of Espana Cani, the crowd just ate it up. For the first time this season, I could feel my heart starting to pound with excitement when this corps was on the field. That being said... I really don't think the book that this corps plays is Championship material. They look pretty good for 3rd or 4th this year, but I don't see them as really in the hunt for 1st at Scranton. It's a shame, what a wonderful group these people are. Next, the Buccaneers. Before the show started, during the national anthem sung by the Rutgers University Women's Chorus I believe, off in the distance, Bucs guard could be seen warming up. One member was spinning a faux-american flag looking silk. One man next to me started screaming after the show "Look at what that idiot is doing... their spinning an American flag!" I hoped that as the Bucs took the field, that man could see that it was NOT an American flag. Anyways, Bucs guard made my review again as they now are sporting new threads. A really nice grey and off-white outfit that kinda reminds me of a Confederate uniform. The Bucs have taken out a big chunk of their show, shortening it significantly. The parts where the changes were made are still obvious, and the flow is lacking. I'm sure it will be addressed by the time Scranton comes along, but until then, that's gonna hurt them. I'm not sure if Bucs can take 1st this year vs. the Brigs.. if they work incredibly hard and keep the improvements coming steadily until September, they have a chance. If not, 2nd looks like their destiny. Next on, the Brigadiers. Clean clean clean clean clean. These guys are really amazing. Brigs really do deserve the scores they are getting right now. The amount of energy they bring to the field is incredible. If there was just a little bit more difficulty in their show, they would just cruise into 1st. For example, whenever a section in the hornline has a difficult running line, that section will stand still in front of the front sideline... not quite as much demand on the performer as another corps who might be moving at an 8-to-5 performing the same music. Next week in Butler when Brigs go head to head with the Statesmen will prove a lot. With their lead shrinking every week over the Buccaneers, and with Empire being hot, it might not be so easy for the Brigs come September. But if I were a betting man, I'd put my money on Syracuse. The Bushwackers. I think this corps has a chance to take out the Cabs next weekend in Rhode Island. Their main weak spot is their colorguard. Bush seemed to face the same problems that Hurcs did with their program to night.... taking the field after several great audience entertainers in a row. Bush has also added a new color to their uniform, a gold drape underneath the red on top. So, the corps colors are now Red, Gold, and Black now... I'm still wondering what happened to magenta and blue. I feel that Bush will be looking at a solid 5th or 6th spot coming into Scranton. They are starting to smoke, but I think there's a plateau in their future. Unless their hornline starts adding a lot to their show, Bush might peak too early and start dropping in the rankings come middle of August. Only time will tell. Finally, Jersey Surf in exhibition. I like this corps a lot more than I did when I saw them in Reading. The whole sports theme seems to be better transmitted to the audience. I wish I could be in Madison to see how these kids do against the likes of Magic and Patriots. A really fun show taken from the music of West Side Story. My favorite peice they perform is a kinda bluesy version of I Feel Pretty. It's so different, it's great. Crowd gave the hometown corps a great standing O as they trooped the stands. Good luck in Madison, Surf. Alright, that's it for now. I didn't have a pad of paper to jot down more notes, but I think my own memory served me pretty well. I probably won't be to another DCA show until Scranton, so I better see a lot of reviews on here! --Miker

I guess we'll all just have to go to Scranton and cheer on our respective favorite corps and be happy we're getting entertained by these great groups... regardless of who wins... or by how much. After all, it is about the audience in DCA, is it not? --Miker

With success comes criticism and stereotypes. The crowd enjoys watching your shows, you enjoy playing them (at least I hope). IMHO, there is no need to pull out the dot book and start quoting. Your chance to prove that your corps doesn't just park and bark is on the field, and you've been doing that for the past month already. I really hope the Brigs bashing doesn't spread from R##D to here. Let's all just have some fun at Scranton. --Miker

Thanks. First review for me. As for marching, yes sir, I did. 1999 was my first year in drum corps, and I played Fiddler on the Roof with them. I'm proud to say I learned to play in corps on a two valve bugle with them. --Miker

