dbrddr

does anyone know an easy way to get from the GMU-Fairfax metro station to the stadium? Is there a shuttle service or a metrobus route that operates into the night?

Considering that the Bluecoats finished putting their closer on the field yesterday, maybe we shouldn't rush to judgment about their visual program or show design.

this might have been pointed out elsewhere in the thread (I haven't read all of it), but SCV did NOT finish in the top 6 in 2005.

Get this (and I apologize in advance if my friend in Bluecoats didn't want this to be made public): "I don't know what to make of this... A judge told our staff during critique that he messed up his score. And here I was thinking our crappy scores were from over-rehearsing and lack of sleep." if that's the case, we may not be seeing a recap.

I watched the Bluecoats rehearse all day on July 22 and saw them perform on July 23. I'm pretty sure Atlanta's omissions were just technological glitches.

some actual scores plz kthx

new ending!

BLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

real blood? Sounds like a Monk episode in the making...

what a solo!!!!!!

what a sweet show this is going to be!

(guess not)

stop the show right now

those have got to be the lamest snare feature rewrites I've ever heard.

If I saw these scores in early June, the biggest surprise I would note would be Crown scoring 4.425 points ahead of Bluecoats. Goodness.

Didn't take notes and didn't watch the shows with the expectation of writing this, but what the heck. Might as well. In order of performance: Pioneer (7th place, 71.15) This show wasn't as overtly Irish as I was expecting. There was a nice xylophone solo in the beginning. There were some definite hornline intonation issues and some players sticking out, especially among the sops. Tenors played fairly well but had some semi-major drum carriage issues. It didn't seem affect their playing or hitting of their dots, but the problem is palpable. There were a few nice snare features, and the line had a lot of energy throughout. I remember one section in particular in which the snares played a solo with the trumpets--the writing there was quite tasty. Major props to Tyler Dempsey on that. Visually, I noticed several failures to dress. Many of their effects (entire hornline high-step marching) just don't seem to work with so few members. There were numerous timing issues from the battery (when it was backfield, that is) to the pit and with the front of the hornline that couldn't quite classify as tears but that need to be addressed. The kids are full of energy but aren't always on the top side of the beat. I always appreciate their undistorted melodic arrangements of tunes most of us know (like Walton's Crown Imperial March, for example). Blue Stars (5th place, 82.9) What a pleasant surprise! This corps conveys their theme so well! And all of the Debussy pieces were absolutely GORGEOUS! There might have been a tad of dirt in the drumline tonight (but they take risks--there's plenty of exposure) , but it also had quite a few very nice moments. As my dad pointed out, the hornline's intonation was exceptional throughout. What it's really my duty to get across is that this corps sure has come a long way since last year. Every section has improved by leaps and bounds. The guard is used so well to sell the concept to the audience. The rolling wheel parts sure were fun, and the closing few sets were just plain brilliant. Their volume astounds you at times but is never too much. No way this corps didn't accomplish whatever goal they set for themselves tonight. Glassmen (4th place, 83.4) One thing that struck me was how darn aggressive this drumline is. Man, do they stay on top of things. If ever there were a group of guys that drives with their feet and does their duty within the ensemble, this is it. There's a particular portion of their show--I don't want to call it gimmicky--that epitomizes their carnival theme and absolutely works. It reminds me a lot of the few measures in the 2004 Bluecoats show leading up to the rubber ducky noise... they beat the effect into you, but it sure sticks with you, you know? This hornline also registered some major volume, which is probably hard not to do with the higher membership caps. This was another very fun show, maybe not as much so for me as their immediate predecessors, but they're trying something completely different/have all bought into the idea and are being rewarded quite well. Deservedly so. I see the G-men and Blue Stars as your 10th and 11th place, not necessarily respectively. Cadets (1st place, 91.6) I saw this crew rehearse before the show started. Man, do they want it. Each water break lasted, on average, about 45 seconds. There wasn't a whole lot of pure disciplining going on because not much was needed. Not to be a petulant onlooker who takes everything for granted, but WHY DID THEY WATER DOWN THEIR DRUM BREAK? What justification could possibly be that wouldn't fix itself in the end? Did they not have the hands for it? I don't buy that at all. I also can't believe that whatever problems they