contratech Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 (edited) Beautiful evening for a show, mid 80s and dry. The crowd sits quite a distance from the front sideline and makes it tough for the small corps to have impact. The show is a sellout. First corps Govies. Strong first show with 15 brass and nice sized perc and guard. Fully prepared for the first show (except for obvious rewrite late in the show) with good sound. This show has nice musical and visual variations. Typical Govie show (in a good way) but a bit better than usual across the board. I always admired the Govs for finding a balance between pleasing the crowds, the judges and themselves. Next up Mn Brass. I saw them at rehearsal at the end of May and was blown away, but last night I was a little disappointed...just a bit. All sections are huge but I noticed a few holes in the brass section. Big beautiful sound from the brass for the most part, but sounded a bit tired tonight. Percussion really knocks your socks off and the guard ties the whole visual program together. Rifle tosses and flag work added impact and is tastefully integrated in the show. The opener of Harlem and Adventures in Time were Ok but the drill seemed stagnant and the only thing that saves the visual portion of the show IS the guard. Musically, Adventures seemed to fall short in excitement. There were times I wanted more brass and instead too much pit. Ok, this is the first show of the season, and as it cleans up this show may rock just the way it is...but there is potential to be so much more. Probably the best Corps MBIs has ever had this point in the season and should be exciting to watch this corps grow. Colt Cadets. This is NOT a typical Cadet Corps. About 90 members 34ish in the brass. The theme is Lullaby's and Nightmares and the show is well conceived and a near perfect fit for the talent. Adequate sound from brass and percussion and the guard was strong too. I am really impress in how well prepared they are for the first show, not even close to any train wrecks. The staff has to be commended for finding a challenging show that is attainable and satisfying for the marching members. This should be a good year for the Colt Cadets. Racine Scouts...sorry I missed this show. Spirit. The narration "Live from Stillwater..Spirit"... was a nice hit opening the show, but they should have pulled the microphone plug after words. The pit was over amped and distracting. Too bad because the music of Kansas is decent. Clean and balanced throughout with a nice visual program, everything is pretty good but at the same time forgettable. There is talent and potential, but in today's world visual impact, I'm not sure this show will sell. Scouts. This is the first time I've seen the new unis live and I like em. The olive green is unique and really works with the red accents. The guard pre show was very cool . The show has a "super hero feel" to it but evidently not all the elements are there yet. I loved the fast paced opener, Malaga was in there but not sure what else. Doesn't matter because it worked. The whole corps had a more traditional Madison feel for most of the show..in a good way. The guard was active and pretty good but I'm not sure it's sophisticated enough for the judges...tough, I really liked it. The final quarter of the show seemed flat and disjointed..but it's early. They should be in the middle to lower part of the DCI pack comes Aug. Phantom Regiment. I was caught off guard. The simple white uniforms had me thinking classical and stuffy, instead high energy, visual and musical treat. I'm not sold there really is a theme but with that visual program...who needs a stinking theme. The waves of lower brass runs combined with a superb drill later in the show was worth the price of admission. The guard is strong and the whole package works. I had them first if nothing else because of the Contra section...16!! Cavs. The show is The Great Divide with the guard in mountain climbing outfits. The corps itself is well prepared and strong but when the guard used the "ropes to pull the corps, I found myself comparing this show to "Machine".... and this show isn't quite there...yet. I like that they really play music this year, as opposed to sound bites. This show has potential and the staff has a track record, so I'm betting by Aug, this will be a Corps to beat. Blue Stars. The show is "The Factory". Just a bit smaller than Cavs and PR, and carrying about three brass holes. I really liked the music and the show... very smooth. I'm not sure of all the sewing tables taking up side one, and the drill that intertwines. There is so much visual potential to bring the "factory" alive. Shouldn't there be a percussion feature revolving around sewing machine sounds and visuals somewhere? The bass drum run early in the show really makes a statement, the guard is first rate and once all the loose elements are tied together this can be top 6 material. I was really impressed by how well prepared all the Corps were this year...which is a good thing because after this week..no more DCI corps in Minnesota until next year. Edited June 21, 2009 by contratech Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaners Posted June 21, 2009 Share Posted June 21, 2009 thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manlybandman Posted June 22, 2009 Share Posted June 22, 2009 no more DCI corps in Minnesota until next year???? Isn't there a show in Mankato tonight???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manlybandman Posted June 22, 2009 Share Posted June 22, 2009 no more DCI corps in Minnesota until next year???? Isn't there a show in Mankato tonight???? oops....just reread the post and realize you said 'after this week'......my bad. Sorry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffffingloud Posted June 22, 2009 Share Posted June 22, 2009 The Cavaliers also have 16 Contras this year... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contratech Posted June 22, 2009 Author Share Posted June 22, 2009 oops....just reread the post and realize you said 'after this week'......my bad. Sorry I think there is a show in Dubuque this coming weekend too, but even thats a four plus hour drive from the Twin Cities. Man I miss DCM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
contratech Posted June 22, 2009 Author Share Posted June 22, 2009 The Cavaliers also have 16 Contras this year... Yes, but PR seemed more impressive to me. It's also interesting to compare the 16 contras to Spirits 6. Spirit tried to compensate with the electronics in the pit but there is nothing like the visual impact of 16 masses of metal flying around the field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
combia1 Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 I think there is a show in Dubuque this coming weekend too, but even thats a four plus hour drive from the Twin Cities. Man I miss DCM. I agree. I thought the Cavaliers low brass was lacking this weekend. Trumpets and mellos sounded good, but I wasn't getting any euph or contra voice. If Phantom was playing with 16 contras, it sounded like the Cavies had 8. On the flipside, I thought Phantom was a bit bottom-heavy for a good part of their show. I thought Blue Stars had the best balance between the voices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachael Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 I think there is a show in Dubuque this coming weekend too, but even thats a four plus hour drive from the Twin Cities. Man I miss DCM. Dubuque is in Iowa... but I understand what you mean. There's a show in Des Moines this Thursday as well. That's about a 4 hour drive from the Twin Cities and should be great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ULMusicMan Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 Yes, but PR seemed more impressive to me. It's also interesting to compare the 16 contras to Spirits 6. Spirit tried to compensate with the electronics in the pit but there is nothing like the visual impact of 16 masses of metal flying around the field. not tring to rehash this argument at all but just a clarification, Spirit is not compensating with electronics, the string bass is NOT DOUBLING ANY CONTRA parts. yeah its unfortunate that the number of contras is low, but that will change soon. As far as I know there is only 1 contra hole left. So they obviously filled some of those spots so I'm pretty sure you'll see them on the field soon. VERY SOON I HOPE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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