davdrums

I'll be tweeting live from the show if anyone is interested. @davdrums About to set journey to Madison here within the hour. I have about a 2 1/2 hour drive from the north. It's already warm and humid out at 10am. Lets hope the weather holds.

Xylophones? Maybe just one if you are lucky nowadays. Marimba? Yes, that is what you saw. Think of it this way, a marimba has such a large range that just because there are 4 marimbas doesn't mean all of them are playing the same thing. Don't forget there are also Vibraphones, Bells, Chimes, Crotales in the pit as well. Maybe that is where you get 7. All those mallet instruments have their own texture.

I'm so tired out, but I thought I'd share some thoughts at 3:15am in the morning. Maybe I'll write more later, who knows. This is one of the most thrilling Finals I have ever been to. So many close margins, and most importantly so many good corps. The way I see it is that there are so many corps that didn't make finals that could have easily been in finals with the quality show they had. The activity is getting a lot better and no matter where they ended up when the scoring ended, they all did a wonderful job and should get a pat on the back for a job well done. OK, Madison is just a wonderful place for drum corps. My only complaint would be the beyond cramped seating that is there. It was a very tight squeeze in the beginning of the show, and then after the first corps we had to fit yet another 3 people in our row. The chairs kids sit in kindergarden have more room than what I was dealing with tonight; and I'm not over exaggerating. I'm about to fall asleep so here are my random thoughts. Carolina Crown has a brass section that was one of the loudest I've heard in a long time. To see them drop was a disappointment, but then again, we are talking close scores again. It's not just brass that you win with is my guess why they dropped; of course. The crowd let the corps know at finale how they felt. I hope the members know that they did a great job. I'm not a fan of booing, but I could see why and hope it wasn't taken the wrong way by anyone. SCV was just so great tonight. You could really see the hunger they had to do better, and they were rewarded. Madison really cleaned up their drill the last 3 days and I think it payed off in the end for them. Was it squeeky clean? No, but it was dramaticly better than Friday in my opinion. Big story was Phantom Regiment. One of the best PR shows I've seen in a long time. Their heart was so in it this weekend! The crowd was in a frenzy when the scores were announced. I hope that feeling lasts forever for those members. Which brings me up to BD. They did well tonight.......but, after they were done performing, I knew that PR moved up. If you read my post yesterday I predicted they would fall to PR. My reason wasn't that they aren't good or anything, but PR had the momentum and I just knew what was going to happen in the end. I must say this is one of my favorite shows from BD. Cavies were just great! Such a creative show, yeah, the whole package was there. A joy to watch and listen to. Final thought, Blue Knights pit section is the best I've ever seen from them. When you get the dvd's or cd's just listen to the work and the musicality they play with; truly awe inspiring! I could touch on other things, but I'm wiped. It's been a wonderful writing reviews this season. I know some of my posts were good ones and not so good ones, but I hope I could share some of my insights as the season went along. If you want to hear from me again next season; let me know. I know this review wasn't all percussion stuff like I usually write, but when it comes to finals, you just have to take it all in. One last thing, seeing DCI doesn't want anyone posting photos of the actual performance of a corps, I thought I'd share this one photo from my seat in madison of a "non performance"; finale to be exact. http://target.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/davdr...jpg&.src=ph davdrums

