Bleedblue93

Great review Nick...gotta agree with what you said about Phantom's total package this year....it was musical and very appropriate. I think too many drum corps nowadays (crap...now I feel old) move for the sake of moving and don't really consider how it affects their show musically. I think of all the corps I saw this year, PR had the right mix of musicality and visual presence. I also agree with what you said about MY beloved Bluecoats....they are an up and coming musical group. 3 years in 7th place scares me a little, but I think a leap into the top 5 is not too far off for them. Great review, I enjoyed.

You forgot the Bluecoats too! Bluecoats and Boston was a better battle than BD/Cavs....sheez!

Can anyone comment on the Bluecoats new ending to the show? For the first month and a half of the season, they had kind of a band aid ending and I think they've got the new ending on. Fill us in, for those that won't see them again until the Bluecoats Hall of Fame show on July 27! Thanks!

I agree with Woofinthewoods on all points. One thing to add though..... Definition from the Harvard Dictionary of Music: Bugle: A bell front brass instrument pitched in the key of G or Bb. Used in militaristic marching, etc..... DW

Woody and Will, How about the announcer saying he was a friend of Art Drukenbrod's for 50 years, then proceeds to butcher his name about 5 times in a row (i.e. Drinkenbroad, Drunkenbroad, Drunkenblad......etc.). I was on the track and when he butchered Art's name for the second time I started walking toward him to tell him to get his poop together, when I decided better of it. I was around several other alums that knew Art well and they were all squirming. What a shmoe.

Great review. I thought Seattle should have been in 10th above Spirit. Their feet are just cleaner, but perhaps because of the lesser demand. I thought Seattle just out performed Spirit last night. As for the 'Coats, it was a great show last night and they've just begun. If anyone recalls, this is when they really poured it on last year and tightened everything up. They are doing the same thing right now and I think your going to see their GE and Visual numbers jump. I called my shot last week when I predicted they'd catch both Boston and Xmen at this show. I'm sticking with my next prediction as well: they'll catch Glassmen by either Philly or Massillon, and by looking at last night's spreads, maybe before. Cavies....incredible....I didn't like the color guard incorporation though. It seemed to me that they were really only integrated into the show at the end. It was my first viewing though. Either way, this is far and away the best show in the activity. Cadets....bringing the house down. BD...intense, but there's not enough there to catch the teams in front of them. Just a side note here: it seemed to me that the corps with the white/light/cream color pants "looked" cleaner visually tonight. Everyone (including Cavies) with black seemed to really show the feet a little more. Colts, Cadets, Bluecoats just had a crisp and classy look. I wish more corps would go back to white pants. I think Seattle would do well in white. Or maybe it's just me.

Bluecoats glad their beating Madison? I guess....I don't think they've given it a second thought in a couple of years though DW

I understand Michael. I've been around the activity quite awhile now and I really get a little huffy when I see people getting defensive. I wouldn't be involved (for as long as I have) if I didn't see the value in what every corps does. Some shows you like more than others. Sometimes we (I) are homers....but in any case I think the truest drum corps fan knows deep down that what's going on the field, no matter who it is, is something exceptionally special. That's what matters. So when I pick on that section of the Bluecoats show (the block that doesn't move much and makes no sense) no one will take it personally.....oh wait a minute, they took that section out before Hershey. Now it looks great!

ps: let's not make this like RAMD. The reviews on here are too good.

