Very objective Review Thanks!
I was at the Hershey show as well sitting on th 50 at the top of the stadium. I am admitedly a little biased having marched in The Cadets.
My thoughts on the corps that I saw:
Crossmen
I was very interested in seeing them 'post move' and had mixed emotions. I think they will be fine if the intense Texas band community will get behind the idea of Drum Corps. The talent pool both member and instructionally that they have to pull from is immense. I think the challenge is to direct the TX talent from being solely band focused and get them to see the rewards of Drum Corps. I think the Crossmen move is a step in the right direction.
The show does seem choppy to me, but I think it is a transition year that will allow them to go in a more symphonic direction in years to come which will highlight the skills of the design staff.
Blue Knights
Very solid performance levels and there were definitely very interesting moments. For me they seem to have a very similar show every year. I would like to see something new and refreshing from them.
Carolina Crown
Great show!! Accesible, Technically Demanding, and Intriguing Clear design all at the same time. Is this possible in modern DCI?? They prove it is this year and I appreciate it. Regardless of Finals placement or scores, this show will be remembered. It reminds me of the shows of the late 80s and early 90s from Star and the Cadets that initially peaked my interest in DCI. BRAVO!
Blue Devils
Very High Performance Levels for early July and as usual a very clean product coming out of Concord. I guess I don't view this show as being terribly demanding, either in the hornline drill, or hornbook, but I never marched a BD show so feel free to flame away.
I LOVE the opening 3 minutes of the show and then it kind of dies away for me.
The Cadets
Admitedly Biased as I am an alumni. However, I will say the narration could be toned down greatly while sustaining the 'This I Believe' concept. Several of the lines are quite heavy handed. We will see how it evolves over time.
That being said. Holy hornline and drill. It just puts a smile on my face to see the drill demand back. I am also very very impressed by the hornline. The years I marched (early, mid 90s) we (the hornline) were definitely the weak link of the corps. It is great to see them playing such an intricate, difficult book so well.
They definitley are not as clean as BD right now and had a few blatant Guard issues Monday night. If anything holds them back this year it surpisingly will be the guard, they are not at the same talent level as previous years, does anyone know if they are very young?
So I hope this was not too biased, I try to point out the strengths and weaknesses of each corps in as objective of a manner as I am capable.
Can't wait for Murphreesboro.