Jamestown Brief

[ESContraman6]

Before I start....I am not affiliated with a corps and these are my personal views of the show. I didn’t take notes; this is just all from memory. I’m going to give you things that just stood out in my mind, good and bad. If you don’t like bad or feel that it’s a personal attack on your corps, which its not, then don’t read it.

Weather wasn’t too bad at the start, a little windy and overcast but showed promise of being a clear evening....not so much.

Thunderbirds:

Who doesn’t like the thunderbirds...honestly!?!?! So what that they don’t march, who cares. They put on a show and that’s what DCA is! They sounded great top to bottom. Jeff does a wonderful job with them (hey bartender!). Nice solo work and they really play to the crowd....love it!!

Excelsior:

I’m not going to sit here and pick this corps apart. They know what they need to do. IMO, they need not worry about scores. They need to be able to look back at the end of this season and say that they were better then they were in April and it will be a success! It took a lot of courage and guts to drive all the way across the state for this show. Not every corps can start out by fielding 60 horns and full drumlines and guard. You have to start somewhere. I hope this corps can keep a nucleus of people and continue to grow and build upon that. I applaud you for the efforts of the people in this corps for having the intestinal fortitude to press on and put something on the field for the fans. Nice job and please continue to grow and prosper...the heart is there, that was very evident tonight!!

White Sabers:

Wow...what a difference. It’s been awhile since I have seen this corps and was pleasantly surprised. They have grown into a wonderful corps...Excelsior take note of someone who was there before!! Still a smaller corps but still with a bright future ahead. Had some timing issues but not to bad. Had some individuals sticking out of the ensemble at times. It was also raining on them pretty good for the first half of their show but they pulled it off nicely, didn’t affect them to bad. They did run out of gas at the end of their show. If you can finish as strong as you start, you will be that much better. Great job guys keep moving this corps forward!

Crusaders:

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from this corps tonight after reading some reviews the last couple of weeks. I was quite taken back by their show! Overall I thought they did a great job. Yes the numbers a down in the horns and guard (I only counted 6), but they can still pull it off. The one strong point is the drumline. Those kids can play pretty well with each other. There is the other edge of this sword though. The drumline is over powering the rest of the corps. I was losing the mid range horns through out most of the show due to the drums. They could honestly take 3 of the snare players and put them in the hornline and the drums will be just fine. Hornline didn’t sound too bad when I could hear them. Some individuals out of the ensemble. Timing seemed to be pretty good throughout the performance. Good show overall if they can calm down the drummers!

Empire Statesmen:

I would probably say the fan favorite of the night. I was told they had a really bad show last week in Boston. They defiantly bounced back tonight. This is a young corps, got to watch some of their practice during the day and they are young though out the corps. Some nice solo work in the beginning to a big opening hit and I was left wanting more. Didn’t quite deliver on the open. It seemed like they started a little slow and then it started raining, probably the hardest of the night and it woke them up. The show actually got stronger all the way to the end. A few timing issues in the ballad front to back and some individuals stick out of the ensemble. They finished Bugle boy and the announcer thought it over, crowd was eating it up. They finished very strong and with authority. The have some issues with individuals when it comes to playing and marching. Great job guys....I miss the performances!!

I'm sorry I don’t have anything to say about the Brigs or St. Joes as my fiancé and I went to see a few people and get on the road for the 3 hour ride back to Ohio. We did hear some of the Brigs show from the parking lot right before we left and they sounded pretty darn good. They are jumping up in score to prove it.

Good show tonight minus the rain, rumor has it there were tornados up toward Rochester. Thank you to the Brigs and Jamestown Band Boosters for putting on a great show. There were a lot of older generation people in the stands tonight. It was great to listen to some of them talk and reminisce about the days back in the 60's when they marched with and against each other. Wonderful stories being past around the stadium tonight.

There you have it. If you have anything negative to say to me about something I said about "your" corps, keep it to yourself, I really don’t care. This is what I saw and how I saw it.

[AlbionNY Drum Line]

Great price! Most fun you can get for $10

Excelsior - Saw you guys from the side so I can't be too objective here. Drum line is pretty solid guys and if you added a pit your drum score could push you up higher than you are currently.

WS - Pleasantly surprised by the sound the horn line was putting out (minus the oops right before the first impact). This young drum line moves well and plays just as well. They had a strong show tonight with the only weak part being the hit in the ballad. Good showing by WS

Cru - The poster above me comments on calming down the drum line. There are two sides to this. YES I did notice from time to time some balance issues in from brass to percussion (esp. 1st drum line entrance after the ballad). On the other side, the talent level of the snare line is so high that that itself will lend to a deeper sound (they hit the drums, no feather tapping here). The technique of the snare line is so unified that I would not want to jeopardize anything by messing with it now. Solution = beef up the horn numbers.