This is one thing I hate about these forums...they get a little ticky tacky. I kind of broke down a couple corps performances from George's review (as I SAW IT) and now we have feelings hurt. Look, I don't care what you think, this is what I saw and heard, this is what I heard from people sitting around me (not with my group), and quite frankly I stand by what I said. I see more demand in other shows (maybe or maybe not Bluecoats). Another reason why I hate these forums is that because you criticize a show doesn't mean you don't like it. h###, I bashed the Bluecoats for some 4 years as an alumnus because I thought their shows were severely lacking in GE and their visual designs were a joke. I'm still pro-Bluecoat (they do things the right way for the right reasons), but I ALWAYS call it as I see it. I liked the Xmen show last year. I like their show this year (Strawberry Soup will probably grow on me, it's just going to take a few viewings). There are things I like and dislike in every performance. My comments were mainly directed at people that had previously reviewed the show (I didn't see or hear what they had reviewed....maybe I will upon another viewing). Heck the people reviewing this show made it sound like the second coming of the '67 Royal Aires. There's an east coast bias against the midwest (not sure why....maybe because we didn't let you plug in your microphones). You can stick your heads in the sand and deny it all you want, but it exists. I wonder how the Glassmen would do on the east coast? Again, these are my opinions based on what I like in the activity. You are certainly free to simply disregard what I have to say if you don't (or never) agree with my statements. Ilook forward to seeing all of these corps again, especially the Crossmen.

Absolutely George! But let's get something straight, I'm their biggest critic when they deserve it (I was not a fan of much of the stuff they did between '96-'99). What I saw at Hershey was SIGNIFICANTLY better than what I've seen so far this year. I call 'em as I see 'em ;)^

George, Good review...thorough if not anything else! I agreed in many areas but there were some things that had me scratching my head in Herhsey. Here are some thoughts I had: Spirit: You mentioned, "Excellent mature brass ensemble sound with a nice thick and deep low end from the 12 contras (a section which marches very well)." By far this was the worst sounding tuba/contra section of the juniors. Overblown, really poor TQ&I.....you could hear them, but yikes it was bad. As for Spirit's show, I don't know if it has the legs to make top 12. Placement 8-14 are going to be a dogfight and I just don't see any GE in this show. Bluecoats: You mentioned, "Horn sound was very good with a sweet top/bottom blend. Overall production has some very interesting moments and the drill is extremely effective – not quite “top-box” in the scoring difficulty – but a big step in that direction from a Bluecoats program a couple years ago." Their blend and TQ&I was the best out there behind Cadets. Not quite "top box" in difficulty? Are you kidding? They play, spin, and throw more on the move than anyone (minus Cadets and Cavs) in the activity. The reason why this show is scoring where it's at is because the difficulty is so high. When they get comfortable with the drill, the scores are going to jump (I would look for the 3rd week of July). Also, the hornline hasn't worked on adding the last two levels of volume....stay tuned, they will crank it up very soon (like you said, blend is good....that's what they try to master before adding volume). Boston: I agree with just about everything in your review. In your outlook you said they could be as high as 5th? No. Show design (i.e. demand) isn't there. Cadets: What can you say. This show is incredible in just about every facet. They had some spacial awareness problems (my guess this is why they aren't near Cavs in the scoring). But this show is GE out the ying yang. Incredible color guard. Where do they find those amazon women? Christ, they could throw me. Crossmen: I was prepared to be dazzled by this group (having read all the incredible reviews) but was left scratching my head. I didn't see the demand that everyone was talking about (especially visually....they don't even touch a difficult musical passage if they are moving). This is the best Xmen drumline I've seen and I think the horns are much improved over last year. As far as Strawberry Soup goes, that was the chart leaving me most disappointed. It's a rehash of every other Strawberry Soup that's ever been done. I'm not a fan of corps rehashes (I realize there's no statute of limitations or patents on charts, but if you are going to do a chart that's been done by two other top 12 corps in the last 10 years, at least make the arrangement new!). It was pretty much a Madison/BD-lite version of Strawberry Soup with soloists that were good, but not as good as the Madison/BD versions.....which leaves you thinking, it's a retread version of this classic. It's not clean yet, it's early July, I get that.....perhaps this is the piece that has the most room to grow and by August they'll have me screaming and standing, but right now, it's just flat and kind of sad. As for the scoring tonight, I thought Cadets were pretty close to the 84 they got. Xmen, should be about a point lower (I had them scored at 78). Didn't really agree with the music performance numbers. Bluecoats should have been about .75-1.00 point higher (the drum score and color guard scores were an absolute mystery...each recieving a 14.8) Blue's color guard was miles ahead of the the rest of the pack, but squarely behind Cadets (Blue did finish in 2nd in guard but with a 14.8). They should have been in the high 15s for sure. The drum score is ridiculous, there's some kind of silly east coast thing going on there (in no way shape or form should they be second to last in percussion.....or maybe they should? But with a 14.8? Down from the 15s they were scoring a week and half ago?). Boston should be scoring closer to Spirit in the 73 range. Boston just has way too many "big" problems (ensemble issues, TQ&I issues, etc.) and Spirit has no GE at all. NOW, let's all take a deep breath. A lot of negatives there. Here's what was great: I feel like more and more corps this year are figuring out that they have to reach the crowd. There were moments in every show where I really wanted to cheer (I can't say that for MANY of the shows in previous years). I really, REALLY applaud Crossmen and Cadets for connecting with the crowd and designing what I would consider "old school" shows that think of the audience and performer first. Bluecoats get a "Blooooo" for their park and bark, awesome color guard incorporation, tenor features, and incredible dancing from the entire corps (Jim Buckley rules). My opinions. DW