Ok, not so late tonight so here is my review; from a percussionists point of view. Today was cool, as in the weather was cool. High around 1pm today was 76 and cooled off quickly. I would say by the end of show time it was in the 60's. I had to wear a jacket. Update from yesterday, I didn't have the same people sit by me that were rude with cell phone going off, loud talking and whatnot. I'm thankful. Great crowd tonight and very very responsive. I had a full row tonight and I was cramped. It's hard to watch a show when you are literally squeezing yourself together just to sit and not cause discomfort to the people around you. Mandarins: Sorry, I was stuck in the tunnel, too many people trying to get in at once. Capital Regiment: I really enjoy this show. My favorite part is when they use the tubes. The kids looked like they were having a ton of fun. Crowd ate it up when the tenor drum caught the frisbee. Great job and I look forward to seeing this corps next year. Blue Stars: Surprise of the night was they beat Crossmen; and in my opinion they sure did. When you watched Stars, you knew that they knew this was their last show and they left it all of the field tonight. I saw so much emotion from them, I think it's that fact alone which made them perform the best show of their lives. Drums sounded great tonight and really projected well. I'm not sure if it was tuning, but the exception to that is the bass drums were not as noticeable as the snares and tenors. I've never been a fan of Ludwig drums and not sure if this played into that. In any case they did a great job. Yes, I would have liked to have heard a little less narration, but it all made sense so I'll give them that. I think Blue Stars will make Finals next year, that's my prediction. Crossmen: Today did not seem as strong as yesterday. I really enjoy the radio part and think it is still the best use of voice amplification to date. Even though I do not like voice in Corps, I appreciate that it was tastefully done. I really don't have much else to say about Crossmen. Hope things go really well for them next year. Colts: I think this is one of the best Colts in history. Yeah, they didn't make finals, but if you look at how good everyone is this year, they should be feeling great at what they accomplished this season. I love the use of patio chimes in the pit. Drumline is good but what really shines is thier cymbal section. What great visuals! You know, Colts should make a video on just how many different sounds you can get with a pair of crash cymbals. They really explore this in thier music and it is a joy to listen to. Good job and best to this corps in 2007. Spirit from JSU: I'm not a brass guy, hence the topic description, but I really notice how great their brass section is. Some big power from them and most of all, a very balanced and great quality of sound. Nothing else really stuck out, but I'll pay more attention tomorrow. Glassmen: This drumline plays with such a nice touch and balance that it just blends in with the entire ensemble. Kudos to you! Like everyone, I love the going silent part. Pit played some nice parts on keys that again balanced out very well and just mixed with the entire ensemble. Pleasure to listen to. Madison Scouts: Crowd response was great. They have made enough changes to this show that it works now. Madison knows how to pin your ears back when it comes time and we all love it. Drumline was super clean!!! I couldn't hear the pit like before, not sure if they didn't have their amps up as much as last night; as last night I could make things out very well. No doubt that this show is a hard show for them so I give them credit for that, but I hope that next year they can deliver on all of the goods, it was not all clean yet as of today. Oh well, I still love Madison. Hope they pull it all of tomorrow. Boston Crusaders: My first viewing of this show. The unis are super red in color and you can't help but notice that when they take the field. Also the reflections from the uni was a tad bit distracting because of all the lights at the stadium. Overall I really like their show. But for me it's not all memorable. Maybe it's the first viewing, but I can't think of much. I'll look more tomorrow. Blue Knights: Yeah!!! What a nice surprise tonight, I could so tell they turned on the heat and were in the groove today. The show just clicked and had some wonderful impact points. Wow, they were just on tonight, thrilling to listen to. I'm thinking this will be one of the shows that I'll end up listening to many times over. I hope tomorrows performance is as good if not better as tonight. It takes a few viewing for me to totally get into a semi abstract show, if that is you want to call it. I can't wait to hear it tomorrow. And to save the best for last, the pit section; what musicians they have on the keys. Such emotion, impecable phrasing, the real deal folks. If you read this and are going to finals, spend a lot of time and check the pit out, you will fall in love like I did tonight. (guess what I'll be watching the whole night?) Carolina Crown: OK, when I saw them a month ago, I thought of Star of Indiana and wondering if they could even get close to selling the show like they did. Folks, tonight they did! Brass was loud, I mean really loud at times. That purple plume really is striking when you see it on the field; keep that for next year! But overall, they sold the show and the crowd responded with wild applause. It was just great!! SCV: Another corps that turned on the fire tonight. Just watching the drumline you could see the passion in what they are doing. Feed these kids what you did tonight, because they were just that good. My only gripe would be hornline doesn't seem as loud and powerful as all the other top corps. But again, not a horn expert, don't know why this is. I just know that I felt it tonight and that's why they topped Bluecoats. They gave us the finished product in a pretty polished form, and we all bought it. What will tomorrow bring? Gosh, I hope the same. Bluecoats: Off night from my point of view. There was not that fire that I saw last night. SCV did do better I tonight in my opinion. Seeing I'm considering it an off night, I'll leave it at that and will give a better review when I know it's going to be better tomorrow. The Cadets: Yesterday, I admitted that I actually like this show compared to just hating it a month ago. I needed tonight to seal the deal. Guess what, I like the show.....to a point. I still think there are too many things going on at some times, but not anywhere near the madness as a month ago. They really changed a lot to give them the formula to do well this weekend. I just think those changes were a little too late. They really need 1 or 2 more weeks to sell it more and I think they would have really had a run for the top. Hopefully this is a good lesson learned to the staff. Bass break is one of the best in the last 10 years. Funny moment-- the narration says "Where are we?" Some one yells out "Madison!" I think a large group of us are going to do that tomorrow; if you are going tomorrow join us! Where are we....geeze. Sorry, not to stir the pot, but I think that narration is a bit pointless. But ya know. Phantom Regiment: Let me tell ya, this show is a winning show. The only thing that basically sucks for Phantom is they have 2 corps that also have that winning show. The crowd was in a frenzy tonight!!! When that last drill set hit, as someone else put it, they were throwing babies at them. Drumline is out of this world. Wanna know what really great; you know these kids know they are so close and are giving it 100% and even a heck of a lot more to make it happen. This must be one wild roller coaster ride for them. I'm predicting they they will pass up BD tomorrow for 2nd. I'm predicting they will give the show of their lives and it will be complete magic. I wouldn't be surprised if everyone wasn't bawling after they leave the field. This is going to be the show to watch and fully enjoy tomorrow. Blue Devils: They have a great package and sell it well. The drumline has that BD attitude and gives you goosebumps when you see it. I didn't think they were as on as yeasterday. With that said, it's theirs to loose tomorrow. But even with a great show tomorrow, I think Phantom will have so much momentum in them that they will pass them up. I love BD, don't get me wrong, but that's just how I see things working out. Cavaliers: Again, show ends with guard passing the snare player over them. What a highlight! I still want to see the Bottom Bass instead; that would be wild!!! Again, another stellar show and should be the winner tomorrow. The sounds that come out of that pit are some of the best I've heard in a long time. I think I'll leave it at that seeing I'll probably be writing a book tomorrow on the show. Well, that's it! See you tomorrow! davdrums EDIT---Sorry, I can't spell tonight. I spelled "semifinals" wrong in the topic.....DOH!!!!