had were entirely mental because those dudes were displaying some major consistency and retention of instruction. Nonetheless, what they have is very well performed. As I fully expected, this group is STELLAR visually. They move so fast and play so well. I can also recall my jaw dropping when the mellophones added this unbelievably high note to what was already a spectacular display of range by the sopranos. It's things like that that enable me to look past the narration feuds and enjoy the music for what it is. I despise bigotry in all forms, but I might as well offer my input to the court of public opinion: the best decision the Cadets as an organization could make from this point on would be to cut the entirely gratuitous narration and let us enjoy the otherwise phenomenal designs they put out year after year. Learning to appreciate the wonderful Cadets forest to the exclusion of one very ugly tree, as I imagine, would be like dating a supermodel with a dime-sized mole on her left cheek (you can complete the analogy). The music they play has absolutely no relation to a granddaughter's birth, that feeling of collegiate independence, or the lure of Wall Street. Those mellifluous, well-scripted spoken words were absolute earsores to those of us who came to witness the pinnacle of musicality. Still, I doubt anything could deprive me of my appreciation for the sheer level of talent and dedication this corps clearly possesses. *on a side note, one of the snare drummers (one to the right of center as you face the line) took a MAJOR spill tonight, and I'm talking Spike TV-worthy. His drum fell down, he lost a stick, and his scoop was like a slippery banana for the entire corps on the turf for the rest of the performance. I thought he might have blown his knee out or maybe even worse, but he got back up and inserted himself back into the show without a hitch. Keep this guy in your prayers for at least a night. Blue Knights (3rd place, 85.75) After seeing three distinct themes pursued so eagerly (le Tour, Kar-ne-val, and, quite literally, happiness), this show was a tad esoteric for my tastes. Don't get me wrong; they good. But the drumline doesn't seem to take nearly as many risks as it did even last year. There's a lot of metrically modulated stuff, as is typical of Audsemore, but maybe my intellectual honeymoon with that sort of writing is over, especially when it seems to comprise your entire show. The performance level was very high, but the show itself isn't too memorable. Bluecoats (2nd place, 89.00) I'm completely in the tank for these guys. If you're looking for an impartial take, do not enter. Their snareline is so crisp with those sweet MacIntosh-style accented triplet rolls, and that tenor scrape/extended triplet roll lick in the opener cut across so well to the top of the stadium. Maybe the only thing that can compare to hearing the hornline's shout chorus at the end of the ballad in person is going inside Westminster Abbey. Both induce involuntary physiological reactions--you will have goosebumps for at least a minute and a half. The bass solo is much less awe-inspiring, mysterious, and gloriously inaccessible now that I've heard it played with a metronome, but it's still gutsy and made me scream like a little girly tonight. It's hard to comment on this show in a broader context when I have every second of it memorized, so I'd be happy to offer my tendentious distillation of any aspect of this show if you have any questions. Madison Scouts (6th place, 79.7) Like the Blue Stars (but not nearly as much so), a noticeable step up from last year. I do recall one sweet Latin section the trumpets played that had my butt grooving in my seat. This hornline is every bit as loud as '04's. The rhythms played on the amplified wooden (?) contraptions up front weren't too complex but added nicely to the musical layering when it needed to happen. The snareline seems to have regained some of the unmitigated, in-your-face, 3-stroke-playing, head-swaying chutzpa of, say, 2005, but the few occasions on which it happened could just have been amplified in my mind by the fact that I really wanted to see it happen. I didn't really dig the drum break. Too many hertas and simple rhythms, and the staging seemed to me quite unsophisticated. All in all, I was quite satisfied with what I saw and heard. I'm sure Madison's performance left the announcer few qualms about arbitrarily pronouncing the corps the "crowd favorite" before a single group took the field. Word! Any questions?

one of the better performances Crown has EVER put out, I'd imagine.

one of the better performances Crown has EVER put out, I'd imagine.

sounds like a seduction will occur!

cartwheel!! LMAO!!!!

let's go BLUECOATS!

I agree. What a gorgeous ballad.

They had a preseason professional recording session done a day or two before their first show.

Awesome anecdote from my Bluecoats trumpet friend: Glassmen were doing a visual warmup and BAC was coming to arc up in 2s. 3 lines of Glassmen's visual block collided with and broke BAC's ranks. "It was priceless."

Is what the Coats are playing?