How much do you want for them? I'll be at Hershey. I'll be kind of hosting the Bluecoats Alumni party in the parking lot. Stop by and we'll talk. My wife and I and another friend of ours want to go to Nats but don't have tix yet. Let me know. Email me directly if you don't mind: bleedblue93@msn.com

I'm trying to move and this past weekend I was going through some stuff in my garage and ran across a bag of drum corps shirts I bought in the 80s. I remember the '88 Madison skull and crossed mallets shirt as being a hot commodity that year (they won of course). It's an XL and in great shape (didn't wear it much, I went on to march Bluecoats). I'd like to give it to someone that actually marched that year or is an avid Madison alum. Email me if you want it. I'll mail it if you pay for the shipping.

Sorry, never can tell sometimes. :D DW

Let's not start with PR is behind Cavs, BD, and Cadets just because of their name or reputation. Those corps are better and have been for a few years....and that's all there is to it. PR is very good this year (most I've enjoyed them in a few years), but they aren't designing championship caliber shows like the others mentioned. Were you implying that the drum corps community (which includes judges) keeps PR down? That's the way it sounded to me....sorry if I interpretted that wrong. DW

Man, I made two jokes in this review and nothing......you guys are a tough crowd... No one comments on my fear of mimes? No mention of Mathis de Mauler (instead of Mahler)? Ok, I guess I'll stick to my day job.... LE, that's the uniform but they have the legs cut off like biker shorts and they wear these funky black shoes. It's real bizarre.