Me again, and here are just some brief thoughts of last night, seeing it's 3am and whatnot. This is not the typical review, so sorry if you want detail, but it's late. First of all, the venue. Madison and Camp Randall Stadium is just the perfect place for drum corps finals. The stadium now after all of the renovations sounds even better than in years past. The backfield playing now bounces well off the boxes in back and really make the most wonderful sound. With that said, it's my opinion, that it's a shame we won't see DCI Championships here until at least 2018. Yes, there may be a little bias seeing it's the closest venue for me to attend, but I still will make Indy without any hesitation. For all the Championships that I have attended, people really enjoy it here from what I can see. Everyone here has been so friendly, that even people I sit near end up introducing themselves to me before I even get to do it. I haven't noticed that at the other places I have gone to, but maybe that was just the luck of the draw. But in any case, Madison loves it's drum corps and the community supports it. That's all I'll say on that subject, I don't want to get heated about this anymore than I have been, and don't care to read rants and things about the opinion. Anyways, before my brief thoughts about the corps, I want to say this. (This is directed toward a certain individual) You, as a DCI Hall of Fame person, I thought there would be a little more consideration to the people around you and the group you are with. When your group is talking loudly when a corps is playing, AND a person in your group has a cell phone go off in the middle of a corps performance and then have the gall to talk loudly for 4 minutes on the phone, that is unacceptable. I thought your group/family/whomever they are would have known better. I bit my toungue tonight, but tomorrow will be different if you happen to have the same 3 day seats as I do and continue to do what you did last night. There enough said. I personally thought a higher up person would have box seats, but I guess not all of the time. Anywho, I know you all don't want to read this junk so on to the good stuff. Very brief just to fill everyone in on changes and how they did. Cavies: Love the new addition of pick the person up and hurl them over the group thing with the brass players, and snare drummer. Man, I couldn't believe they picked up a snare guy with his drum on. That was amazing. (too bad wasn't bottom bass, hehe) Overall, so clean and was a thrill to watch the drill. BD: This show seems to have a few more changes in it and was a bit more entertaining than what I remembered. There is no doubt that this show is great. Drums were on fire. Phantom: Holy cow, the last drill set with the phantom seal, way cool, crowd went nuts. The brass is the loudest out there and sound just amazing. Drums are "tighter than a cats butt." (quote from some years drum judges tape) Phantom could win, dark horse here we come. This is thrilling to watch. Cadets: OK, I've been a hater, now I like it with the crazy amount of changes they have done and it is making some sort of sense now. Still sometimes too much to watch. But ya know, my opinion. I'm actually glad they made these changes, works better, and hope some type of lesson was learned with everyone about pushing the envelope maybe a little bit over the line. Drums were great as usual, but I caught some dirt in the snare line. But yes, I've converted to like the show rather than any hate for it. (hope our cadets fans have smiles) Bluecoats: IDK, this show should be over cadets I think, but who am I, not a judge of coarse. This is what I like to call entertaining. Just good ole drum corps at its best. The steel drums additions make the show I think. Good job Blue. SCV: OK, great show. Brass wasn't as strong as I was hoping. Drums were so emotional, yeah, that was great. Can't wait to see you tomorrow. Drill has cleaned up, but unfortunetly, wasn't perfect. OK, the rest of the time i was in the lot. I know this maybe not a great review, but it's some insight as to what I saw. I'll write a much better one tomorrow. 3:30am, off to bed davdrums

Fantastic review! It's nice to read people who also have my percussive point of view. It was almost like I was writing it. And I can't agree with you more, when it comes with all the toys and such on snares, basses, or even tenors; what really shows a great line is just how clean all the toy playing is along with all the regular stuff we love. It's those details that will seperate the "men from the boys" so to say. I went to see quarters in the theaters last year; well worth the money I say. The theater I was at in St. Louis was cranked nicely! hehe davdrums

