festive

Do you have a problem with the Troop?

that'd be one LONG drum corps show.

Hee. What an amusing thread. Regiment's going to be just fine. I'll bet they're more focused right now than any other corps on the field (which is good, because they've got work to do). We'll see. I'm not really that concerned. B) Congrats to Crown and Bluecoats and 1-3, of course...there are lots of great shows on the field this summer.

No kidding...silly topic merges...I went looking for my topic and it changed titles! Anyway. Hear that, Crown? That's fate. Knock knock. I wasn't saying anything you didn't know already, apparently. :) Keep it up.

IMO, this is Phantom Regiment v. Phantom Regiment. They have to figure this out and get it done quickly. They can land this wherever they choose...it's up to them. The corps around them have actually very little to do with it. I think we're seeing some stuff from the judges about how the show needs to be cleaned up and finished up. And they're right, of course. Regiment knows this. Give them some credit. They didn't get to 2nd place last year on a fluke, no matter what any self-described expert thinks. Not wielding power like that. I have PHAITH. The only placement that matters is finals night. SUTA to my brothers and sisters...you are more important to us than any placement at a show. Do the very best you can, every day. The show is amazing (makes me ache a little every time I hear it...I like it more than Faust...sorry...my favorite Regiment show since 2004), and so are you. I'm proud of them no matter what. They've got to know that their alumni are behind them 1000%. We are. We always will be. First place or sixth place or any place. I know what they're doing, though. They've already moved on. Hee hee. Let's go...Pasadena is waiting for you.

PR scorches during encores. The encore I saw of them in 03 at a small show is still my single favorite encore of all time. It was EN FUEGO. I think they played the whole show (and at point-blank range). I can't remember if they played anything else because they shook my brain too much.

People obeyed my positive Crown thread, for the most part. I said "They rule" and then everyone who posted after me pretty much agreed. And that was nice. :) They do rule. Just a quick update on that.

As an alum, the OP can call them a band all day...it's fine. The post was incredibly nice.

That cool blue is HOT. What a great looking drum corps. Still best uniform on the field, BAR NONE, IM not so humble O. Ballad is a definite corps-gasm. Opener is slammin. Lovin' this show. LOVIN IT!!! SOOO-TAAAHHH!

Regiment has my favorite "moment" of the year. It's in the ballad...where it picks up toward the end and gets really intense and HOLY MOLY...I have the APD on my work computer and I've been listening to it all day. I'm going to be a basket case because it's so totally emotional it's almost too much to listen to and not weep openly. People come in my office and I make them listen to it. b**bs

1. Regiment 2. Crown And the margin is very, very small. But no ties, so yeah. There you go.

True, that. As an example, seeing VK rise up from the dust and all of a sudden be a CORPS again (and they are, too...go to myspace.com/vkyao to see vids of the closer...they're official and sanctioned, so it's OK), and now seeing Crown just absolutely hit some sweet spot and resonate with fans the way they are, and there's SO MUCH to do, everyone, to keep it all going. These kids, in this heat, are practicing and playing and spinning their hearts out, they're doing it for themselves, of course, but their reward is YOU, in the stands. You cheering them on and helping out and making a difference. Because it's stuff like that that makes drum corps a community no matter where we are or what we do to help. And DCP has been around a while and unlike some places, we (I believe...I'm sounding like the Cadets) all have our hearts in the right place. We all love this stuff. It's fantastic. We're all better for being around it. It's better for us being involved. I'll not wax philosophical about it, beyond what I have already, but I am happy that I made that post. It made my day to see all this.

They could give you the big ending and then have parts of the corps fly away. That'd rule. It's like getting more drum corps for your drum corps dollar. And I'm all for that.

Done.

I felt like it needed to be said. I would tell them directly but there's really no way I can do that. :P So I'll send out the positive thoughts and hope they find the target.

