blueisola

for those who have not already seen, head to YEA.ORG, Hop has resigned, thankfully.

At the end of the day this is a media of 'art' is it not? And we should all know well and good by this point art is ultimately and incredibly subjective at the start and end of everything. Aside from how differently art may speaks to the individual from person to person, aside from the actual interpretation of the art he or she is experiencing, said individuals are even approaching the art from differing perspectives; ie. what their expectation of the art is. I for one don't necessarily need an explanation or a complete understanding of a piece of art for me to completely and thoroughly enjoy it. In fact, on most occasions I would rather not be told what it is I am supposed to be experiencing; let the art speak for itself. We all ultimately have preferences, be it from biased team loyalty or to the genre that is being portrayed or rendered, but art should be experienced on a visceral level. To me drum corps does that better and more consistently than most other mediums out there. Personally I think the BlueCoats have achieved this with striking accomplishment the past two seasons. And on both occasions they started with the music and allowed that to drive their art. I think they have successfully conveyed their ideas, but I love that it didn't need to be explained to me nor did I feel like I was watching theater on a football field. It was just an exciting offering of dynamic music in motion. And to put things into real perspective, I was not a fan of electronics being introduced into the world of drum corps. The Coats managed to really bring something new to the table with this new color palate. To reiterate, this is just my subjective two cents. :)

I really thought Crown had a good run tonight and expected to see them in the 4th slot over SCV. Other than the obvious spread in percussion I am surprised Crown continues falling behind them. The discrepancy in guard makes no sense to me. I guess one must really be at field level to be able to figure that out clearly.

The quality of these corps down on this end of the spectrum is night and day over what they were 4-5 years ago. The level of execution and performance is really impressive. For all that some gripe and moan about competition and the want to win, the level of high proficiency and the strive for excellence really has brought out the best of the entire tour. and who ultimately wins?? we the fans.

Considering I live right around the corner from it I'll be at the Rialto in Westfield tonight at some point.

just like many things in life, too much of a good thing CAN be bad. just say no to over-embellished leg choreography! trying to squeeze it into every opportunity in a show simply to demonstrate a homogenized skill and control doesn't necessarily add to the overall effect of the program. In fact I think it actually detracts and disorients quite a bit in a lot of cases.

well, that is exactly what they did last night. I was a little dubious of the Devil's opener from just what I have seen on-line, but sitting there in person last night, they killed it. It's been quite a few years not since I fell out of being a fan of what BD have been putting on the field, and though I still am just not into their style of drumcorps that they seem to have niched into over the past 5 or so seasons, they really are great this year. They just play the hell out of that show. The show as a whole is bit too distracting for me, but at the end of the day, regardless which panel of judges is marking the sheets, whether it adds to an eye-opening 2 point spread over the rest of the field, there is GE intangibility all over the show. Not saying there is a formula that equates to guaranteed success at the top level of the activity but the BD design staff have certainly dialed into what rubs the judges the right way. Certainly doesn't hurt to have the shows performed with such high degrees of execution. And for those who were fortunate enough to figure out the traffic tragedy, I don't care, that should not have been anywhere near that bad. If you know there are two major events taking place simultaneously, plan accordingly. Or at least alert DCI to that fact so that they can alert their patrons to give adequate extra time to get in their seats before step-off. It was awful. I live twenty minutes from the stadium and should not have missed Crown and nearly half of SCV because there was a mismanagement in scheduling and parking. It's kind of inexcusable, really. None of the parking attendants had a clue as to what was really going on, other than taking your money for inconvenient parking circumstances. Good luck with that scenario when Michigan and Penn State come to town...

Hopefully helping stear this thread back on course to Drumman's original intent... Going on 20+ years of drumcorp-nut-dom as I approach my 40th birthday... Simply put I stay because there is simply nothing else quite like drumcorps out there. At the end of the day whether it's the '91 Devils or the '95 Scout or the 2007 Vanguard or Crown in 2013, it still continues to thrill me like few things do; it is such a unique and all encompassing experience. And ultimately why drumcorps is one of my top 3 favorite things in this life. I have yet to experience, live and in person, anything that is more viscerally powerful than drumcorps. Anything that can drive me to spontaneous tears is certainly worth sticking around for. Year after year after year.