Review = Cool show, again better than I expected; the guard scores must be realll low because I expected this corps to be a bit closer to Brigs tonight (or were Brigs over scored?)

ES - Strong showing tonight by Team Tux, I thought the horn line was pretty much right on. It must be a Rochester thing because this is another snare line LOADED with talent and they are playing at a very high level. Loved the announcer's attempt at ending the show early, that gave way to a few laughs. I think a few more bodies in the pit would help get that drum score up there as well. Great job guys

Brigs - Definitely something different from the Red Team this year. Missin' bass 3? This is a drum line loaded with potential here as well and tonight they didn't seem to find click as well as they were earlier in the day. The more I thought about it I got to realizing that some of the ensemble uneasiness might be due to the drill staging. That is, at multiple times the drum line will be on side one and the horn line on side two. That, and some not-so-great listening by the pit made some of tonight's production unsettling. Watch out for BIG things from this drum line as the season progresses

These are just MY views and are not associated with any corps I have been/or currently associated with.

I'm just a guy tryin to enjoy a drum corps show

[VOReason]

Thanks for the reviews guys, but some of these reviews are beginning to sound like a commercial for a prescription drug. Why do we feel it necessary to use half the post for a disclaimer? It's your OPNION, and EVERYONE'S opinion is different....as evidenced by these 2 reviewers. Keep 'em comin'!!

Edited July 26, 2009 by VOReason

[Tom D'Bomb]

Great price! Most fun you can get for $10

Excelsior - Saw you guys from the side so I can't be too objective here. Drum line is pretty solid guys and if you added a pit your drum score could push you up higher than you are currently.

WS - Pleasantly surprised by the sound the horn line was putting out (minus the oops right before the first impact). This young drum line moves well and plays just as well. They had a strong show tonight with the only weak part being the hit in the ballad. Good showing by WS

Cru - The poster above me comments on calming down the drum line. There are two sides to this. YES I did notice from time to time some balance issues in from brass to percussion (esp. 1st drum line entrance after the ballad). On the other side, the talent level of the snare line is so high that that itself will lend to a deeper sound (they hit the drums, no feather tapping here). The technique of the snare line is so unified that I would not want to jeopardize anything by messing with it now. Solution = beef up the horn numbers.

Review = Cool show, again better than I expected; the guard scores must be realll low because I expected this corps to be a bit closer to Brigs tonight (or were Brigs over scored?)

ES - Strong showing tonight by Team Tux, I thought the horn line was pretty much right on. It must be a Rochester thing because this is another snare line LOADED with talent and they are playing at a very high level. Loved the announcer's attempt at ending the show early, that gave way to a few laughs. I think a few more bodies in the pit would help get that drum score up there as well. Great job guys

Brigs - Definitely something different from the Red Team this year. Missin' bass 3? This is a drum line loaded with potential here as well and tonight they didn't seem to find click as well as they were earlier in the day. The more I thought about it I got to realizing that some of the ensemble uneasiness might be due to the drill staging. That is, at multiple times the drum line will be on side one and the horn line on side two. That, and some not-so-great listening by the pit made some of tonight's production unsettling. Watch out for BIG things from this drum line as the season progresses

These are just MY views and are not associated with any corps I have been/or currently associated with.

I'm just a guy tryin to enjoy a drum corps show

Any reviewer's comments are fair and should be respected and encouraged - not flamed - but to hear Joe Stork criticize the Brigs "drill staging" as the cause of their ensemble problems makes me want to respond.

If only the Brigs had a drill designer with a track record (wait, same guy as 97-04).

I think it's part of a bigger problem: Since Dr. Beat has overthrown the activity, I haven't heard ANY batteries who know how to listen when they aren't the center of the pulse. Any time the battery is to the side (or God forbid in FRONT) of the low brass, the feel of whatever the ensemble is playing suffers.

It's partly because most battery instructors aren't knowledgable enough, or weren't around when the battery had to listen, AND because most brass staffers don't have the nerve to call out the battery (ok, except Bucs).

Edited July 26, 2009 by Tom D'Bomb

[cmhs59]

Before I start....I am not affiliated with a corps and these are my personal views of the show. I didn’t take notes; this is just all from memory. I’m going to give you things that just stood out in my mind, good and bad. If you don’t like bad or feel that it’s a personal attack on your corps, which its not, then don’t read it.

Weather wasn’t too bad at the start, a little windy and overcast but showed promise of being a clear evening....not so much.

