Rifuarian

Ever been on tour? That's pretty mild IMO, though I don't really ever remember seeing much of that from the Cadets. Hoppy has many, many faults but he runs a tight ship in that regard.

Much of what you say is true. Nonetheless the US was decidedly anti-militarist until WW2. Any American historian worth his salt (no, not Howard Zinn, sorry) will tell you so.Tiny standing army and navies during peacetime, smaller than most any other advanced nation (including the likes of Chile). Didn't even have an army for the first few decades of its existence, and when that army existed it was mostly regarded as a joke. Only until the 1940s did the government and people decide it would take more than two oceans and the British navy to keep America safe. And why do you think there were such massive protests to America's half-###ed forays into imperialism? Or why WWI ended up being so universally unpopular? Or why there was such a massive isolationist movement in the 30s? It's okay. My students, left and right, have a hard time dealing with this because it doesn't fit their favorite narratives. It's hard to let go. And anyways you're reading too much into this show. I give you an A for effort, but all it is is standard Hopkins-esque OTT schlock. Same stuff that kept them from winning in 07.

Most patriotic shows make me cringe too, but I've got to take issue with what you've said. Patriotism and militarism are not intrinsically connected. Americans have been notably patriotic since the beginning, but the US can only be described as being "militarist" since WW2. Cadets 2014 is more of a classic, cornpone, civic type of patriotism. I don't really see any rah-rah-rah, bomb 'em into the stone age stuff going on in the show.

Make no mistake, they're in it to win, more so than any other except maybe the Cadets. But what you say is a gross exaggeration. Try spending some time around BD and you'll quickly see otherwise.

I don't really get this thread. Sure, the show is not popular, but it's not really despised. The OP seems to be under the impression that some are going to boo and jeer the actual performance. Weird. While am at it, a quick observation. Whenever there is widespread negativity about the design of a certain show there's a tendency for the defenders of the show and the corps to hide behind "the kids". Which is funny since actual criticism of "the kids" - regarding, say, performance issues - usually goes unremarked and unnoticed. In fact the entire activity is predicated on intense, ongoing criticism of the paying marching members. "The kids" aren't sensitive to it, they tend to be pretty tough. It's the adults that can be whiny, petulant prima donnas when someone dares criticize their "art".

Okay, I'll admit Luger's is a bad example for pretension in steakhouse, despite it's fame (which is why I chose it as an example). Adobo's is good, and if anyone wants greasy spoon Tex Mex I recommend The Tamale Place, which is equidistant between downtown and the airport. Just take Washington west from downtown and you'll go right to it. There are a couple, but there are places where you can get vomit on spaghetti for much cheaper. The "food" truck of my old (now defunct) corps, for example.

St. Elmo's is realy quite good. 85% of the quality of, say, a Pete Luger's at less than half the price and a tenth of the pretension. It's consistently ranked among the best in the nation and, better still, is Ron Swanson's restaurant of choice. The problem isn't that Indy's not a food town - though it pales in comparison to nearby cities like Louisville, Chicago (of course), or even Bloomington - it's that the good stuff is far, far away from downtown and not within reach of most visiting drum corps fans. Like you said it's mostly high-end chains and fast food downtown though Tavern on South and the food trucks boxingfred mentioned are of course not chains. I second all recommendations for Shapiro's. The City Market is downtown and has great food and beer, will be open most of the day Saturday and for a little while on Friday. John's Hot Stew is in kind of a creepy, industrial location south of the stadium but it's cheap and delicious. Unfortunately anyone looking for a good local place open downtown after the show is pretty much #### out of luck. The three pepper steakburger at Steak and Shake is pretty good, and with fries will only cost you four bucks.

Ah, a DCP classic. 1. Proclaim that you are privy to top-secret information or "insights". 2. State that even though mentioned it on a public form, you can't discuss it because it's not the right time or place, because you might blow your cover, or because highly sensitive drum corps information might be leaked that would affect the future of the world - nay, the universe. 3. Sit back and let the peons gawk at you in silent awe.

Haha. Good thing you never took these alleged "financial supporters" out amongst the corps. I heard stuff way, way, way worse on tour as both member and volunteer than would ever be allowed to be posted on DCP. DCP is extremely mild as far as internet forums go, yet it is attacked by members of the community who can't seem handle the fact that there are people out there who dare disagree with them.

Eh, you'd be surprised at the number that might be willing to pay for the opportunity to operate the soundboard. My bro-in-law is an audio engineer and would have jumped at the opportunity, and many others would have. I know it seems like it's not that involved, but it really is a complex task and the experience for the operator would be invaluable. And frankly it would be an improvement over staffers and designers being in control as their use of soundboards tends to be (but is not always) amateurish. It was argued that no one would want to pay to stand still on the front sideline and bang on a marimba the entire show. It was also argued that no one would want to pay to mash whole notes on a synth for an entire show (yes I realize not all synth parts are like that). Yet people do. I don't think it would be any different for the soundboard.