Holy heck, can't believe the Cadets are that polished already at this point of the season. Utterly traditional Cadets gone Copeland all Americana in here! And it's a great show. Yes, I have my doubts too, like others on here, that they may potentially peak a bit too early, but it certainly has the components to be a winner. The flow of the show from start to finish is absolutely flawless, a something that I really didn't see in any of the other corps besides the Coats. Good to see Phantom looking so clean this early on; I dig the transition to the uniform change, but ultimately, sadly, what a rather boring show. The opener is entirely forgettable. But they have plenty of time to embellish the show. I really, really, really, really hope Boston can clean the hell out of and execute the hell out of that show, cause I think that has soooooo much potential. I love that they are pushing and challenging themselves so much; this voice of theirs could be mighty impressive and a memorable show if they pull it off. dear Madison: Good to see you back to some of your roots. Love the classy dress white uniforms, really, they look great. But for the love of your show and for the benefit of we the audience, please just do away with all of the leg choreography. Some corps do it very well, despite the fact that it is often over-indulged to the point of being hyperbolic (if that is even possible in such a context); it is always distracting. Yes, I know it is early in the season and it will potentially clean up, but it is incredibly distracting to your show. And not something that Madison is known for. Just clean up the drill and play the hell out of that book which could and should be a fan favorite.

You just may get a vote for every single show closer on here at the end of the day :) show closers that still move me to no end and make my heart race: 1986 Madison Scouts - yes, I prefer this over 88's Maleguena. the Melli licks at the end... 1995 Madison Scouts 1986 Blue Devils - the definitive Channel One show (this was my first time seeing one of the junior corps in person...oh my) 1991 Blue Devils - (one of the most underrated Devils show in my humble opinion) 1995 Blue Devils - awesome callback to the '94 closer 2003 Phantom Regiment 2000 Phantom Regiment - though it didn't score well, one of my favorite Phan shows. The Rite of Spring done right.

I realize topics like these are merely for the sake of simply throwing some ideas out there. Often just for the sheer enjoyment of ruminating on a subject. But in a day and time when many corps are struggling to field and fund tours year after year, fracturing the unique wonder of what is at the heart of drum corps is not the answer to bolstering butts in the seats. Let's face it, we're an obscure and weird-birded lot in life; we being the drum corps nuts. It's one of my three favorite things in this life, and yet I largely enjoy it by myself for the most part. Sure, I have dragged friends and girlfriends along to shows, many of them leaving completely impressed and thoroughly entertained. But so few people actually appreciate acoustic instruments, such as brass, that it’s just a tough sell if there is not already an established appreciation for such styles of music/art. Woodwinds and other acoustic instruments are not going to make new fans of drum corps; drum corps makes new fans of drum corps. Drum Corps is the amazing and impactful art that it is largely in part to the unique timbre and voicing (and writing for said voice) that is the all brass choir of the hornline. There are plenty of other outlets if you wish to hear woodwinds and strings and such.

Ha! yes, Jeff, that is exactly what I was referring to. Thanks for spelling it out in a much more explained manner.

And hence why I didn't make mention of the Cadets ;) I should have been more specific in my way-laying of audio embellishment; more specifically the sub-bass bump as opposed to audio/vocal clips and such. In the context that how much I miss the days of pre-amplification, specifically when I am listening to the championship recordings from the past few years.

Totally agree with you all across the board. This was the year when I think Crown really opened the eyes of the masses of the push forward they were about to make. Their opening hit is still one of my favorites ever. Not to mention one of my favorite- and I think way over-looked- Vanguard shows that they have put on the field in the past decade. And I think this was the last quality year before audio embellishment fully tainted drum corps forever.

I truly do respect what Dan Potter has done with the Field Pass podcasts and such, and though it certainly seems like the most natural path forward to follow Brandt considering the work he has done with the TOC series, I really hope he is not his successor. There is almost a 'trying too hard' campiness that comes across with Potter that always makes me cringe a bit. But we all have our preferences and in the end our preferences are just opinions.