Here's my review of Lima, Oh. {my disclaimer: I'll TRY to point out the positives, don't take things personally if my opinion doesn't agree with yours} Weather: It was a hot sticky day up until show time when the temperature dropped about 15 degrees and it started to rain. They delayed the show 30 minutes, it stopped raining and they got on with it. Nice concrete stadium in Lima that was 2/3 full. Field was excellent. Scenic City: I dunno about the mime in the guard. Mimes freak me out. They're evil and they're mean and they're the minions of the devil:{ They have made a huge improvement since the last time I saw them in Orrville a week ago. They are moving with a lot more confidence. They're sop soloist may be one of the best high note guys in Div 2/3. I'm sure there's an open class corps licking their chops right now over him! I'd like to see the color guard do more work. They kind of hop around and play up the whole Saturday in the Park theme, but they seem like they have some skills...use them! Keep your eyes on this group, I think they are going to do well in August. Marion: Again, just like Scenic, tons of improvement over last week. Moving and playing with a lot more confidence. Color guard was much more integrated into the performance. They have these big wood frames that they use nicely a few times now. Even with the improvement of this show, I have to ask, why this music for this group? Mathis de Mauler is one of the greats in the orchestral repertoire but just not right for this group. Keep your heads up Marion, you're making improvements. Capitol Regiment: This was my first viewing of them. Impressive for a corps only a couple years old. They have a long way to go (that's good....because they're improvements will be very noticeable) though. Feet are very dirty. Horns overplay a lot (baritones...yikes). It's a solid Div. 2 show that should contend for 2nd place. I would keep my eyes on these guys, when/if they ever go Div. 1, they are going to shake some people. Troopers: It looks like they have spent a great deal of time on the beginning of their show, because it is very clean and very well done. They came out and I was like, "Wow, they look great....very clean feet with a good balanced sound." After the first two minutes of the show though, it kind of goes downhill (you can tell they haven't worked the middle and end too much). They have a good concept of what they need to do visually, but the show is only about 3/4 done (they stand, literally for the last two minutes of the show). Consequently, they're GE scores are in the dumper. Color guard work isn't done for most of the show either. I couldn't tell either what they were trying to do with their brass sound. They are a very small Div. 1 corps, and I think they may be trying to compensate for their lack of instruments by overplaying (quite frequently....contras, holy cow, take it easy!). Blend and intonation (because of the overplaying) is certainly a big concern right now. Anyone else there notice how strange their tenors were tuned? The bottom drum was so low. I haven't heard tenors tuned that low in 20 years (seriously). If they can get the rest of the show on the field and make it as clean as the beginning, you're going to see their scores jump. Blue Knights: My first reading of them. I tried to not let previous reviews of their show influence me, but they did. (ala Dr. Evil: Fair enough, where do I begin)....I heard about these color guard uniforms being almost obscene. I was sitting with my 10 year old daughter and surrounded by a bunch of old ladies. I got the preverbial questions from my daughter (is that their underwear? I can see their thingies....) and the old women were cackling like a bunch of chickens (they were actually kind of funny...one of them said, 'I wish I had the body and the courage to get into something like that'). And then you noticed the guys and their makeup....like something out of Victor Victoria...Dustin Hoffman would be proud. Anyway on to the show, I actually like the first third of their show. They do some very nice drill, especially at the end of the first section where they actually march in and around the pit....very cool. Their playing is WAY and I mean WAY overblown. Two words: tone quality. Might want to mention that to the low brass....holy cow. Visually they are still quite dirty. The overabundance of black in their uniforms will hide a lot of that now, but not in August. I dunno if they can pull the visual end up. GE, there isn't much. It's weird and scary for the sake of being weird and scary. There aren't many moments where the crowd WANTS to applaud.....think about that, even in the worst show you see, you know as an audience member when you WANT to applaud. BK only has one or two of those moments. That's why I say there isn't much effect in this show. The tall guy in the CG, he's not seven feet tall like someone else said (I was expecting to see Manute Bol out there)....he's about 6'7" and very skinny (which makes him appear taller than he actually is). The black uniform actually blends him in quite well and they use his height in a few spots to their advantage. This is not a top 12 program yet. They will have to really clean this up to get in. Bluecoats: This show has more depth and demand than any of the "middle of the pack" by far and should be considered as a contender for the top 5 (judges, wake up). It's still dirty, but when you see the show everyone thinks 'work in progress'. They got the final 30 seconds on the field (it's dirty, but man, it's pretty darn cool!) and I think that's really going to help them in their GE and Visual captions (it did tonight). Score went up almost two points. It seems like every time I see the 'Coats they've added more dancing too. I was not a very big fan of all the prancing around on the field that corps seem to 'have' to do now, but they do this very well. It makes sense when they dance. Everything is depicting something (check out the overriding theme of the swaying when they dance). This color guard (when everything is finalized) will be top 5....I'm not kidding and I'm not homering here (I've been known to, but not on this). Check out what they do when they move. They still have some ensemble movement concerns but this color guard has unbelieveable talent (and a great staff). The 36 rifles for the first part of the show is great (gotta catch now). Anyone else going to attempt a unison 7 with 36 guns on the field this year? That's exciting. Solo dancer during the sop solo is really good too (love the part when she smacks him on the ### right before he squeals out the high note!). Brass has always been the strong suit with the 'Coats. I can honestly say they had the best quality sound tonight. It's balanced, in tune (for June), and blended. They have yet to add the volume (They usually save that until after the horn line has demonstrated a mastery of the building blocks of good sound: balance and blend). Fear not, will be there soon enough! Most exciting part of this show and I think my favorite Drum corps moment so far of all the corps I've seen is towards the end (Traffic/Celebration). It starts off depicting a traffic jam and you see and hear things you might expect in a traffic jam....towards the end it explodes into a full out rock jam session with one of the best park and blow sections I've seen a corps do (1980s included!). You'll be humming the low brass lick all the way home. BlueQ section is smoking hot. They've got about 3 features in the show and they rip them off each time. During 'Traffic' the battery plays on tambourines and really small hand drums. It's really cool and fits that part perfectly, but sometimes it's hard to tell what they're playing (it's muddled). Coolest thing about this program is that the kids really enjoy performing this and they really communicate with the audience. THANK YOU BLUECOATS FOR GETTING INTO YOUR SHOW AND ENTERTAINING THE CRAP OUT OF THE FANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Glassmen: What a drumline. They are tight and very impressive. Not just the battery though, the pit writing and playing is very good. I LOVED the split timpani and how they used them to help with depth of sound (although they overbalanced at the end of the show). The show is....well....sigh....nice. That's about all you can say for it. It's clean. They march well. It's well played with very little ensemble issues. The color guard does what they are supposed to do (spin, catch, dance). Beyond that there isn't much to the program. Flugel soloist wasn't on tonight, but I'm sure that's not the norm. From a demand standpoint, I'm not sure this horse has enough to finish the race. It'll clean up (even more), but where is the depth? How is going to stand up to programs that have more musical, visual, and effect demand? They're beating Bluecoats and Phantom right now because they're show is clean....and the Bluecoats almost caught them tonight. We'll see. Rants: Contra players who can't handle their horn....I'm a former contra player (I wasn't the greatest player in the world but I certainly could throw around the big piece of plumbing with the best of them) and NOTHING, I mean NOTHING infuriates me more that a contra player that can't handle the horn. I must have seen 30 contras tonight that were being dominated by their instrument. Slouching, leaning, slow horns up and down. Eat some steak, drink some milk, do push ups every waking second you have free, but dog gone it, don't let that horn get in the way of your performance! Memo to CR contras, go without shakos, you look stupid with all of your lids leaning off to the right. If you are so important that you can't have your cell phone off for a few hours AND actually refrain from answering calls and #####ing at whoever it is you are talking to, you probably shouldn't be sitting on the 45 yard line 12 rows up at a drum corps show. Pats on back: Bluecoats sop soloist and solo dancer (Alyssa Erickson)...finally an exciting and entertaining drum corps moment all wrapped up into one! Glassmen percussion....just d### good. Show sponsors...they had a party with a meal for all participants after the show. Scenic City soloist....he's got that drum corps swagger. Parking lot attendant, who in the rain, when I asked if I could park near one of the corps (because I was taking one of the members to an airport after the show), actually moved traffic and made sure I could get a spot where I could load luggage easily. That's all. Next show I will see is Hershey. Can't wait to see some of the seniors in action! Darren Webb

