FlamInvert122

Amen. I still cringe when I think about the 06-09 lines. Casella's writing was perfect match for SCV, but in general it lacks complexity and difficulty. 2007 and 2008 were embarassingly easy books, certainly not worthy of the talent Cavies had at the time. This year was a huge breath of fresh air with Mac. You can really tell the influence Kuhn had on his writing, but he still maintains a unique style that fits the Cavaliers seamlessly.

The thought of Bret Kuhn returning is outstanding. His writing was top-notch with The Cavaliers and he's the reason I idolized their lines when I was in high school. I finally gathered the courage to audition in the fall of 2005, which of course was right after his resignation :( I think 2000 is Bret's best book to this day. As far as complexity, musicality, and finesse it still hasn't been equaled. By anyone. Congrats to Phantom Regiment if they can land him!

Where the heck is the link to the webcast?????????

Enlightening and accurate.

BOOM roasted.

That's laughable.

That's what you noticed? Sorry, I was distracted by the 11 minutes of straight NOISE. I'd rather play 5 random CD's at one time. It'd probably sound better.

AMEN. How bout that crowd response, eh???? Your DCI Champs!! ....cricket....

Bluecoats, Crown, and Cavies.

Agreed. Cavies front ensemble is on fire this season. I can't remember another show with as many notes as these guys are cranking out, and at high volume levels too. I encourage everyone to take notice next time you watch this group. If the battery can continue to tighten up, I think they've got a real chance to win the caption. We shall see...

This is so amazing. This is EXACTLY who I wanted them to get to replace Casella. THANK YOU CAVALIERS!!!

See the full story on the Cavaliers home page: http://www.cavaliers.org/ Thoughts? Personally, I have a lot of respect for Casella and his writing, but I never felt his style really meshed with The Cavaliers. I'm hoping the corps pursues bringing back Kuhn or McIntosh!

That's the rumor... haven't heard a definite yes or no, however.

Does BD have an amazing show? Yes--seen it live. It's an amazing program Will they win? Probably, yes. Will they break 99.15? They very well could. BUT, I'd be disappointed if they did, UNLESS 2nd and 3rd place scores were in the upper 98's. I personally believe the point and a half margin BD currently has over its nearest competitor is a little far-fetched. I mean, come on... are they REALLY 1.5 points better than Cadets? Cavies? Crown? I just don't think so. Those shows are too good to be beaten by such a wide margin. Just my opinion...

I'd say either Crown or Cavies, but my vote goes to Cavies as long as they make the necessary changes to keep Crown at arms length. We shall see!

Ah yes, the annual Cavies marching technique thread... every year.

Thanks for the review! Nice avatar too, by the way.

1. Blue Devils 2. The Cavaliers (I have a feeling they might surprise some people. Could be completely wrong though.) 3. Carolina Crown 4. Holy Name Cadets 5. Santa Clara Vanguard 6. Bluecoats 7. Blue Stars 8. Phantom Regiment (yikes) 9. Boston Crusaders 10. Blue Knights 11. Glassmen 12. Colts (barely ahead of Troop)