Thunderbirds:

Who doesn’t like the thunderbirds...honestly!?!?! So what that they don’t march, who cares. They put on a show and that’s what DCA is! They sounded great top to bottom. Jeff does a wonderful job with them (hey bartender!). Nice solo work and they really play to the crowd....love it!!

Excelsior:

I’m not going to sit here and pick this corps apart. They know what they need to do. IMO, they need not worry about scores. They need to be able to look back at the end of this season and say that they were better then they were in April and it will be a success! It took a lot of courage and guts to drive all the way across the state for this show. Not every corps can start out by fielding 60 horns and full drumlines and guard. You have to start somewhere. I hope this corps can keep a nucleus of people and continue to grow and build upon that. I applaud you for the efforts of the people in this corps for having the intestinal fortitude to press on and put something on the field for the fans. Nice job and please continue to grow and prosper...the heart is there, that was very evident tonight!!

White Sabers:

Wow...what a difference. It’s been awhile since I have seen this corps and was pleasantly surprised. They have grown into a wonderful corps...Excelsior take note of someone who was there before!! Still a smaller corps but still with a bright future ahead. Had some timing issues but not to bad. Had some individuals sticking out of the ensemble at times. It was also raining on them pretty good for the first half of their show but they pulled it off nicely, didn’t affect them to bad. They did run out of gas at the end of their show. If you can finish as strong as you start, you will be that much better. Great job guys keep moving this corps forward!

Crusaders:

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from this corps tonight after reading some reviews the last couple of weeks. I was quite taken back by their show! Overall I thought they did a great job. Yes the numbers a down in the horns and guard (I only counted 6), but they can still pull it off. The one strong point is the drumline. Those kids can play pretty well with each other. There is the other edge of this sword though. The drumline is over powering the rest of the corps. I was losing the mid range horns through out most of the show due to the drums. They could honestly take 3 of the snare players and put them in the hornline and the drums will be just fine. Hornline didn’t sound too bad when I could hear them. Some individuals out of the ensemble. Timing seemed to be pretty good throughout the performance. Good show overall if they can calm down the drummers!

Empire Statesmen:

I would probably say the fan favorite of the night. I was told they had a really bad show last week in Boston. They defiantly bounced back tonight. This is a young corps, got to watch some of their practice during the day and they are young though out the corps. Some nice solo work in the beginning to a big opening hit and I was left wanting more. Didn’t quite deliver on the open. It seemed like they started a little slow and then it started raining, probably the hardest of the night and it woke them up. The show actually got stronger all the way to the end. A few timing issues in the ballad front to back and some individuals stick out of the ensemble. They finished Bugle boy and the announcer thought it over, crowd was eating it up. They finished very strong and with authority. The have some issues with individuals when it comes to playing and marching. Great job guys....I miss the performances!!

I'm sorry I don’t have anything to say about the Brigs or St. Joes as my fiancé and I went to see a few people and get on the road for the 3 hour ride back to Ohio. We did hear some of the Brigs show from the parking lot right before we left and they sounded pretty darn good. They are jumping up in score to prove it.

Good show tonight minus the rain, rumor has it there were tornados up toward Rochester. Thank you to the Brigs and Jamestown Band Boosters for putting on a great show. There were a lot of older generation people in the stands tonight. It was great to listen to some of them talk and reminisce about the days back in the 60's when they marched with and against each other. Wonderful stories being past around the stadium tonight.

There you have it. If you have anything negative to say to me about something I said about "your" corps, keep it to yourself, I really don’t care. This is what I saw and how I saw it.

Good review. I would like to add that that I think Brigs have improved greatly over the past three weeks--as has just about everyone else. I just think they have improved more than the others.

St. Joes got up real close and comfortable to the crowd with their exhibition and the crowd loved it.

Empire got hit the hardest with the rain and it may have affected their score.

Decent size crowd especially considering the bad weather we've had in the area all week and the almost doomsday weather reports for the area for show day.

Because of the weather-lightning was spotted on the southwest horizon-there was just a drum major retreat and no encore performance. Brigs drum line did a parking lot runthrough after the show that a lot of people stayed for and really appreciated.

Great stadium for a show! Sounds like there will be another Bugler's Holiday next year.

Nobody puts on a drum corps show better than Carl Vullo. Some may be as good--but none better.

[Sayre Kulp]

Any reviewer's comments are fair and should be respected and encouraged - not flamed - but to hear Joe Stork criticize the Brigs "drill staging" as the cause of their ensemble problems makes me want to respond.

If only the Brigs had a drill designer with track record (wait, same guy as 97-04).