I'll just folow up with some comments of my own from the show.... Taipei -- cool little corps. Being a brass guy, that's what I spend most of my time paying attention. There were moments when their hornline could really unload and let out some sound, which was great! They seemed to be hiding behind their instruments a lot... possibly a lot of inexperienced musicians. I liked the show though. Quiet moments, medium moments, loud ones, really loud ones. It was a great way to start off the evening. LVK -- This is the first time I've seen the junior incarnation of my first senior corps. I guess I'll say that they are not bad at all for a 2nd year corps. I don't know how much of an improvement they are from last year, since I didn't see them. But, I question the choice of music... Disney's Millenium Celebration. I think too many people in the stands immediately think of the Cadets show from 2000 and compare. Perhaps this is what the staff actually wants... to have their kids compared to the might Cadets? I dunno. One baritone player was playing the h### out of his horn though. Sounded great. I'll be watching to see what comes out of Allentown in a few years. Spartans -- By far the most professional of the junior corps of the evening. Individual marching technique was there, and definitely the best drill design too. Still, I wasn't a fan of their brass book. It seemed meandering and lacked emotion. Not that they didn't play it well, it just didn't have much heart to it. Maybe pushing the tempos, especially on the Baccanale at the end would add some excitement to this otherwise nice show. Jersey Surf -- I always liked their white uniforms... but I guess it fits more to have them in costumes instead. Lots of acting on the field, the kids are having fun. But it looks like they're having a rough year... maybe that's why they tried the hook up with YEA this year. West Side Story with some really really unusual arrangements. LOVE the guard, as I always do. They have multiple uniform changes... not sure how the last silver and gold ones are supposed to add to the show yet though. CorpsVets -- The wait is over. It was great after all these junior corps, none of which had really really great support in their hornlines, now CV comes out and pushes back some concrete. In your face arrangements, blasting away at the audience in the best tradition of senior corps. What they did do, they did well. But, in terms of drill and horn book, they didn't do a whole heck of a lot. Not much in the way of technical passages or taxing drill moves. It's a shame. If they could put some harder stuff in that program, they could really start moving up in DCA really really fast. I liked this corps, and so did the rest of the crowd, with the ovation beginning even before they stopped playing. Hurricanes -- No more white pants? Hurcs have their old hats back, but have gone black. Makes it a lot more difficult to see them on the field. They don't look bad at all, but I liked the white better. Anyway, a much much better show than last year. I was most suprised by how the Holsinger chart came out at the end. I had my doubts after last year how they'd be able to handle Ballet Sacra, but it worked. Drill is beginning to move for the Hurcs, but I don't know if they're Top 5 contenders yet. The horn book has a good degree of difficulty, with some really killer mellophones. These guys could play spoiler to some of the upper echelon corps that think they're guarenteed a spot up top. Skyliners -- Ok, I'll admit, I don't really pay attention to the politics of the drum corps world, or why corps don't seem to get bigger every year... but I really want to know why this corps is struggling to get members. The drill was unreadable at times because of all the holes. Granted, the horns that are out there can play their ##### off, but, why can't there be more of them? There was a feeling in the crowd where I was seated of general concern over the size of the corps. Otherwise... NY stuff, typical. Screamers the entire show. I'd just like to see the competing corps become the size of their alumni corps of recent years (I haven't been around drum corps that long, so I don't know how long they've been this size). Bushwackers -- Inferno, Vesuvius, and Firebird. Whatever happened to this corps having magenta and blue as their colors? Horns were clean, but I forsee a definite plateau for them come late in the season. Their horn book is no where near as difficult as last year, and this could hurt them come September. But I did like the show... if it were a junior corps, I'd really did it... but I don't know if it's my cup of tea for DCA. Caballeros -- This wasn't the same corps that was at Hershey last weekend. The dirt has been cleaned up, and they're marching a lot this year. Not as much park and bark as in recent years. Someone's gotta get me 75 Muchachos so I can hear what they're supposed to be playing and compare. Last week, I had to clean out my ears a few times when I heard Pines of the Appian Way by Respighi. But, it's still in their show, and I'm really not used to the whole classical thing from Cabs. Also, in Pines, check out the guard with the green flags! Best visual moment of the evening. I miss the old ending with the rumps. This one is just too short. Give me my trademark DCA stuff an I'll be happy. Buccaneers -- Another corps that wasn't the same at Hershey last week. Reading was playing with confidence tonight, which they really were lacking before. The show is still really really dirty, but it is also really really tough. Of all the DCA shows I've seen so far this year, Bucs take it all in demand... drill and brass. But what gave Bucs the win tonight was the fact that the really really hard stuff is slowly getting clean, which adds tons of impact to the show. Bad moments though... HUGE tempo tears which, I'm sure, took a couple minutes off the lives of various staff members. I really was ready for the Cabs to take this show, especially after those tempo tears... but I was more than happy to see my old boys in blue take their home show. That's it for now. I'll see if I can get to clifton next weekend. That's always a great show. --Miker --Miker

Yeah, it definitely was Bucs first show of the year. Let's see what happens when Reading goes in front of their home crowd this coming Saturday. --Miker