Hey Carolina Crown: I just want you to know how truly amazing I think your corps is this summer. I think your show does more to justify my love of drum corps than almost any other corps on the field (thank you, Regiment). You do this because you are succeeding in taking your raw talent and conveying the very essence of the show put before you to perform, in a way that is striking. You have become, for me, singularly "The Carolina Crown." You are no one else's drum corps; I wouldn't try to compare you with anyone at this point--you've convinced me. Your show is built for speed; it's built to set the crowd on its ear. And it is incredibly exciting to watch you do this. I ordered a mid-season DVD due to you. I wasn't expecting that! Sure, I was expecting a typical Crown show, with great brass, strong guard, etc., but you gave me so much more than that. And on a webcast, no less! I'll see you in Pasadena, hopefully, and I'll probably be completely floored by your show! Get the paramedics! It's been said that your show has all kinds of win in it. It does. And so I'm writing you to ask you to max this out. Please. Max yourselves out every day. Believe in each other--I know you do already but you especially owe it to yourselves to take everything you can from this horse. Your winning that award five times or whatever it was is not an accident. You are all that and a side of fries, already, but you can take the competition, too. I can feel it--Can you? And I see that there are some groups ahead of you, and that might be disappointing. But you should feel this love from your fans and thrive on it. Believe us--believe fans like me, believe your alumni who believe in you the same way I believe in Regiment every year. I am gushing over this show and you because there's only been a few times when I felt that potential for a corps to seriously MOVE UP. And you could, you know. I think you SHOULD. But it doesn't matter what I think...it only matters what you think. And there is time for you to do this! And even if you do everything and your scores don't do what I think they should, you still owe it to yourselves to max out your show. You're awesome...your show is awesome. To your staff and designers, and to your tremendous volunteer crew, thank you so much for allowing this show to happen. It's brilliant. I still can't get over how cool it is. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Agreed. Honk voters, unite.

That's what I'm going to do. :P Great post.

Yeah, judges got their thing. And fans have theirs. After seeing Crown and Regiment yesterday, I don't care what the judges think. Not at all. Especially Crown. Who says you can't buy happiness? You can buy a ticket to a drum corps show or pay for the webcast and see Crown, can't you? That show is all about those kids and us as fans and who gives a rip for anything else? It's perfect communication between corps and audience, IMO. Most corps can only dream about that, ever. No matter where they place. There are different kinds of winning. Scores? I'm still smiling from seeing that flying chevron and hearing that ballad in Regiment's show. Drum corps rules. Long live drum corps!

Ahh, but if it is enough for a person to reach that conclusion, then it is, for them. Maybe not for you. At the end of the day they're all just opinions. Even the judges...they just get to have more weight behind theirs. Wise or not. And what's wise got to do with drum corps? LOL. You may not agree with it. You may think they are missing out on a great show because they just don't like it. Too bad. FWIW, I still am shocked at how much I don't like the narration (on a 21" computer monitor with full screen going) in the Cadets show. I will see it in Pasadena and am prepared to eat my words, because that might change, but I would prefer that I didn't have to hear all that speaking again, and if I could just hear the music and see that great visual show. It's like a toastmasters meeting. Oh, and Bluecoats...the narration and tendency toward the slightly cheezy is, in my mind, not as big of a deal but I'm not sold on it and I don't know how much it adds. Maybe less of it. If there were less of it, it might well be more effective.

Maybe that person (or you) should let Glass know he needs to branch out more. Or write a bunch of stuff that's less self-referencing. Minimalism gets that a lot...that it all sounds the same. I don't think you can blame PR for sounding like they are playing Glass (and yeah, SCV played Glass, too...so I guess it's off the table forever?) From my perspective, 1000 doesn't sound a thing like Canyon. Have you heard the original versions? This Cadet corps is amazing. The narration isn't adding anything for me. There. I said it. If anything, it's seriously detracting from my enjoyment of what is an otherwise stellar program. The story is not taking center stage here...it's competing (and losing) to horns and drums and guard. And I think I am happy it is losing. My opinion only and your mileage may vary.

It is outstanding. I'm not so certain about the rest...I'm going to have to hear/see it again. But the opener, yeah. It cannot be denied.

'cause it's SICK. B) In a good way.

Faust didn't do it for me until August. I thought things weren't shaping up all that well in July, but I could tell that drum line was something special. This corps is something special, too, but we'll see. Who knows what they'll do? It's sort of up to them. Harmonic Journey was different. It tore my head off and handed it back to me when I first saw it in June. It was just that kind of show, I guess. It was a date with destiny--Regiment was "BACK."

Closer's the weak part, IMO. The opener is the most riveting thing I've seen yet tonight. Holy lord. And the chevron flying away. And then the duet. Chills! This show isn't even close to being done though, so I'll leave it at that. I'm happy with what they've done so far.