Good review. I'm going up to spend a couple days with the 'Coats on Monday and Tuesday. I hope to GOD they get those last 5 or 6 sets on. If you look at their GE Visual scores, they are woeful and I can't help but think it's partly due to the fact that the end of the show is just weak right now. Every review I read, I keep thinking, "I hope they got the closer done..." Still the gap between them and PR and Gmen is just 2 points....'Coats poured it on in August last year, I'm hoping they can do the same and catch someone in '02. We'll see..... I'll have a review from Lima on Wednesday.

1) Yes they would hold a show indoors. In 1990 a show in Minnesota was moved to a gymnasium where all the corps played a standstill for whoever was left.....it was raining cats and dogs. Unscored of cours. 2) You hit the nail on the head with the Bluecoats: when they get the end of their show on the field (looking at my watch....tapping my foot), you'll see their GE Vis. number jump. It's been stuck at 12.5 since their first show. 3) Bluecoats beat PR in percussion last night. It'll be hard for PR to catch Gmen unless they beat them in brass and percussion. PR was 3rd last night, but not by much.

Great review Steve. I'm really looking forward to Spirit returning to the top 12. Now if we could get the Troopers back...... Cavaliers sound like they have an interesting show and the NY Yankees of the drum corps world as far as talent goes.

It's funny when people take offense to honest reviews in June. What they don't realize is that these same people (the ones writing the reviews) will be saying things like, "Man, this corps has come a long way since June" when August rolls around. They'll be writing things like "The re-writes this corps did were perfect" or "this show makes sense now that it's all done...." June drum corps is bad. Even the Cavies, Cadets, and BD look bad in June. Don't take offense!

I like people who review the way they feel. It's THEIR opinion. You don't have to agree with them, they are simply reporting what they saw. I like some of the tshirt ideas (especially Marion's!). I saw bits and pieces of two shows this weekend (Orrville...I was on the field so couldn't really get much and Columbus....I was kind of all over and only saw PR and Pioneer and heard a little of Gmen). I did get two good looks at PR and my take on them is that they are very good from an ensemble point of view in all sections and that's where they are scoring. However, their field numbers musically are going to hurt in July and August. The G bugles just don't sound good next to the Bb's. PR is loud, incredibly loud and that's the advantage of the G bugles....the little resistence allows them to pump it up to the top....and they do! PR's baritones and contras are aweful at this point though. Raspy, crack, splattered, and just out of control a lot of the time. Haven't seen Gmen, I heard them coming into the stadium though. Sounded like much of the same from the past several years. They get through the "climax" of their show and the crowd wakes up with a head jerk as if they had just fallen asleep at the wheel. The reviews seem to tell the tale: clean, will be top 6 again, but boring (did anyone see their tshirt that reads "Boring our way into your hearts"). Keep the HONEST reviews coming. DW

I'll give my somewhat biased views on the Bluecoats so far. I just got back from spending a couple days on the Bluecoats chuck truck. I've got good perspective on this corps having marched with them and now being a member of the board. I've seen this corps make DCI finals with literally no talent, no money, and a borderline show. I've seen this corps have phenomenal talent, and then have a poor show, and still make finals. I've seen this corps with great talent a great show and still finish behind some corps they shouldn't. This year is different. Everything seems to have come together all at the same time. Larry Hershman (program coordinator) has put together the best talent the Bluecoats have ever had (especially the color guard....wow!), an incredible staff, and I'm happy to say, a show that is designed to make the top 5. They aren't completely done with the whole show visaully (finishing up this week) but the first half is insane. I've never seen the Bluecoats do this much movement (especially the drumline). The beginning of the show is just crazy drill with the color doing 36 rifles (and they catch!). I think the section the activity has to take notice of this year is the drumline.....especially the BlueQ (they might be better right now than they were at finals last year.....seriously). I thought the Bluecoats drumline was slighted a great deal last year (played more clean notes than they got credit for). This year this drumline might be the most entertaining in the activity....I'll leave this to your imagination but they do some interesting "tricks" and "gimmicks" that really fit the show. You'll love it when you see and hear them. Hornline is much deeper sounding than in the past....probably because of the new horns. You'll hear more contra/euphonium sound out of the Bluecoats. Horns are still what carry this corps. If you've been wanting to hear a Bluecoats corps with some lead sop sound, YOU GET IT this year! The soloists throughout the show remind me of a mix of classic Spirit of Atlanta and Blue Devils. Very bluesy, high, and entertaining. The Bluecoats have definitely taken the steps needed to jump into the top 5. Everything is in place, now they just have to perform it!