I think it's part of a bigger problem: Since Dr. Beat has overthrown the activity, I haven't heard ANY batteries who know how to listen when they aren't the center of the pulse. Any time the battery is to the side (or God forbid in FRONT) of the low brass the feel of whatever the ensemble is playing suffers.

It's partly because most battery instructors aren't knowledgable enough, or weren't around when the battery had to listen, AND because most brass staffers don't have the nerve to call out the battery (ok, except Bucs).

Not trying to pick a fight, I just disagree to a certain point. Just because someone has an excellent track record doesn't mean they won't make a mistake. Bad drill is bad drill, and bad staging is bad staging. I've been writing drill for years. Sometimes it wins, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes I try something different and come out looking brilliant. Sometimes I try something and when it doesn't work, it's my fault.

I can't comment on this particular situation because I still need to see Brigs show this year. I DO know however, that the percussion is ALWAYS the center of the pulse, be it battery or front ensemble. I've played low brass, battery, pit and Dr. Beat is not the one at fault. You can trust Dr. Beat sooner than you can trust your own mother.

And for the record, the whole reason for the disclaimers, is because no matter what you write, there will always be people who feel they need to defend their corps, regardless of the criticism. As a journalist, I'd love to write more critical show reviews, but I don't want to deal with all of the feedback. So unless something changes, the only reviews we'll see will either have disclaimers, or be fluffy "everyone was a winner" articles.

Though for the record, as long as people can disagree without things degenerating into a monkey crap fight, is there really any harm in debating things on a message forum? Just because two groups see things differently, that doesn't spell the end of the world.

[melligene]

Before I start....I am not affiliated with a corps and these are my personal views of the show. I didn’t take notes; this is just all from memory. I’m going to give you things that just stood out in my mind, good and bad. If you don’t like bad or feel that it’s a personal attack on your corps, which its not, then don’t read it.

Weather wasn’t too bad at the start, a little windy and overcast but showed promise of being a clear evening....not so much.

Thunderbirds:

Who doesn’t like the thunderbirds...honestly!?!?! So what that they don’t march, who cares. They put on a show and that’s what DCA is! They sounded great top to bottom. Jeff does a wonderful job with them (hey bartender!). Nice solo work and they really play to the crowd....love it!!

Excelsior:

I’m not going to sit here and pick this corps apart. They know what they need to do. IMO, they need not worry about scores. They need to be able to look back at the end of this season and say that they were better then they were in April and it will be a success! It took a lot of courage and guts to drive all the way across the state for this show. Not every corps can start out by fielding 60 horns and full drumlines and guard. You have to start somewhere. I hope this corps can keep a nucleus of people and continue to grow and build upon that. I applaud you for the efforts of the people in this corps for having the intestinal fortitude to press on and put something on the field for the fans. Nice job and please continue to grow and prosper...the heart is there, that was very evident tonight!!

White Sabers:

Wow...what a difference. It’s been awhile since I have seen this corps and was pleasantly surprised. They have grown into a wonderful corps...Excelsior take note of someone who was there before!! Still a smaller corps but still with a bright future ahead. Had some timing issues but not to bad. Had some individuals sticking out of the ensemble at times. It was also raining on them pretty good for the first half of their show but they pulled it off nicely, didn’t affect them to bad. They did run out of gas at the end of their show. If you can finish as strong as you start, you will be that much better. Great job guys keep moving this corps forward!

Crusaders:

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from this corps tonight after reading some reviews the last couple of weeks. I was quite taken back by their show! Overall I thought they did a great job. Yes the numbers a down in the horns and guard (I only counted 6), but they can still pull it off. The one strong point is the drumline. Those kids can play pretty well with each other. There is the other edge of this sword though. The drumline is over powering the rest of the corps. I was losing the mid range horns through out most of the show due to the drums. They could honestly take 3 of the snare players and put them in the hornline and the drums will be just fine. Hornline didn’t sound too bad when I could hear them. Some individuals out of the ensemble. Timing seemed to be pretty good throughout the performance. Good show overall if they can calm down the drummers!

Empire Statesmen:

I would probably say the fan favorite of the night. I was told they had a really bad show last week in Boston. They defiantly bounced back tonight. This is a young corps, got to watch some of their practice during the day and they are young though out the corps. Some nice solo work in the beginning to a big opening hit and I was left wanting more. Didn’t quite deliver on the open. It seemed like they started a little slow and then it started raining, probably the hardest of the night and it woke them up. The show actually got stronger all the way to the end. A few timing issues in the ballad front to back and some individuals stick out of the ensemble. They finished Bugle boy and the announcer thought it over, crowd was eating it up. They finished very strong and with authority. The have some issues with individuals when it comes to playing and marching. Great job guys....I miss the performances!!

