PeeWee Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 (edited) Long Beach Community College, Veterans Stadium Saturday, July 14th Good turn-out tonight, esp. considering that none of last years Top 12 Div. I corps were in attendance. The stands were full from the 10 yard line on one side to the 20 on the other. Astroturf field and a nice cool breeze after sunset. Ryan Turner announced the show from the track down below, and even gave us cues on when to clap during the first few corps of the night (thanks Ryan). Impulse, the sponsor of tonights competition, threw out free souvenir t-shirts to fans in the stands! I only jotted down a few quick notes on each corps. Having seen these corps already in Riverside and Walnut, I decided not to repeat anything from my prior reviews (please refer to them for additional info.). On to the corps, in order of appearance: Senior Division Dream - (Dreamscapes, 69.11) - yellow tunics with a purple stripe adorned all members of the corps (except the pit). Colorguard in gold & crimson. Star Trek is the show's theme, and I did notice the Borg cube held by a guard member. Great drill, large colorguard, and a screamer trumpet or two to boot. Approximately 50 in the corps proper. Renegades - (My Immortal: From Dusk 'til Dawn, 75.91) - photographic cemetery props, a great balanced hornline that really draws your attention (one of the best of the night), and very sharp overall. Div. III Fever - (71.60) - GREAT drill (I underlined it three times in my program notes!), very clean (I like those gray pants and shoes), nice drumline, very dramatic guard work during the ballad fit well, very tight ensemble-wise. Gold - (Spanish Gold, 66.05) - large in size, great pit, sharp black & gold uniforms and brass plated horns. Note to corps director: your members were the only ones I saw meandering through the stands in uniform and that's not proper drum corps etiquette. Mystikal - (Olympia - the Ancient Gods, 60.30) - I'm so sorry guys, but I missed your performance. Intermission Velvet Knights - (X, 63.95) - okay kids, NOW you're getting it! When I saw you back on opening night I could tell there were a lot of jitters, but they're all gone now. The opening soloists were on tonight, the corps was much more polished than back in June, visuals added, much more showmanship. When they spelled out "VK" on the field someone in the stands yelled "Vanguard!" One note: When Impulse was performing, VK was huddled in the parking lot and let out a loud yell that distracted from Impulses show. Impulse - (Shichi, 65.95) - our hosts of the evening. Very nice drill, good individual marching technique (as always), and a cranking drumline. They are very serious this year (program-wise I mean). Div. II Blue Devils B - (Trilogy, 74.60) - relatively large in size (7 tubas). nice drill and visuals (kind of reminded me of Glassmen or Blue Knights), beautiful music selections, and effective use of zebra striped flags. Div. I The Academy - (The Chase, 77.35) - yes, these guys are for real. Absolutely phenomenal drill! Nice horn sound, the tubas can march as well as play, and I got goosebumps during the park & blow during the swing section. Two standing ovations for them tonight - one after the swing section and the other at the end of their performance. If they can clean-up their drill and fix the horn sound during the ballad they will be a contender for Finals. I bought their pre-season CD and listened to it on the way home. I noticed that much of their music has dissonance. Pacific Crest - (What Happens in Vegas, 74.50) - very nice! I think they took out some of the narration. There was a static sound coming from their amps during the beginning of their show. Nice colorguard, very jazzy show, and I noticed the Cavaliers "washing machine" drill move (2003?) effectively used towards the end. Mandarins - (Dragon Dance, 73.80) - nice guard work in the opener. The guard now starts out the show in shades of orange-colored more traditional asian smocks (?). Very refreshing music. I kept thinking "mandarin oranges" for some reason during their show. Their General Effect is off the charts, and their drum solo was the most entertaining of the evening. In exhibition Kingsmen Alumni Corps - HUGE! Maybe not as big as the Madison Alumni project, but still about three times larger than a normal Div. I corps. I believe they're marching the complete 1972 Kingsmen show - the first DCI Championship show ever! I looked at that years repertoire online though, and didn't see the pieces I recognized - Mambo, George of the Jungle (drum feature) and The Firebird Suite. They're marching timpanis, and their average age is 48 years young. I watched their rifle line warming up in the parking lot, doing block formations with boots and skirts, and they were tight! They must have at least 100 colorguard alone. They do honor to the first ever DCI champions and they obviously had the largest standing "O" of the night. You will absolutely love them on Semifinals night in Pasadena! Edited July 15, 2007 by PeeWee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renthead09 Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 Thank you so much for taking the time to post a review for those of us that were not able to see the show in person. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-Daddy Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 Let me add a few selective comments as well: Fever - I really liked their drill and sound. Very polished for a smallish group - they have a good chance to go a long way in August. Velvet Knights - For me, too gimicky - they seem to be trying way too hard to be goofy on the field, which really distracts from what they could be doing. Impulse - Most conservative I've seen them in at least 4 years. I think they could be a force to be reckoned with in August. Gold - Really nice progression from where they were a year ago. They've got it going in the right direction - now, if they could change out of their uniforms while in the stands (and eating hot dogs I might add - maybe they don;t know they're not suposed to be doing that!!) Mandarins - Nice drill at times - They're going to have to step it up to make semi's again though. PC - With last years show and this year's, I think PC is getting an identity. Their drill was pretty dirty though. They should make semi's unless there's a huge let down or stagnation in the next 3 weeks. Academy - The time off did them well. They cleaned a lot from early in the season, and their sound was FANTASTIC. With 3-4 more shows under their belts and a broader judging audience, hey'll get credit for a difficult drill and great music. Definitely, a potential finalist. It's going to be a wild run to Pasadena~! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acad Dad Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 (edited) Man....the Kingsmen were SOMETHING to watch. My wife and my mother were there watching my son and they gave Kingsman a standing O when they were done. The rifle drill work is amazing and I absolutely LOVE the marching tympani (sp?) The finals crowd will eat it UP!!! b**bs Edited July 15, 2007 by Acad Dad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan H. Turner Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 PEE WEE!! Dude. You are the BEST. Too bad you didn't come down and say hi. I did see you for about 2 seconds as I was "scanning the crowd" picking out faces I knew. But your review was really nice. Three compliments--for my announcing, and Impulse and Dream's shows. THANKS!! My review coming up... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe SPAM Miller Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 Man....the Kingsmen were SOMETHING to watch. My wife and my mother were there watching my son and they gave Kingsman a standing O when they were done. The rifle drill work is amazing and I absolutely LOVE the marching tympani (sp?)The finals crowd will eat it UP!!! b**bs It's official. We're starting the Kingsmen rifle line Groupies. We're even going to have shirts made. I was trying to explain to my corps members what that's like, "Imagine you mom being bad ### on rifle". I really miss that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chasgroh Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 "Imagine you mom being bad ### on rifle".I really miss that. ...Spam, dude, your mom helped manufacture a fantastic Energizer Bunny...but she never did spin much rifle! :P LOLOLOL (great to see you last nite, *sonny*...LOVED the corps!). cg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tapper7 Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 wow! Spam is on DCP now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe SPAM Miller Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 wow! Spam is on DCP now. Where've you been? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDMOM Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 It's official. We're starting the Kingsmen rifle line Groupies. We're even going to have shirts made. I was trying to explain to my corps members what that's like, "Imagine you mom being bad ### on rifle". I really miss that. A certain younger member of the family made the comment that colorguard members are lazy. My husband, a Blue Devil Vet looked around frantically and advised afore mentioned relative to start running. We are seasoned, strong and feminine. Intimidating? You bet! We will work very hard between now and pre lims to deliver a performance worthy of our legacy. Thanks for cheering us on and giving us the spark that will light this thing on fire August 10! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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