MikeRapp

To each his own. I'm not a novice when evaluating drum corps, but I also am not an inside baseball guy when it comes to BD. I generally love their shows from a playing and design standpoint, but generally don't appreciate all the jazz walking, scatter drill and other stuff. But I realize that's what they are known for and what they have always done. I get it. But I get this feeling that if you traded uniforms with some other corps, this show wouldn't be placing as high as it is right now.

Blue Devils will always be impressive playing. They will part your hair when standing still. That's not arguable. But man, is it too much to ask for them to do *something* when playing other than one step forward, one step back? I mean this is drum corps, and this is Blue Devils. I realize the idea of this show is to demonstrate the evolution of drum corps, and notably BD. Still, the constant bug squishing, jazz walking, pointing to the sky, head bops, scatter drill and other stuff just irritates me to no end. I can accept it to some degree from a lower tier corps with younger kids, but I expect more from BD.

Well, most of us can't just hop in their car and drive to a show Willy nilly. I definitely don't think you can judge a show's music via YouTube, but you can certainly judge the drill and especially the design and execution of the drill. Certainly the BD staff knows more than I do and they see what I see...and a lot more. Regardless, there are some really sloppy transitions right now, and seemingly endless gyrations, pointing to nowhere, jazz walking, and scatter drill (whatever that is) that I just do not like. The BD honks are going to jump me and say they have won titles doing that stuff, and that's fine. But I don't have to like it. I see a lot more complexity and risk being taken by many other corps as far as drill. BD gets the benefit of every doubt, and it is deserved. But this show has a long way to go to be considered a great BD show. JMHO,

Having not heard Boston live, I can't really speak to how much room there is to grow. But they have a show that is very complex from a staging and guard standpoint that is easy to understand and cheer for. It reminds me a little of Academy last year, though obviously on the polar opposite end of the subject matter spectrum. You can see Cadets and especially Crown influences in this show. That should bode well for them down the stretch. Can they stay ahead of Cadets? I don't know. A .2 spread is no spread at all at this stage of the season, but, it was a lot more than that on the other side just a few weeks ago.

Dude, Periscope!

Maybe I will drive to Martin to see them.

It is a very complete show. It never slows down, and you get what is happening every step of the way. Maybe a little too much narration, but the way th drill points you to the relevant stage at every step of the story is pretty amazing at this point in the season. Again, though, I want more playing. Esp brass. Their percussion is shockingly advanced but the show feels heavy on movement and light on music.

Their percussion sound is so massive, I don't know how they do it. Other than they are probably marching the equivalent of four Center snares talent wise... I genuinely hated last year's show. In Nashville I was embarrassed for them given the almost total lack of a crown reaction at the end. I love their book and arrangements this year, but still don't get the show. They will kill in music performance but again suffer in GE.

I am frankly shocked at the guard. It's like a whole other corps. So much complexity, creativity and story telling that really communicates. The silks, wow. The stages are the only weak point to me, but that's nit picking. Also I am generally against singing but Wicked Games is cool. It left me wanting a bigger brass moment, though. I won't see this show live this year which is a bummer. I am betting it is much more convincing musically in person.

The follow the leader stuff and constant jazz running, pointing and leaning is irritating and confusing. I get that there is a lot of inside baseball with the show, but it seems very loose. Way too loose for BD. Now the playing? Oof. Amazing.

Or Jesus being crucified with a huge tarp of Mary.

Agree. I like the music. But the performance levels are absolutely amazing from beginning to end.

I am utterly amazed at the guard book in every respect. The concepts, the difficulty, the performances and the many props. It's Crown level. My only criticism is that it seems they play so little music. I want to hear so much more of this brass line. This show is a really smart design with a killer ending...pun intended. Great GE scores...but can they beat Cadets and Cavaliers playing so little relative to the constant marching and movements?

The two sides can thrive together, but to say Bluecoats isn't setting the standard for interesting music is dubious at best.

Don't know that I agree with this. The kids who want to do a modern music show aren't marching with Cadets anyway.

I didn't say I didn't enjoy the show. i said the drill, especially the transitions between segments, was very loose and at times not even there. The transition to the ballad was awful when I saw it last. Will it change? Yep. Must it change? Yep.

No way a new ending adds two points to a total score halfway or more through the season. Not for any top 10 corps. Scores are, first and foremost, relative in DCI. You are talking about changing the entire balance of scoring power among the top 10 with a new ending. Maybe if Boston went Game of Thrones on us actually cut someone's head off or burned someone at the stake you would see a significant jump...though admittedly maybe not in the upward direction! Theoretically, yes, it is possible...but so is getting hit in the head by a meteor.

Merchandise sales plays a huge financial role in any corps. I would love to know what percentage of a world class corps is merch vs ticket sales.

I've watched his show several times, and unless they add a lot more drill complexity I don't see them out scoring SCV or Bluecoats. Maybe not even Crown. There is no questioning their playing chops, but right now this show is maybe half walking and standing, and much of the walking isnt even playing a note. im not one of these guys who gets a stopwatch out and times how many minutes a corps parks and blows. But marching demand right now, especially in the second half of the show, is not there. Comparing this show to the other top shows it's not even close right now. Right now.

Just have fun. It's too much work if it becomes work.

Or just use the guilotine and end it all.

The ballad is one of my favorite musical moments in dci history. The transition to the ballad is one of the sloppiest drills I've ever seen from BD. Literally kids just walking to their next position. Then a few moments later the guard does the same thing, walking casually to the front. Very disappointing. Get that fixed!

The buzz factor is hugely important now. You have a lot more elite corps with very specific reputations that are able to recruit elite, experienced marchers. When you are not getting kids that are landing at Bluecoats, Boston and Crown -- three programs you will be traveling with for much of the season due to proximity -- it's pretty darned hard to keep the lines rolling at the merch tables. To say nothing of the morale among staffers. Cadets need stability. They need sustained staff longevity who exude fun and excitement. And kids need to leave tour having had the time of their lives. From what I have heard, the atmosphere at BAC right now is infectious. Everyone, including volunteers, are having the summer of their lives. They can feel it, taste it. They know they are destined for bigger stages. Every corps needs this to thrive because of the reality of fund raising and auditions. Its just a different time in this activity now. Bluecoats have really shifted everything, and Boston appears to be riding the wave.

Bring out the tarps...

Since last night: 1-0. I always sort of wondered how quickly the shift would happen, if at all. One month is a whole lot faster than I ever could have imagined. Things get real from here. Now that Boston smells blood, and Cadets have officially been punched in the nose, we will see how they both react.