wesleyrp Posted June 20, 2009 Share Posted June 20, 2009 Nice evening for drum corps in SA at Blossum Athletic Complex.... Crossmen hosted a day camp that culminated with a preview of their 09 show "Forbidden." I went out to the baaseball stadium to watch the X-Men warm-up and couldn't but feel the excitement in the air knowing that it's drum corps season!!! Kept hearing some individual sounds coming from the behind the hornline, thought that might have been the wall of the outfield and was curious how it'd be facing the audience.... Some particulars: The X-men have 72 in the hornline and a full battery- 9 snares, 5 tenors, 5 basses., not sure how many guard... On to the show- The Crossmen like many corps this year I assume are using a synthesizer. But the use of them in this show are poor IMHO. They start the show off using their keyboards sustaining a couple of random chords that are meant to sound eerie. Problem is, it sounds too thin and doesn't do anything except annoy. The corps starts off with the hornline in the endzone left and the gaurd in endzone right. The hornline represents the vampire/main love interest and the guard is the Forbidden love. The corps wears black capes that they stretch out over their eyes and shield their faces ala Dracula... The intro develops really really really slowly. I understabd the idea of a pre-show, but this is just not effective as the idea does not really build. Do I get the ideas coming accross at the beiginning? Sure, but it comes accross a little cheesy. When the hornline opens up it is a very shrill sound, and I heard lots of individualism in the sound right now. That's not to say they do not have their moments as the hornline has some good ones, but it is not a mature hornline sound... It's early and it could change and probably will but that's what I heard. The music much like the begininng of the show does not go anywhere and lags. There are a few intended big impact moments, but they lose their steam because the rest of the show plods along. It looks to me like the design staff wanted to upgrade their product from last season but tried too hard and in the process made a show that is forced!! The visual side seems better than musically and there are some very fast moving parts that are sloppy but you'd expect that this time of year. As a sie, I thought in the standstill before the show run-through the drumline was phenomina. But, they didn't have a great run during the run-through. Still I feel they are a big upgrade over last year. Didn't see too much of the gurad so cannot comment here. The Crossmen got halfway throught the closer and then stopped as they are finishing the show still. I guess this might come off a little negative, but I kept thinking for all the possibilities that a show using this type of theme could have, this one just comes off as cheesy and too straight forward. The electronics were too loud and they need more substance to the synthesizer book if it is going to work... Overall, I think that this show is not on track to being a finalist caliber design, but the corp members have talent and anything is possible... It was a nice evening and a big crowd showed up and seemed to be very supportive... I'll be interested to see what others think... Wes P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaners Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 thanks. not the positive crossmen review i was hoping for, but i refuse to lose optimism. the corps started out really slow last year as well. i cant wait until i can see the show for myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barigirl78 Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 I want to thank you for your review. Even though I would have liked to hear something more positive(being a fan and all), you supported your points well. If you see the corps again this season, it would be nice to hear a comparison. I am still very optimistic. The attitude of the corps that I experienced History Night weekend was great. They've had some horrendous practice conditions with 100+ degree heat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Laubhan Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 Out of curiousity, are they still using the all black uniforms with the white accents, or have they added some red back in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barigirl78 Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 Out of curiousity, are they still using the all black uniforms with the white accents, or have they added some red back in? Other than adding the capes, they are pretty much the same uniforms as last year--Black with white accents. Whether they make any changes in the middle of the season, I don't know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drumrguy Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 I saw the crossmen in stand-still at the Texas drum corps preview last night. Actually, I like their show a lot. Could've been a little louder in some sections, but maybe that'll come. Good music, pretty nice drumline it seems. I'm excited to see how they field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wesleyrp Posted June 21, 2009 Author Share Posted June 21, 2009 I want to thank you for your review. Even though I would have liked to hear something more positive(being a fan and all), you supported your points well.If you see the corps again this season, it would be nice to hear a comparison. I am still very optimistic. The attitude of the corps that I experienced History Night weekend was great. They've had some horrendous practice conditions with 100+ degree heat. Thanks for such a nice message and in a classy way. I do want to clear a few points up to clarify though...I am pullling for them as The Crossmen as they are VERY good for SA, Texas and DCI... It is so early in the season that perhaps seeing them now is not going to do them justice. I bet the show will evolve and there will be changes for the better in the near future as is usually the case for all corps throughout the year. I felt the show was flat the other night, but, that doesn't mean that they don't have the talent. They do and they have a great staff of people helping and teaching... That's why I think the design may be their downfall and not the corps members or tour staff... We'll see, but I know they'll represent the Crossmen Fans and Alumni proud.... Wes P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barigirl78 Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 Thanks for such a nice message and in a classy way. I do want to clear a few points up to clarify though...I am pullling for them as The Crossmen as they are VERY good for SA, Texas and DCI... It is so early in the season that perhaps seeing them now is not going to do them justice. I bet the show will evolve and there will be changes for the better in the near future as is usually the case for all corps throughout the year. I felt the show was flat the other night, but, that doesn't mean that they don't have the talent. They do and they have a great staff of people helping and teaching... That's why I think the design may be their downfall and not the corps members or tour staff... We'll see, but I know they'll represent the Crossmen Fans and Alumni proud....Wes P Since reading your review, I watched a YouTube video of the performance. I also heard the individualism which you speak of, but I think that may go away as the hornline becomes more comfortable with the drill. The key thing I would disagree with is the observation that the show is "cheesy". I don't think we saw much of the storytelling or what they are going to do. There was more in the show than when I saw it the previous weekend, but less than I believe it will have eventually. Cheese can be in the eye of the bolder, just as opinions of synth work seem to be. The capes were cool and, I have to admit, I got a chill when they did their first hit. I really wish I could be in Toledo on Thursday. As it is, I'll be on the internet waiting for the first news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heyjude1202 Posted June 22, 2009 Share Posted June 22, 2009 Having been to the 08 and the 09 preview I can confidently state that the Crossmen are WAY ahead of where they were at this time last year. In 08 after the preview performance, I just looked at my husband shook my head saying they have a show in less than a week how are they going to get it together. They performed in Madison the following week and I anxiously watched on fan network...the corps did a fantastic job and were way better than what I viewed the week before. They worked that entire week heading to the midwest to get things done. And continued to have a strong work ethic the entire summer to push the corps beyond what many openly said couldn't be done. Now it's 09 I watched the corps preview and the demand of the drill they are doing (I know it is more difficult than last years...for that matter the music is more difficult)...yes it is not clean and in many parts a little fuzzy. There are LOTS of vets in the 09 corps and they know what effort it took to get the desired results ...they know how to work and what it takes to attain their goals. This week as they are in OK, MO, IN, and OH (many of these sites are alot cooler than the 100+ temperatures they have been dealing with for over 2 weeks at spring training), this group will continue to stay extremely focused and determined. Looking forward to watching Crossmen 09 grow and develop as the summer progresses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barigirl78 Posted June 22, 2009 Share Posted June 22, 2009 Looking forward to watching Crossmen 09 grow and develop as the summer progresses. Me too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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