OK, it's 4am and I just got home from the trip to Rockford. I'm a bit sleepy, so I have no clue how this is going to come off, but here it goes. This is my 4th show of the season and finally had a few new corps to see tonight that I haven't yet seen this season. The weather was just amazing! It was warm out, middle 80's at the beginning of the show, with this narrow patch of clouds that looked as if it were going to rain on us, but thankfully it never did and stayed there the whole night! Just crazy! I also thank that long narrow cloud for blocking sun as all of us would have been looking into the sun the first half of the show. Nice size crowd, pretty receptive throughout the night. Now to what I saw.... COLT CADETS - Ya know, this is the most I've ever seen this corps in 1 season. These young kids are like a sponge and are just soaking up everything they can. It's amazing how far they come in a short amount of time and it shows. Tonight I heard a lot more sound than I've ever heard from this corps. I can see the confidence building in them and this show is starting to really communicate now with the audience. One of the bass drum runs came off wonderfully tonight and gave me a shock moment, YEAH! OK, I know, things are very dirty, blah, blah; but look at the age of these kids and once you realize that, you will have such an appreciation for what they do. Great way to start out the night! CROSSMEN - First off, I want to say that tonight was the night of missing bass drum #3 players. What the heck is going on? Only 4 bass drums for Crossmen tonight. (Along with Colts) I had the chance to watch the drumline warmup before the show. I think what best describes their line is maybe a bit younger than usual, but more so some lack of mental concentration. During their warmup, I can't tell you how many times they had to restart their exercise just to get the initial attack together. (20 times in a 10 minute period for snares, and I'm not kidding on this one; some triplet based exercise.) So when it came to the show, you could easily tell that initial attacks and ending phrases are causing huge problems with the line. The "Radio" portion of the program is one that you will always remember and is done really well. Folks, this is how amplification should be used!!! I couldn't help but laugh and cheer when the "Hip Hop" station was played; very creative!!! Overall, I felt tonight they were selling the show and the crowd and I ate it up. This show has entertainment value that we haven't seen from a drum corps in some time I feel. I think for the first time viewers that see this show, there are wow moments with the radio section. I LOVE IT! CAPITAL REGIMENT - My favorite OTL warmup for a drumline. I've heard this warmup many times and just love it! For the show, tonight it seemed a bit flat for me. Not sure why, but the kids didn't seem to have the wind in them tonight. But let me tell ya, the hornline let out a few times and wow'ed me. The balancing of the mixer board tonight with the tubes was just right. My only complaint is the muddy tuning in the snare section. They need to crank those drums up a bit. I do like the lower pitches in the bottom bass drums though. I'll be honest and I don't know where this show is going to go now at this point. If I were to be working on stuff with these kids, it would for sure be selling the show and playing with a bit more emotion. We'll just have to wait and see what happens. COLTS - ("where oh where has the third bass drum gone" *singing*) I’ll be honest, I think they went next, but it could have been Crown. Anywho, Colts are really doing a great job this season. I've seen them so many times now that I really have a good feeling for this show. Did I mention how much of a pleasure it is to sit back and watch a good cymbal line? Yup, they have one and contribute pretty well to the overall package. For me this show is a good example of a solid program from beginning to end. There wasn't too much going on or too little; just right. (The three bears story coming to mind) The textures the patio chimes in the pit creates are just wonderful. The program is very accessible and makes a good choice for showing a new person to drum corps what it's like. Like a lot of corps they have more cleaning to do, but this show could really take off once everything get cleaned up real well. Drumline is pretty solid and pit has some nice moments; this show just made me happy. I think that best describes them tonight. INTERMISSION - 40 minutes! I don't know; seemed a bit long, but did give everyone time to browse around the souvie booths for a bit (man was it crowded there!) Concession stands had hot dogs, BBQ Beef, and Nachos as the main food. There was also a Culvers frozen custard stand that had to of made a fortune tonight! There was also another stand that had pop and stale popcorn....it was a bit gross. Lines for the bathrooms even though there was 'port-o-johns' to the side. The mens restroom; well, you know how it smelled. :sshh: CAROLINA CROWN - First of all, I think the main color for a lot of drum corps is purple this year; and CC had a lot of it. As you read this you know I really don't look at the guard ever (hence 'percussionists point of view') but I couldn't help notice some major train wrecks with the guard tonight. What happened? This had to be an off night for their guard. So many drops, man, its July folks. I thought I'd see better by now. Anyways, their drumline is pretty solid throughout. I have to give huge credit to the drill writer who really knows how to integrate the percussion section within the corps proper. I had to actually search a few times to find the drumline, kudos to the writer. I guess what really shocked me in this show was the 'Modern' music they were playing. After hearing all the shows before hand, I must admit I was caught off guard a bit with the music. I do like the music; it just took me a few minutes to get acquainted. Yeah, the show reminds me of Star's Bartok show a bit; but I don't think they will get to the same level as Star did that year. Even with that said, the show has some nice moments and I dug it in the end. Finals week I'll be sure to get a better look at this show; so far I give it a thumbs up! THE CADETS - Sigh, OK, I don't want to start any wars so just take it for what it worth; OK??? There comes a point in time when you have too many things going on that when it comes to tie them in with each other; it doesn't work. Just too much happening, and to top it off it becomes distracting. A good example would be when the drumline has this amazing feature, but you miss it because you are too drawn to people jumping off of picnic tables. Folks, sometimes "Less is More". Like the back part of the uniform does nothing for me. Why not integrate all those backdrops to different positions to frame the drill. Again, they did nothing for me. And "THE DOOR", ya know, I have no clue why they don't use it a lot more like last year. Once in the beginning of the show, and once in the end; that was it. I was so expecting to use it a lot more; this would tie in the show from last year. Isn't this "the zone 2"? Or is this 'Alice in Wonderland'? I have no clue; and this is the problem. The show has too much to communicate to the audience and looses them in the process. The kids are top notch; don't get me wrong, they deserve so much credit. It's the product that is faulty; and it's a shame that it is. As far as the singer... Let me throw this idea out. I could easily bash it and say it sucks; but I'm not going to even do that. I'd rather give a suggestion. Let me share my idea.... I remember last years ballad and when it played it simulated how your dreams are. You could hear this heart beat of bass drums. Horns sounded airy as they were pointed back field. It was like a dream. Why not take this singing part and make it a dreamy kind of effect. I'm sure all of you have hear music by "Enya"; why not use all that expensive mixing EQ and make her voice light and airy with some reverb to sound like the main vocal as on "Enya's" cds? Think as to how this would make this section sound. Get where I'm going with this???? Not in your face, but blending to make a mood and showcase the entire corps, not just the singer. I'm taking a stab in the dark at this one, but I get a gut feeling that most people and the judging community do not like the singing part as is. You know that cutting the part had to have crossed the staffs mind a few times; but I don't blame them for not cutting it. I would not like to say to that nice gal who does the vocal that it's out and time to go home. I don't know; just sharing a thought. Don't bash me, but it's what I think and is my opinion. I'm sure others out there feel differently and I respect their opinion as well. I'm predicting that this show won't go too much farther score wise without sweeping changes. I'm predicting that The Cadets scores are going to slowly start leveling off and other corps are going to slowly start passing them by. Just my honest opinion. I'll say this though; there was a bass drum feature that was downright amazing. Could be one of the best bass features in a long time...too bad other stuff was going on in the background that distracted from it. BLUE DEVILS - Refreshing familiar music for me. I'm not a big BD fan; I just get tired of the same stuff year after year from them. This time I enjoyed them very much so. What's great is things have cleaned up nicely already and those attacks in the entire corps proper are just outstanding! Drumline is very good as usual. I need another viewing though. I just can't comment as of yet. I can tell you this, BD will be placed somewhere 1-3 come finals. Sorry BD fans, I'd love to post more, just don't have much to say with them yet. PHANTOM REGIMENT - My goodness what a stellar drumline!!!! I'm thinking drumline may come out on top this year at finals if they keep it up. As to the Faust music, they do it well for sure. I'm not real big on the music, but I can't help by appreciate how well they are doing it. And that ballad; my gosh, what a moment tonight! The thing with Phantom is they have a show that will peak come Finals night. To say this show is difficult is an understatement. The staff has played the difficulty card that will payoff with huge rewards come Finals night. This is the time of the season now when things are cleaning up that it will get very exciting for Phantom Phans. I'm predicting them moving up in the ranks the next couple of weeks. As a side note, yes, Phantom deserved edging The Cadets tonight. That's it! BTW, Thanks Phantom for playing a wonderful home show concert at the end with music from the past. I wish all corps would do what you did and play excerpts from music the corps has played in past years. You guys made my trip home enjoyable.