As someone who tries to stand outside of the moronic traditionalist/progressive dichotomy, it's my experience that the "progressives" are much, much easier to troll than "traditionalists". Some of the older dudes may be pea-brained dinosaurs but they're made of sterner stuff, having survived on PB&J and Koolaid, pushing their buses from show to show , etc. It seems like the more progressive types spew their Starbucks caramel cinnamon pumpkin pie mocha lattes all over their crappy overpriced apple products every time someone criticizes a synthesizer.

It was just one crackpot getting angry as I recall. I know it's shocking to some of us that there are people at there who don't want to see your muffin top, but if covering means holding on to a housing site then you may just have make the terrible, awful sacrifice of keeping a shirt on. Oh, and less chance of skin cancer down the road, so there's that too!

Could you be specific about which world class corps are, in your words "piece(s) of s###?" Other than, presumably, the Oregon Crusaders.

Guess it depends on what you mean by "better". Some things have been gained, others lost. The corps and their members perform at a higher level, no doubt about that. And off the field the corps are better run and the members are (mostly) treated better. On the flip side you have far fewer and far fewer participants. The cost of marching has risen much faster than the rate of inflation, so even those who can afford to march have shorter marching careers than they might have had in earlier decades. And while I support the changes that have come to drum corps in the past 15 years I have to admit that there's a certain uniqueness to drum corps that's been irrevocably lost in that time.

Seems to me that rather than you trolling DCP, DCP has trolled you. And that's okay. There are literally thousands of people who complain bitterly about DCP yet continue to read it obsessively.

I prefer it when corps try out new repertoire, but there's more to being creative than just playing new stuff. Vanguard 2009 and 2010, for example, played music that had been featured in legendary drum corps shows, but put their own twist and interpration on it and made it their own. That, to me, is more creative than blasting a new piece of music beyond all recognition with the generic-drum-corps-arranging beam (GDCAB) and throwing it out on the field.

Guessing you're referring to my post here, apologies if you are not. The American South has a pretty vast and diverse musical culture. Most of the musical genres indigenous to the US originated there, there's a rich folk music culture, and more than a few classical and wind band composers have come from the South. And then there's all kinds of music that, while it did not originate in the South, is inspired by it. It seems like you, SOA, and many others seem to think of "Southern" as just the stuff Spirit played in its glory days. And if it that's what Spirit thinks its indentity is then of course that will be limiting. But that's not a problem with being the "Southern" corps, it's a lack of imagination and awareness on the part of designers, alumni, and fans. The same logic could be applied to Troopers and Pioneer. "Americana" and "Celtic" are only limitations if you allow them to be limitations.

Honestly it's not the Southern theme that holding them back, but the implementation of it. "Southern" covers a pretty vast and diverse repertoire of music. It seems like Spirit wants to make itself the Southern corps, but is too afraid or embarrassed to fully invest in the idea. That's the problem, IMO. The "schtick" is only limiting if Spirit lets it be limiting.

Right now you're at a 9, I'd take it down to about a 5 or a 6. Really digging Boston's show, but it terms of content and theme they're not breaking any new ground. No more than the Cadets are.

Been digging Boston the past couple of years and it looks like I'll enjoy this show as well. Musically at least. Not sure how well the theme is going to play out on the field, but that's not really all that important. Unis look sharp up close but have to wonder if the black splotches on the jacket (yes, I know it's supposed to be their logo) will look messy from the stands.

Been reading DCP for ten years and the collective often turns out be right when it comes to these pre-season reveals. That said . . . 90% of the negativity directed at PR comes from just one poster, who swore least year he was quitting DCP 4evar has now returned to pee on the electric fence once again. Most of the criticism of the Cadets (I'd hardly say they've been "decimated") is thematic. It would be exactly the same had they kept things under wraps until the season began.

Yes, "performing" in this context means bouncing around and grimacing in a way that would be cringe-worthy if anyone was actually paying attention. Fortunately there are still some pits that know how to just relax and play.

I was referring to the claim, in another thread, that "costuming" (meaning disposable WGI-style uniforms in this context) were the best way for DCI to "move forward" and "appeal to outsiders". This claim is mystifying since it seems to me that most true outsiders would more easily connect with a more traditional uniform as opposed to a colorful jumpsuit. That, of course, is just my gut feeling. I only have anectodal evidence to support it. #purplepantsband is a hashtag that's overwhelmingly used by Crown's legion of loyal high school band kids. So not outsiders at all. It really has no bearing on what I'm trying to say.

I've heard the narration (or similar narration) a milion times before from marching bands, I'm sick of Copland on the field, never liked Lincoln portrait . . . nonetheless this show ain't too bad. It terms of theme, content, and repertoire they're taking a very, very well trod, safe path. But the performance captions should be through the roof, which could elevate this banal show to higher levels than it might have reached were it performed by someone else.

Of course they are. That's why I described them as such in my post.