Thanks for the great review! Looking forward to Part 2

This was an outstanding event. Great crowd and great weather once it cooled down a bit. I couldn't ask for better seats. I was on the 48 yardline, side 1, a little higher than halfway up the stands. Outstanding! On to the review... As a disclaimer I'd like to mention that I'm going purely off of memory here. Colt Cadets: 68.400 Nice show. They actually put out more sound than I would have expected given how small the corps is. Cool music from what I remember. It was cool to see Greg Orwell out walking the sidelines during their performance. I'm sure the kids appreciate that a lot. Mandarins: 72.000 (7th) This was the first time I had ever seen Mandarins live, and I was actually quite impressed! Gave me my first chills of the season. Great full sound and big impacts. I really enjoyed their musical selections and was really surprised by the wall of sound they were able to produce with a less than full corps. I don't know if they are a lock for semi's but I'm sure they will be contender the whole way. Cool stuff! Troopers: 76.550 (6th) I was really looking forward to this show based on all of the favorable reviews the Troopers have gotten thus far. I love the show concept. "Western Side Story" does a great job of hinting at West Side Story melodies while staying true to the western theme. The drumline was really intense and high energy which was awesome. Very high impact points throughout the show brought some really loud applause from the audience. This show has potential to make finals with the right adjustments and additions. Very impressive show from the Troopers! Colts: 77.600 (5th) This show was a noticeable step up from the Troopers right from the beginning. Loooovvee the opening statement. Loud and in your face. Drumline is better than I have ever seen from the Colts. Wow. Lots of notes and stick tricks in the drum feature, which was a little hard to hear over the synths, but I'm sure they will continue to address that. Don't remember much about the show specifically, but the music was very intense and dark. Cool stuff. I see Colts in 11th or 12th in Indianapolis. Drill needs quite a bit of cleaning, but the music is solid. Great ending to this show, which got a huge crowd response! Blue Knights: 81.500 (4th) Favorite BK show since 2006 for me. Drill was a noticeable step up from Colts and a little more volume too! Drumline had some great features. I can't say much about this show other than that it is a solid finalist program. Probably not very exciting to watch online, but very entertaining in person! I'd say they finish 9th or 10th in Indy. Blue Devils: 89.300 (1st) Okay... let me start by saying I HATED BD's show last year, and I have admittedly not been a fan of their programs in the 2000's. However, this show is absolutely INCREDIBLE! By far the best BD show I have ever seen and I can honestly say I expect them to win in August. Wow. As a Cavaliers fan at heart, it's not always easy to like the Blue Devils but I just can't help but like this show. The music is outstanding, the whole presentation just works perfectly. Drumline is was on fire tonight and the scores reflected that. This show just grooves. I was smiling the whole time. This corps just blows your face off. Easily the loudest of the night. Heavy use of synths but I think they work well... almost hauntingly at times. I don't know what else to say, but I can see this corps going undefeated and winning it all. They're gonna be tough to beat. Of course anything is possible and I'm sure Crown, Cavies, SCV, etc. will have something to say about it. Should be a great fight at the top this year! Bluecoats: 84.950 (3rd) Bluecoats are not getting the love from the judges I believe they deserve. This will be one of my favorite shows this year. Drumline is even better than last year (didn't think that was possible) and brass sounds excellent. The music is so engaging. Not a fan of the removal of the jackets and helmets, but I guess it's something unique. The closer absolutely COOKS and of course they blow your face off too! Bluecoats also performed the encore which was great. I could see this show place as high as 4th or as low as 7th. This program is levels above last year's... it would be a shame if they weren't rewarded with a better placement. The Cavaliers: 88.100 (2nd) Not my favorite Cavaliers show by any stretch, but still great! Love the opening of this show. The echo effects are a theme throughout and are certainly innovative. The shouting got a big laugh from the crowd. Cool! Biggest ovation of the night (mid-show anyway) came from the moment when the guard member climbs up the wall of horn players. Drumline was outstanding, but I'd like to see them play a harder book. Not that many notes from Casella. If I had my way I'd either bring back Kuhn or try to land Mike McIntosh. The horn book sounded more difficult than past years, which was nice. All around a solid show but nothing that screamed championship. Look for them to finish anywhere in the 2nd-4th range.

I was there too. I'm a big Cavies fan... but I think you're crazy. I thought BD was the clear winner. My review of the show is coming soon!

Two questions: 1. Have you ever heard of punctuation? 2. Do you EVER have anything positive to say? Seriously.

For the record, those were Pearls. Phantom switched to Dynasty in 08.

To this day, Phantom Regiment has been the only corps to make Dynasty's sound good. They're still not as good as the Pearls they used to have, but at least they've gotten close. A lot of credit should go to Rennick and his crew for making the best out of their equipment.