Taking this in a slightly different direction... I went to the theater to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix yesterday, and I saw a preview for....... DCI!!!!!!! I was in shock, but I think it was for quarterfinals. So how's that for affecting drum corps --- having it advertised before an incredibly successful movie!?!
I don't know if it would make sense in terms of orchestration, but I'd love to hear a corps try Imogen Heap's Hide and Seek. I know it's been done indoor, but I'd love to see it on the field.
As a fan and *slightly* biased toward the perc side [not a vet, but a musician in my own right, so take my comments as you will], I have to say this is a really unfair statement -- a lot of the perc books out there are extremely technically complicated while still fitting in stylistically with the shows. To imply that all percussion composers [you'll note that I did not say "drum writers"] are out to showcase chops and lacking a sense of overall musicality is a gross overstatement, and vastly underestimates the talent and hard work involved in putting together an effective show. Just my two cents.
I assume you're looking for recaps from the shows. If so, try http://soundmachine.org/dci/. It has the scores/recaps going back to 1996. Hope this helps!
I definitely agree that the extra sleep/practice time will actually help the corps - I mean, come on, they get tons of performance experience all summer. Plus, Glassmen did get to perform so they got a score, tapes, recap sheets, etc. All the perks of a competition without taking up the time.