Ok, that's good to know. I must say I wasn't getting it as to why they did it. Thanks for your reply. :) davdrums

This is my second drum corps show of the season as I logged in over 800 miles this weekend. Here is my review... If you want to know my bio, check out my first post Oswego, IL. Again, these are just opinions and take it for what it's worth, a grain of salt. What a beautiful night for drum corps! Folks, it just doesn't get much better. Temps were in the 80's, prettly light wind, and a venue that is one of the best in the early season. MADISON SCOUTS CLINIC - As an instructor for a band program, I put a lot of value into these wonderful clinics the corps put on throughout the year. I always bring a few of my students to learn about drum corps and to get an upclose look to see what "GREAT" really looks and sounds like. This year the Scouts put on a clinic with Michael Cesario giving a play by play as to what is going on. I was disappointed to not have the opportunity, like last year, to get up close and personal with the sections. It would have been wonderful to have 15 minutes with their drumline showing their warm ups and what not so my students can really get up and see what they are doing like last year. My overall impression was a bit disappointed and I'm not sure my percussion students got the whole value. I know it's early in the season and every corps is scrambling to do as much as they can right now, but I think if you are going to put on a clinic, make it a clinic and not a glorified rehearsal with just someone talking about it as the rehearsal goes on its usual path. Sorry if that upsets anyone, but that's how I feel. OK, with that said, on to the competition... First of all, I want to say that the venue has fantastic concessions and rest rooms. They do an outstanding job and every year I must give them a pat on the back for having that run so smoothly. CHOPS, INC - My apologies to Chops, but with the small passing storm, I missed their performace for the most part and saw the end in the ramp. From what I could see and hear, they still have a ways to go and numbers may play into that. That's all I can really say from what I saw. MINNESOTA BRASS - First of all, I had my students see their warm-up before the show to get their upclose look at the percussion section. Thank you MB for having your full percussion section there playing your stuff. I was digging their show from start to finish tonight. The drumline is very good right now and is the strongest section in the corps. As to their brass section, I swear it gets a tad smaller year to year. I'm starting to hear it now and I hope numbers in brass will go up in the future. Even with that said, their sound is strong and the music was very approachable. They have some backdrops with steps on them, kind of like a stage, and were used alright in the show. I thought they could have used them a bit more though. A big highlight was when they turned around those stages and there was rototoms mounted to the walls so the battery would play on them during the feature. I totally did not see that coming and was a blast to watch. Overall, I enjoyed their show and wish them the best this season. CAPITAL SOUND - My second viewing of the season for them. Tonights show was not much stronger than what I saw in Oswego. You could tell that time on the first 3 movements were put on the back burner because they finally put their closer out on the field tonight. The closer was rough. They seem to have one trumpet player that is pretty good, but it almost seems like the times when he is not doing a solo, he is out there trying to make the corps follow him. Time will fix this for sure as the rest of the corps will get stronger and he will finally blend in much better. Overall, this is going to be an uphill battle to the end for them. Keeping my fingers crossed. COLT CADETS - I've always liked this corps. I love the fact that they are so young and really work hard to do well. With that being said, it was just a trill to watch these up coming stars go through their learning process and reaping the rewards of hard work. I enjoyed their show and really really big colorguard. I think it is best said that if you have seen Colt Cadets before, that's what I saw tonight. BLUE STARS - Holy cow folks! If you want to see drum corps history in the making, see this corps! To really appreciate this corps, you need to know it's history. I was a baby when this corps was shining in glory, and the 15 years now that I have been following drum corps, I've only had to opportunity to see them and compete against them live in the div II/III rehlm. When that first loud and powerful note came from that hornline, my jaw dropped. I'm the type of person that doesn't get teary eyed too often, but they did it to me tonight. I really want to get into the detail about the show, but I think I'm going to leave it a mystery to all of you so you go out and see this corps. I'll just say that this is a bright new chapter in the story of this corps. The Alumni of this corps must be so proud right now. What a special moment this is! See this corps and buy some stuff from their booth to keep this getting stronger in the future! COLTS - Here is another corps that has a fantastic show. I'm going to say the best show I've seen in a few years. Yeah, it's early and it's dirty like everyone else; but the program is there and I can tell the kids are eating it up. Drumline was really powerful! I didn't have any super stand out moments from the drumline, but I'm willing to bet that with time the corps is going to be a great contender in the 9th - 7th place range at finals. I'm going to be watching this corps as the season progresses. BTW, great cymbal line! MADISON SCOUTS - "Primal Forces", now think of a show you would design. Got it? Well it's not what the Scouts are doing. I'm not sure how this theme ties in with what they are doing. Heck, I even had Mr. Cesario explaining it to us at the clinic. The truth is there are so many loose ties with the show design, it's going to take a wild amount of work and changes to tie all these loose ends to make this theme work. Don't get me wrong, I love the Scouts, and always have; but if there are not some improvements in this show design, this is going to hurt them in the end. Yes, the Horns sound great, drumline has rolls and hertas and whatnot up the yazoo! I love that like anyone else, that's great, it's what anyone would expect from Madison.... except and easily grasped concept to their audience. I'll say I love the ballad, a great highlight for them for sure. But seriously, the rest of the show, the most avid drum corps nut will have to dig deep to find how the rest of the pieces of music fit together as a whole. I think I'll get into more detail when some things happen to this show when I'm at the July 2nd show in Madison. Until then... davdrums

(Mods, delete this double post. I don't know what happened) View other link, sorry.

