Corbin

This "don't worry, be happy" attitude is completely off base. The members pay money for their experience. They don't get paid to be placed in the context of a bad experiment. This is a corps that has not been out of the top 5 in over a decade. Members come into the corps counting on this tradition of excellence. The year is nothing but bad staff choices. If they want to experiment, there are other corps these staff can go to. It is not a simple explanation. It is bad design, which leads to bad everything else. If nothing else, the Cavies should have tried to get the best they could after Gaines and others left, not settle. I know the Cavies will be back in form soon, but it should never come at the expense of the members' experiences.

I don't know about big jumps, but the surprise I would like to see is SCV in third this year. Cadets and Phantom won't give it up easily, but SCV is really getting itself together and has really been on the move since Atlanta. Great show from them this year!!

The Cavies cannot pull ahead because their staff have let the members down this year.

Thank you for this. Is it only tradition that has made it a two night thing?

Just curious: Because Allentown is such a historic show, why is it not treated as a regional event?

Simple answer: choreography in the color guard...marching drill for the rest of the corps.

I have tremendous respect for BD. What they do, they do at a brilliant level. I say this because I believe it to be true currently and historically, although I have not been entertained nor have purchased any of their shows since the 1990s. I do not believe BDs show deserves to win this year, at it pales in comparison to the level of technical difficulty and general entertainment value that Crown's show deplays this year. Almost every aspect of Crown show attempts to push the members to the max and does so with fresh music. BD, in this year, cannot claim this. I own the audios to their 1991 and 1996 shows. Why would I want to own this one? Place something new, BD! Or play entire pieces on the field again instead of hacking them to death. I don't blame members ever for staff choices, but its time to play jazz again and do something fresh and entertaining with it. GO CROWN!!!!

93 Cadets - "It Is Well with My Soul."

I completely agree with what your thoughts here! Thank you for this. By the way, loved 89 Madison and 90 Cadets, honestly.

Be glad you didn't march with Crown. Otherwise, the Crown blind loyalist would be taking a lot of frustration out on you like they do on me for saying the same general thing you have in this message.

THANK YOU for this comment. Please Crown blind loyalist GROW UP!!!

Oh...I have loyalty just to different and more important things now. It's called GROWING UP! I'm not a pseudo-adult anymore. Nor am I stuck in the past. If Crown is one of the most significant or only things to which you can be loyal, it seems depressing.

Although it was Crown's home show, I think the scoring between them and BD is more accurate than it has been at previous shows, especially concerning brass. I know BD is good in this category, but Crown should be a few tenths above them in every brass related category right now and into the future. The one tenth here or there is not a good representation of how much better Crown's brass is this year. BD is good in this category, but Crown is AWESOME.

There will not be discussion until people put this forum in the proper context. This board is an OPINION board. People on this board do not make life and death decisions. Until people stop taking their loyalties to particular corps so seriously, there will be no discussion.

I think we should add SCV to the list. They have had their ups and downs over the years. They are not a Cadets or BD in terms of consistency or placement and would probably be sixth instead of fifth this year if it wasn't for the Cavies having an off year. They are due for a come back I think.

I learned the only way I was going to get any peace from a certain person was to reframe the critiques so they seemed lighter. I appreciate dialogue and loyalty to the proper things. Drum Corps did not radically change my life one way or the other. I am now a fan only. When Crown's staff does something well, I will give them credit. If not, they won't get it. By the way, Madison isn't doing that great in percussion this year. Wonder why? Maybe their instructor is loosing passion. I'd be afraid to see what Crown's percussion score would be this year with that person leading it. Sorry, this perspective seems true. Oh! and how bout that Madison guard this year. Where was that head person last year?

Many of the people commenting on Crown in this post should be glad that a couple of die hard Crown loyalist are at Nightbeat tonight and not on DCP, otherwise you all would be getting a lot of negativity from a least one person who bothers me on a continuous basis :P. Some people take loyalty to their corps as a life and death issue. SO STUPID!!!!!

I think a lot of the hype around Crown comes from the fact that their Brass is SO good. I am with the original poster. I think Crown's Brass is the best in DCI. Anybody that pushes me on this will get pushed back on. Having said this, however, I get better overall entertainment by other corps this year. Crown has to execute a SHOW in order to win, not just have a kick butt brass line. Brass alone does not win a title. Never has and never will.

I'll take that action...Madison just plain sucked from 1996 through 2010. They were not worth watching or listening to. Oh wait!!...even last year's show is missing the best piece because of rights issues. Oh well, I guess 2011 is out as well.

I think this problem will resolve itself if the percussion gets better. Crown fans seem to forget that GE music is not just BRASS. It also includes percussion. So, it will be difficult for Crown to win GE if their percussion does not improve. If their percussion does improve, so will their GE score.

Based upon the judge's sheets last night, it is more about Crown's percussion getting clean right now than drill getting clean. They are almost even in all sections except for percussion.

I been getting my tail kicked for critiquing the corps I marched with 22 years ago by another member of this same corps, who seems to think Crown walks on water and does no wrong or couldn't do any better or make better decisions. So, I feel MotorCity and Kamarag concerning this type of behavior. I am sick to death of people on DCP who think that their loyalty to a corps is a life and death issue. This is an opinion board, not a place where people have the power to impose the death penalty or something. I mean, people on the forum need to CHILL OUT!!! and put the activity and people's OPINIONS in the proper context, that of just being opinions.

With the increased demands the activity now sees, there needs to be more safety precautions in place. I believe this is the point of the original post. Everyone should respect this need. I mean, even the young man from crown knew that he could no longer march due to injury. I feel these incidences will increase. There just needs to be an increase in safety to compensate for the increase in demand.

I know, right? But one judge did give BD the edge over Crown this year so I must give other options to be fair.

On this first part of the poll, I have BD winning total GE with Crown taking GE Music and BD taking GE Visual.