Design Hound Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Well, ok, I don't think Cadets narration is a good thing. Maybe next year they will get it right. To quote Wipeout, "If at first you don't succeed, do the exact same thing again..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notelvis Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 I have seen some questionable visual designs creeping up into some of the upper-echelon corps this year...It seems like readability is sacrificed a lot for velocity; and frankly some of the forms resemble mass clumps rather than designs and progressions. (It is also the reason why the very top corps stay on the top...they KNOW this and are careful to open up their blocks and forms to read). It was painfully displayed at Madison last night; especially when you had block progressions and layering of lines/arcs. Actually, the arrangements seem to be improving a bit. More development and line rather than rhythmic impacts and 'bleeps and bloops' that invaded a lot of the writing a bit back. Hope that continues... Favorite t-shirt this year so far is on the Colts souvie trailer - Black shirt with white lettering 'Got Melody?' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Ya know, I hear you, but I take issue with your basic point - that respect is something that has to be earned. Isn't respect one of the basic components of human existence?I get the fact that it's not just DCP or RAMD - look at some of the comments that appear on YouTube! But to me, the fact that we share this activity should be enough to qualify us for respect, both from younger AND older DCPers. There were many things that my dad and I didn't agree on, and not surprisingly, many things that my kids and I don't agree on. But respect is as basic as air. You can't have a human society without it. Literally nothing works when you remove it. That's not to say that you and I have not encountered folks in the activity, some of them very well regarded, who had litle or no respect for the people around them, or for the activity itself. But I don't think that means that respect is something to be earned on a case by case basis. Approval? Sure. Support? Show me the money! But respect? Man, if we don't have that, the rest of this stuff is simply "sound and fury, signifying nothing." Hmmmm...I see what you are getting at. I think we may be thinking/talking about two different aspects of 'respect' and talking across each other (now THAT is something that never happens here on DCP ). I think that at the global level, yes, CMM do respect FMM for being part of their history...and I think FMM have the same for CMM. However, at an individual personal level, it's not quite the same thing, and the way people post and interact across generations can build on or destroy that respect for an individual MM, be it 'C' or 'F'. I've seen many posts where a FMM has been offended when a CMM doesn't give that person what he/she thinks is their "due", after that FMM has just written posts basically trashing anything and everything about modern drum corps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregZ Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Just an opinion from a person who has avidly been a drum corps fan for over 40 years.....you hit the nail right smack on the head. It's high five time. The main issue here is that too many think everything is great and to a lot of us, that is not true. Is it worth it anymore for a lot of us to take our valuable time and spend our money on today's DCI corps? Especially when there are no shows within a three hour drive? My hope is that somebody, make that a lot of somebodies, wake up before they make things worse. Keep in mind that for most of us veteran drum corps observers with tons of experience are disgusted with the new way things are going on the field. I don't see it getting any better in the future so I might as well deal with it and aim my interests in another direction. If DCI does not care, then why should I???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mohanico Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 To quote Wipeout, "If at first you don't succeed, do the exact same thing again..." HAHAHA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marky Mark Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 (edited) I agree with alot of things the original poster said. As far as being the worst year ever, eh probably not. But, there was only one show at the Louisville regional that I liked. The Cavies, it blew me away. Yes, much of the music did not say "Samurai" at all, but it greatly written and performed. I loved it. When Bluecoats came on immediately afterwords and played a Rocky/On the Waterfront show, had boxing gloves and punching bags, and to top it all off piles of voiceovers, I wanted to die. The music failed to catch my interest, the props were absolutely distracting, and the voiceovers made me want to scream "FAIRE MES LES BOUCHES!!!". It was totally a hunk of cheese. You could tell by their sound that they were loaded with talent...and they're doing a show like that!? Alot of the "smaller" corps are much improved cleanliness wise from previous years but they still failed to catch my interest. As for getting rid of all voiceovers...PLEASE! I haven't been around the DCI community for very long, but it seems that Cadets 2005 started the trend. Now Cadets 2005 voiceovers were not bad. A little sentence or two about unlocking "the Door" and then the vocal "drum break" that was, once you were done blushing, pretty cool. Also, that entire show was extremely clean and flowed very well with the voices. However, seeing their 2006 and 2007 shows, the voiceovers completely take away from the effect of the music, are not clever in any way, and completely make me lose interest. I have not seen their 2008 show, but I expect the same, which is sad b/c I enjoy Frank Ticheli's music, especially Vesuvius. BDs had a few in their '06 show, I didn't mind that b/c it did not take away from the brass or percussion in any way, and it flowed right along with the show. However, I'd like to see it completely gone b/c of all the silly shows it's brought. I wouldn't want to get rid of props. Although I didn't like any of them at Louisville, shows like Cadets 2005, Cavies 2005, and Phantom 2007 have used them very effectively, adding to the theme yet not distracting you from the show. Stop all new music!? NO WAY!!! Just b/c I'm not familiar with it doesn't mean it shouldn't be played. What the music, new or old, has to be is clean and arranged well for a great show. As far as this being the worst DCI year ever, probably not. The best, by no means...Star isn't around, and no one's going to top some of the older stuff this year (Phantom 1989/1996, Cavies 1992/1995/2002, Blue Devils 2003). Edited July 9, 2008 by Marky Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WOOHOO Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 To quote Wipeout, "If at first you don't succeed, do the exact same thing again..." On the other end of things, "If you don't succeed with something, give up and never try again" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DantheOldMan Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 I just want to add a comment to the original poster. I'm from the '70s. During the '70s, high school and college marching bands wanted to be like drum corps. Marching bands used to "high step." In the '70s, they started calling it "drum corp style marching." Now, in 2008, it seems that drum corps want to be marching bands!! At the regional show in Madison, I saw corps walking into starting position. One corp had a baton twirler!! Corps stand still in an arc to blast their music, while rocking in position or while pumping one of their arms. Corps with actors on the field (i.e., Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed), or corps with narration. The Cavies had a traditional type show, and I am glad that it is scoring well. But, Madison Scouts is as traditional a corp as they come, and the judges don't seem to like them. Perhaps there are too many marching band directors judging DCI? I am not objecting to talent. In the '70s, we played double stroke rolls. Now, they play triple stroke rolls, so these kids are advanced and talented. It is fundamentals of drum corps. I am looking forward to seeing SCV and BD in Dallas next week. I hope that they are not falling into the marching band rut. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fluffybunnyfeet Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Amps are bad. KEEP CORPS UNPLUGGED! The rest of your rant was a little insane. I've been watching a lot of corps action on tape from the last 20 or so years. Corp musicality, precision and creativity has improved 10 fold! Without a doubt corps perform better, more interesting shows today than they ever have. Case in point - Cavies. I have never seen a show like they are doing this year. It totally rocks and I'm looking forward to my drum corp virgin friends experiencing it this weekend at Drums Along the Rockies. I'm am glad that the Cadets won't be there this year. I hate that voice amping CRAP! Talk about distracting. The Cadets are ruining their otherwise great shows with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowtown Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Just wait until next year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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