I've done reviews in the past so I do so again this year for those who have percussion in their blood. Quick bio on me, I marched corps in 97-98, I've written for over 10 years now for local marching bands in my area, and I live in Northcentral Wisconsin. Percussion is my true love and this year is no exception of drum corps withdrawl that has set in. Now to my review.... This is my second time in Oswego, I was there last year too, and was happy to see some improvements made to venue. No issues for me with impossible lines in the rest rooms or concessions this year. CAPITAL SOUND - My first corps of the 2006 season, I was pumped! First of all, the corps seems a bit smaller than last year. They seemed to have a much stronger upper brass section, while the lower brass didn't catch my ear tonight. (I'm a percussionist, bear with me, hehe) Their battery was very small starting with only 1 snare, 1 tenor, and 3 basses to start out the night. A second snare came on later in the show. Couple things that caught my eye were the use of the 3 smallest bass drums. I have no issue with a small corps only having 3 basses, but the unison sounds with those three were not explosive at all. (guessing 22 or 24 inch being thier largest bass) I would hope that if they have 3 basses the entire season, that they would maybe choose a little bit larger drums so their unisons would be more effective. Speaking of their bass line, I noticed that one side of their drum heads were black, and then the other was white. So depending on which way they were facing, it was white heads or black heads. Not sure if this was done on purpose or a lack of heads issue, but I thought it was kind of neat seeing that. If they keep that, I would like to check how they are doing that to integrate it into the show. The battery did come off the field in the ballad and played some keys. I didn't notice a substantial sound difference with their normal pit, but it's early yet. This could turn to a nice highlight in their show. Other than that, it was an early season performance for them and off to a good start. They did not play their closer tonight and hope to see and hear that soon hopefully. PIONEER - This may sound strange, but I'm not saying this in a mean way, but every time I see this corps I can't help but play the game "count how many green clovers they have stuck to their drums". Well, I can tell you that I didn't count nearly as many this year thankfully. Some on the concert basses like usual, snares had orange ones on the scoops, and then I got distracted and didn't look for the rest. Anywho, I really enjoyed thier show this year. I mean that too! It was nice to hear the music and not have any thoughts of an "Irish Washerwomen-esque" sound to it. Pit was very emotional for being early in the season and I really appreciated that a lot! Battery seemed pretty strong so far. They have a nice full size line, even though was a bit dirty tonight (as one would expect). There was one concert bass drum hit in the pit on both bass drums that were off that made me cringe a bit. Something I noticed was in the pit tonight. They have mostly male members in the pit except for two females on the left hand side. I really enjoyed watching them (not because they were ladies eighter). They had the most visual envolvement with the pit and it showed in their expression of their music. Very nice indeed! Not sure if this was an oops thing, but the one lady had silver dangling earrings on. They looked nice, but ya know, maybe some house cleaning that was missed about no jewlry, or maybe they are going to allow that for expression sake. I don't know. But again, just caught my eye. Final note, the pit made use of the new rule of a staff member manning the amplification sound board off field. It works nicely I think. So far I chalk it up to a good rule change; others may disagree. Otherwise I thought it sounded good and no complaints here. Other than that, well done so far for Pioneer, and I'll for sure be checking out their show again. I enjoyed it a lot. SOUTHWIND - Another black vs white visual tonight, and it wasn't in their bass drum head selection. The corps has a mostly white uni or a mostly black uni. This tied along with a theme and visual...."yeah, baby; yeah!" I really liked it. You need to check out this show for the drill and the use of the color. Brilliant! A noticed missing hole was there and it was in the bass section. Number 3 was not there. I hope that is filled, was way too noticeable. But I did notice that the bass line covered all those spots nicely in the music. Basses again had cymbals attached to the drums. I was so tied up into the visual and color stuff going on that I'll admit I didn't watch drums that much. I'll make sure to next time. Overall, I would say go see this corps. Staff really have the right formula with reguards to show design. Another corps I want to see again. Nice job! GLASSMEN - Unique show is what comes to mind. It was very refreshing to hear music that was noticeable. I believe they opened up with Beethoven's 5th, very powerful and what a great statement to start off the show. The battery had a ton of moments tonight! Bass drums had a run in the beginning that would make drum judge Alan Kristensen say "Oh bass drums, that was HOT!" Snares had some great features and were pretty tight so far. Tenors were a bit sloppy on theirs, but it's early. When the battery plays at the end, holy notes! Very nice writing and was very sweet to hear. So make sure you listen to the battery the last 16 or so bars at the end of their show. I need another viewing to really appreciate what they are doing. I had a case of "caught up in familiar music" and was just listening and enjoying. So I didn't critique as I should have. But I say good job to them for getting me that distracted. (Quick Note: I think it was the Glassmen, but it could have been Southwind; I don't remember. One of those corps ended with the same drill formation as in their opening set. It was cool to see, and I'm sorry if I don't remember. No offense to any corps of course. I need to check that out again. So watch for that with one of these corps. If anyone knows who it was, reply back, I want to know.) CAVALIERS - Machine! This show screams Machine. What would you expect from the Cavies? Right off the bat I noticed the guard uniforms and how they so fit the part of the machine (robot looking more like it). Crazy, I mean CRAZY sounds coming out of that pit tonight! Things I've never heard or seen before blanketed their show. Many strange bowed instruments (have no clue what that one player was holding in his hand and bowing). A typewriter was also played during a segment of music. Also, one of the best uses of cowbells I've ever heard in my life. They had what looked to be 5 cowbells in graduated sizes and were played like temple blocks. The tones that were coming from that rack-o-cowbells was astonishing. Lastly, when the corps does movement on the field that is robotic like, a pit member plays a siren whistle that mimmicks the sound of the small motors moving in a robot. (blows out to start the sound and sucks to cut it off) Just amazing hearing all of that. You need at least one viewing just to catch all the sounds they are making in that pit, and I'm not kidding on that. Battery was very musical in their playing. Kudos to Jim Casella and his writing style. An absolute fantastic book. I'll say it to end all the posts wondering, SNARES ARE TILTED. There, let that be the end of it. You know, it works folks. I do like how it looks and it works with the show. No complaints on tilted snares. I think it will grow on everyone and will like it in the end. My big complaint would be the show ends too abruptly. I was left at the end saying, "oh, that must be the end, I guess I'll stand up and clap". As with every Cavie show, it's evolving and I'm sure it will be changed to the better in weeks to come. Just warning ya'll so you are not caught off guard in the early season. Well, that's it. Please be advised I'm just calling it like I see it and am not trashing any corps. I have great repect in what they do. Your comments are always welcome. My next show, today in Menomonie, WI. Until then. DavDrums