I'm sorry I don’t have anything to say about the Brigs or St. Joes as my fiancé and I went to see a few people and get on the road for the 3 hour ride back to Ohio. We did hear some of the Brigs show from the parking lot right before we left and they sounded pretty darn good. They are jumping up in score to prove it.

Good show tonight minus the rain, rumor has it there were tornados up toward Rochester. Thank you to the Brigs and Jamestown Band Boosters for putting on a great show. There were a lot of older generation people in the stands tonight. It was great to listen to some of them talk and reminisce about the days back in the 60's when they marched with and against each other. Wonderful stories being past around the stadium tonight.

There you have it. If you have anything negative to say to me about something I said about "your" corps, keep it to yourself, I really don’t care. This is what I saw and how I saw it.

The Erie Thunderbirds want to thank you for your comments. We live for compliments and yours alone make it all worth it. Thanks again.

[brassomaniac]

Anybody got pics?

[eveinot]

Not trying to pick a fight, I just disagree to a certain point. Just because someone has an excellent track record doesn't mean they won't make a mistake. Bad drill is bad drill, and bad staging is bad staging. I've been writing drill for years. Sometimes it wins, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes I try something different and come out looking brilliant. Sometimes I try something and when it doesn't work, it's my fault.

I can't comment on this particular situation because I still need to see Brigs show this year. I DO know however, that the percussion is ALWAYS the center of the pulse, be it battery or front ensemble. I've played low brass, battery, pit and Dr. Beat is not the one at fault. You can trust Dr. Beat sooner than you can trust your own mother.

And for the record, the whole reason for the disclaimers, is because no matter what you write, there will always be people who feel they need to defend their corps, regardless of the criticism. As a journalist, I'd love to write more critical show reviews, but I don't want to deal with all of the feedback. So unless something changes, the only reviews we'll see will either have disclaimers, or be fluffy "everyone was a winner" articles.

Though for the record, as long as people can disagree without things degenerating into a monkey crap fight, is there really any harm in debating things on a message forum? Just because two groups see things differently, that doesn't spell the end of the world.

As a marching member, i cannot state what the true problem is, because from on the field you can only see and hear so much, and what sounds right where yoiu are, is not right in the stands or box. i can say however, that bad drill, in my opinion, can never be an excuse. the season lasts all summer, and it should not take that long for a drill writer to realize there is a problem and correct it. so from this outlook, i can truly say that staging is no excuse. i am not sure what it was, it may have been the weather preventing the sound to travel how it had earlier in the day, it may have been fatigue, it may have just been one of those shows where it just didnt quite line up right. there is a number of explinations, but drill, and a drill writer, is not one of these.

as for the "fluff" and "everyone is a winner" concept... that should not be the case. i read these reviews all the time, and this is the first time i have decided to "defend" my corps. and for that, im not really defending the corps, im just stating my opinion and outlook on drum corps in general. had this been said about any other corps' drill and i read it, i would have had the same response. however, i hardly ever read reviews of any other corps, simply because i do not care. not to be rude or harsh, its because as a marching member of a corps, i have my corps and my contribution to worry about and what i can do to improve the performance as a whole. and that brings me right back to the "everyone is a winner" concept... i do not care for the entirely positive posts, because my entire purpose for these reviews is to read where i need to improve. yes, we have staff to say that, but rarely do they have an overview like a spectator. the staff is looking at their area of concern, and not how it all melds together.

However...

To all the compliments from every review towards the Brigs, thank you. i appreciate the positive feedback. I even appreciate the criticism (positive or not) because it helps raise our scores every week. again, thank you.

[Fred Windish]

Before I start, let me say, I once did march with the Reading Buccaneers. Don't know why I need to say that, but I'll play along. On the matter of reviews . . keep them coming! Better still, keep them coming so long as what you write is truly what you saw, what you believe to be true. That has value. Tippy-toeing does not.

I would think any performer wants to hear ANY observation. Otherwise, what's the point displaying your talent in public?

The reader (performer) needs feedback to maintain their interest and stoke their effort. Drum Corps Planet provides this need to our active participants. Drum Corps Planet needs reviews to spark a desire to visit this site. Let's help Drum Corps Planet maintain its readership by welcoming ALL contributions. If you don't like a contribution, respond and say why not. NO holds barred!

Here's mine . . .

The Reading Buccaneers are still the class of the field. I expect them to win again.

The battle for 6th through 12th is the most intriguing aspect of this season.

I would be thrilled to have Kilties secure a "voting-member" position.

I would be thrilled to have Alliance emerge as an Open Class "player."

Now, give me H*LL, and thanks!