Top Five Take

[chasgroh]

...after working on the sideline for prelims shooting pix for DCP, I went up and took photos from the stands for finals. Found a great perch next to the judges box and proceded to get fried on hot drum corps! Couple of local guys who both marched Auburn Purple Lancers ended up there, too...what a bonus, 'cause they had that "old school" experience without,unlike me, being influenced by contemporary styles and show construction.

During prelims I couldn't help but notice the minutiae,being the marching geek that I am, but still had to take pics and got wrapped in that gig for long stretches...all contributing to a disproportionate view of the festivities. Still, I gained strong opinions (go figure!)...Bush's guard is the most athletic group out there, and dam good besides...Hurc's are for real (and still win High Hat)...MBI is VERY strong across the board...Cabs have more heart than *anyone*, have a slightly stronger marching show than last year and are prone to youthful inconsistency...Empire is amazing and having a howitzer like Joey Pero in front shouldn't mean anything other than they, AND the crowd, are sooooooo dam lucky...Bucs are winnin', but are getting pushed.

Finals rolls around and all of the above was in place...'cept I get to *see* the shows.

Hurcs brought it. No glaring ensemble problems, horns were good and had a big sound, drums were pretty cool, guard stood out as excellent to unreal. Gonna be WORTHY soon enough.

...then...

MBI went on and I couldn't pick my jaw up after! Wow, what a consistent performance. Horn line was powerful and lush (WONDERFUL 6 man contra line), drumline was what you'd expect from a previous hi drum champ *and* one of the most tricky and rhythmic solos I've heard in a long while (they didn't just put a bunch of licks together...it was truly original in concept), marching was crisper than I've seen from them and certainly on a par with Bucs. Guard was right there, no obvious difficulties. Total thing: Heroic! WORTHY.

(My comment to the Purple Lancer guys: "Cabs are in trouble!"...that from a pretty much "homie" Hawthorne fan. Here they come...)

Cabs made the grab for the ring and came up short. Sounded like the show tore twice (this is when different musical elements don't line-up and you hear it get "off"...staff-wise this is the ultimate "ugh" and AFAIC, you're dead when it happens to any great degree. TOUGH thing to get consistent, time-wise, 'specially with the pace of modern programs). Talked with Frank Gerris the day before and he *said* they were young...anyhoo...horns sounded good and got stronger as the show progressed...drums, and I LOVE the way these guys sound, were a bit fuzzy at times and the guard looked tight and *good* for the most part. Still, though, it looked like they'd drop a place or maybe two. (Without a doubt will be WORTHY next year, 'cause they're the CABS, ######!).

(Performance order sometimes helps the judges to make those tough calls...'cause you can see the main players head-to-head. In this case, Hurc's, then MBI, then Cabs...Cabs needed to step up and, instead, got tripped-up!).

Empire was ELECTRIC! Sentiment aside (the *Rochester Quotient*) the show simply cooks, but, then again, I can't remember a show from them that doesn't do just that! Horns were out there in orbit, and with Joe Pero adding-in from the sideline the sound was unmatched. Drums were aggressive and strong. Visual looked very good, I love their marching style and they perform it to a high degree. Great show. WORTHY.

...then...

Buccaneers were programmed to win...and I guess that's the name of the game, eh? Strong in every caption, drums fuzzed some and *still* won high drums. Horns were powerful and accurate. Guard was on it. And marching was generally nailed...so much so, that a couple of weaker performers stuck-out at times, which is what you get when *everything* else is on the dime. Due to the spread going in, I didn't see them being overtaken and that came to pass. Definitely WORTHY.

...so...

Retreat was a TREAT! Wow, you hear 'bout all the controversial finishes of the past, some legendary; I can't help but think this one will be in that archive. (I think commonality of emotion in large groups is a phenomenon worthy of a PHD paper or two...or three!) When the Cabs score was announced you could not only *hear* the exhale, you could *feel* it. ("...but, where's MBI?").

The radical change when the Hurcs number came out was *incredible*, giddy? (And, underlaying it all, "Here comes Minnesota, eh?").

THEN, when the Statesmen's score came over the PA...chaos! '66 Legion Nats! Boos! Cheers! WOW! And STILL, where's Minnesota?!

Here it comes...and yes, Minnesota Brass Inc. is in second place by a large spread...holy Viking, Batman! The crowd, as fickle things go, has warmed up appreciably...could that be the Bucs' fans? Heh, of course!

In a parallel universe maybe Bucs mightuv' lost, but not Sunday nite. As the different corps filed out (or not!) one thing could be discerned; they were all happy to be there and respectful of their competitors...sure, there was disappointment, but there always is and always will be.

The story here, IMO, is validation of a great and consistent program in MBI (not taking anything away from the long-time DCA powers, much less Reading), and a governing body that provided the platform from which change of this magnitude can occur...DCA. Here's to y'all.

I got all I came for and more!

Charlie Groh

ps...opon the return home I got all inspired and wrote this in response to a...ah, shall I say it?...RAMD post. Heh, yeah, I'm still there and hang with a few of the olde-timers and try to ignore the tripe...but my six-guns are always slung low and loaded, you betcha!

[AverageJoe]

"Strong in every caption, drums fuzzed some and *still* won high drums."

Further proof that a quality front ensemble can win a drum trophy for you.

It's a designers game now a days. The members execution is not as important.

[dolphin6704]

"Strong in every caption, drums fuzzed some and *still* won high drums."

Further proof that a quality front ensemble can win a drum trophy for you.

It's a designers game now a days. The members execution is not as important.

Not true... it is both. One can not work with out the other.

[Jim Allen]

...after working on the sideline for prelims shooting pix for DCP, I went up and took photos from the stands for finals. Found a great perch next to the judges box and proceded to get fried on hot drum corps! Couple of local guys who both marched Auburn Purple Lancers ended up there, too...what a bonus, 'cause they had that "old school" experience without,unlike me, being influenced by contemporary styles and show construction.

During prelims I couldn't help but notice the minutiae,being the marching geek that I am, but still had to take pics and got wrapped in that gig for long stretches...all contributing to a disproportionate view of the festivities. Still, I gained strong opinions (go figure!)...Bush's guard is the most athletic group out there, and dam good besides...Hurc's are for real (and still win High Hat)...MBI is VERY strong across the board...Cabs have more heart than *anyone*, have a slightly stronger marching show than last year and are prone to youthful inconsistency...Empire is amazing and having a howitzer like Joey Pero in front shouldn't mean anything other than they, AND the crowd, are sooooooo dam lucky...Bucs are winnin', but are getting pushed.

Finals rolls around and all of the above was in place...'cept I get to *see* the shows.

Charlie Groh

ps...opon the return home I got all inspired and wrote this in response to a...ah, shall I say it?...RAMD post. Heh, yeah, I'm still there and hang with a few of the olde-timers and try to ignore the tripe...but my six-guns are always slung low and loaded, you betcha!

Now that's what I'd call a great review. Thank you for posting it!