Hello again; this was my 5th and final show viewing of the season and my 5th review. If interested, just look at my other postings "from a percussive point of view" to see my other reviews. Again, this is from me a devoted percussionist, so please be gentle. :-) Kiwanis: I'm sorry to say I only heard the closer from the tunnel. Sounded good from where I was at. Darn road construction in Wisconsin. Southwind: First of all, I just want to say all year I've been digging the drum major uniform. I think her uniform looks classy and goes well with the corps, not to mention she looks good in it as well. I was surprised at some dirt in the drums at this point of the season. The last note of the show with the two concert bass drums in the pit were not together at all sad to say. It seems like they have addressed the quality of sound issue with the concert bass drum with tuning and mallet selection; but the sound is still not right yet. Still need a larger heavier mallet to shake the stands more. Otherwise drumline had some really nice sections that were very clean, and some not so clean. Still digging the cymbals on the basses, nice texture. Overall, not squeeky clean, but pretty darn close. I enjoyed this corps. Blue Knights: OMG yeah! You can totally hear the difference in how much cleaner they played than southwind. Unison hits just seemed to explode off the line, way cool man! In my opinion, one of the best drumlines the Blue Knights have had in awhile. The thing that caught my attention was the amount of snare drum sound. This corps only has 6 snares and really could use 3 more. Don't get me wrong though, what they play just wails, but something they can't fix is this amount of sound issue this late in the season. Seriously though, if you go to Denver, watch this line play, they are clean clean clean and will make you happy. Seattle: Ok, I've been tossing things in my head about this corps. I've been such a fan since they have made the jump, but if I were to put my finger on it this year, they took a very small step back. It's hard to say exactly what it is, I would say it's a little bit of everything. Drumline had some real toasty things that were pleasing to the ear, but I would consider them to be on a level of what Southwind is right now. Dirty in places, but not squeeky clean. I'm just hoping that we see a surge from them next year so I can rant and rave at how awesome this corps is. Keep your heads up high kids, things will work out soon enough. Spirit: I felt they were right behind Blue Knights tonight, scores did show that too. Now the drumline, I wouldn't say they were right up there with BK, but close. I would say they are at the top of the level of what Seattle and Southwind are. They were a bit more clean than the two, I would say about 98% clean show. (I'm being picky here too) I'm curious if they will be able to clean that last 2% this week and close the gap a bit. I think it's totally in their power too and I'm looking forward to seeing their scores this week. Overall a nicely put together show. My only complaint would be to watch that volume on the amps, just a tad much IMHO. Boston: Yeah!!! Great show! I know what you are thinking, this is the show with all the talking. I've been prepairing myself the last few weeks for this so it wasn't a shock. (amazing what watching BOA Grand Nationals vids will do for ya) Really, this show is nicely put together. The stadium lights casted a shadow on the white boxes so you could see the members behind them which was a bit distracting. This drumline was at the next level up like Blue Knights. I was glad to not see those fiberskin bass heads on the bass drums. This drumline is at the top level for where they are, much better than BK, but in that same bracket...if ya know what I mean. Wicked solo segments got me to stand up and yell, "yeah basses!" and "aww yeah, stirrin' it up tenors!". Finally, the talking part was not a distraction to me tonight and it fits. I'm not totally up with the idea, but they make it work and I was fine with it. A corps that you should check out in Denver for sure. Cadets: You can't help but think of a top notch drumline when you mention Cadets and they did deliver. This drumline is in the top bracket and you notice cuz it's that good. If you want to hear what tight is, sit back and listen, man! Even when this line plays fast, it's right on. Pit amps were a little much a few times, but only at times. I feel that the amps have changed the way you look at dynamic levels. I want to hear from a 1 to a 10; with amps, I'm only getting 3 to a 10. If it's soft, let the instrument sound naturally and cut that amp stuff, otherwise use in loud is just fine and dandy. I feel Cadets won't make top drums this year, even though they are so so good, I think SCV is just better. Great job to the Cadets for putting out a great line this year...again. Finally, the corps got a lucky break in my opinion by getting a guy who does a wicked baton. I thought...well, I'll leave this opinion for the the more band oriented person. Let' s just say, "was great once (this year), it's ok to see twice(next year maybe), any more than that forget about it (2006+). Cavies: How on earth can they change the show that much in such a short span of time. I swear that this show is nothing like the Louisville APD I have. I'm going to have to download and pay for a new one!!! I dug the closer except the last 8 measures, oh, just needs to with a bigger punctuation at the end I think. This drumline is not only clean as clean, but is musical and tasty. I can tell they love playing the latin part of the show, it is indeed my favorite. It's all about that quarter note cowbell, heck yeah, play it out more I say! Timbale player was as awesome, lets call him Tito Puente. Again, the line is the top bracket, will be #1 or #2 for sure I think. All I can say is that they are having fun and it shows. What a great way to end the night I say. Well, that's it for me this year. Hopefully you've liked my reviews, as picky as they are. If you wanna hear them again for next year, drop me a message. Good luck to everyone, it was a great year!!! Percussion Love, Dave Peters

Yeah, I didn't mention the BD sound thing cuz I've seen that before. Looked like they were holding crotales and playing them, also damping as well. I liked that color as well. Dave

Hello again, welcome to my 4th review of the season. It's 2:30am so please be gentle. Oh, and I'm staying here at a hotel in Rockford, with wireless high speed internet no less. Love technology.... Ok, first off let me tell you it was a larger stadium with almost a packed crowd. This was Phantom's home show. The temps were in the low 70's at the beginning of the show and quickly dropped at the end of the show. I'm sorry, I didn't get to see the Bandettes or Americanos due to waiting in line to get into the stands! Took me 2 corps before I got the chance to get to my seats. I was right on the 50 yard line in row 16. Colt Cadets: These young kids improved and it showed. I'm very proud at what they accomplish for such a young age. The singing is enjoyable when they first sing in the second tune. Speaking of tune, they were out of tune singing, but the way i see it, that is what makes the Snoopy type show what it is. It's young kids singing, and you for sure wouldn't expect a group of young kids to sing in tune all of the time. Other than that, I would have not had singers the rest of the show. Drums were dirty, but respectable with the age group. I actually like this show a lot; I think it's fun to watch. Oh, and they added the props of the lemonade stand in Peanuts???? I think that's right, it's been awhile since I've watched that cartoon. Overall, I like the show, the kids should be proud. Memphis Sound: My first viewing ever of this corps. Brass was not very loud for their size in my opinion. Drums were pretty good and is for sure a strength in this corps. This is what bothered me....(here I go again); the bass drum tuning was not very good....at all! It sounded like they took a whole bed matress and stuffed it in the bass drum. How much dead of a sound can you get??? Really, basses didn't project that much at all except for the THUNK when they struck it. Sorry if this is negative, but man, that should be a no brainer. Other than that, I liked thier show. Colorguard was pretty good and I liked their uniforms. Pioneer: My first view of this corps this season. Let me start off that I really have a lot of respect for Pioneer. I like Irish type music and feel that they do a good job playing it. This is what gets me though....why must they put decals on friggin everything? Seriously, the clover on the uni is a nice touch, but then you get 2 clover stickers on each concert bass, and don't for get a bunch of them on the marching bass drums; oh and now lets put them all on the front of the keyboards. They also have Pioneer, Milwaukee, Wisconsin plastered everywhere too. I'm sorry if I'm so negative tonight, but I know who this corps is and I get the idea. Any more and I'm going to....(taking a deep breath). Anyways, I really like their arrangements this year, something is different about them. Colorguard didn't catch my eye even though they had these hunter blaze orange uni's on. Drums were pretty solid and respectable. I would love to say the same for pit, but I could hardly hear them; here's a good candidate for amps (can't believe I said that). Or here's an idea, take your like 8 cymbal players and put a couple in pit. I think the corps has 2 too many cymbals. Finally, (another negative, sorry) 3 members of the corps lost their hats tonight. Something needs to be done so these things stop from flying south for the winter. I'll be honest and say I'm not a huge fan of the hats. Let's be honest, it looks like Roman Blenski had something to do with the design, afterall, he wears the exact same type of hat. We would dare each other in my days of corps to take it off his head and steal it seeing we saw him at every show. Oh the memories....anywho, get those hats fixed. Colts: Yes, they had a much stronger show tonight then of any of the other viewing I've had. I've been kind of critical the past month, but it's just about there. I only counted on flat spot in the show. If you see the staff members there, you should tell them how good of a job they did from turning around a somewhat flat show design to one with a bit more emotion. Oh hey, give credit to the kids too! Drums tonight were very solid. Pit and their mallets really projected well. Would love to hear more exploiting of the lower registers in marimba, but that is just nit picky stuff. Nice job Colts for turning this show around into a positive for ya! HIGH FIVE! Madison Scouts: Took second over Phantom may I add. I love this corps this year and they are so back! What a great show they had tonight. Brass, so strong. Drums, tight as a cat's butt. The guard, now one of my favorite parts of the corps. These guys have the emotion that most guards wish they had. They are good, I mean really good! It almost sounded tonight like the old Malaga made a comeback. Not sure, but the soloist sounded the same....I don't know; you judge for yourself. Seriously people, Madison deserved to top Phantom tonight and did. I know the crowd was a bit upset when the news came, but it's home crowd. Kudos to Scouts tonight, and if you get the chance, experience them this year. Blue Devils: My first view of the Dev's this year. Brass and percussion have these solid cold attack hits that make you drool. Also, an interesting ending to the show with them ending off the field. Pit had a seperate speakers on each rack and was miked seperately as well. My comment to my lady tonight was, "geeze, they even got the tympani miked!". I would say it sounded very good, but not sure if the exact reproduction of sound is like the original. Seemed a bit tinny if you ask me. This corps has the total package though. Will be a top 4 corps for sure this year. I love their unis. Oh, and I totally cought the UDU drum (miked) in the pit on the tympani. What a cool sound. That is actually a great example of something you could have not heard well without the help of amping; not saying I support it, hehehe. Phantom Regiment: This corps rocks! I love their music and it is just so darn musical. I really dig their castenet feature and think it's a great texture. Drums were just on fire tonight!!!! They have some of the nicest rim shots that I've ever heard from a drum corps in a long time. This show was a huge step up from when I saw them in Madison when they had a big off night. Had only 1 phasing problem which will sure be fixed soon I would imagine. Their show tonight was solid, musical, and much improved; but still I think Scouts really took it up a notch so they could edge Phantom out. Scouts had a bit more emotion and for sure was a bit cleaner. Well, that's it for now. Again, be gentle with me seeing I'm just calling it like I see it. I truly enjoyed all the corps and have the most respect for all of them. My final show of the season will be Naperville, IL on August 1st. Until then, from a percussive point of view... Dave

I should clarify that statement. PR drumline did a good job, but the rest of the corps (brass mainly) had major phasing issues. Seeing the brass was phasing, you can imagine how the battery was to cope with that. Mainly, the pit was the one that had to adjust the most. Was just an off night for the corps. If you read PR's diary from that day, he said it nicely that they were flat. It was a bit more than that, but in any case....tomorrow is another day. Dave