Olive Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Good Evening (or morning should I say?) Just got back from the Jersey Shore and we had a splendid weekend. Luckily we changed our plans and did the Seaside Boardwalk on Friday as our original plan was to go on Sunday. Saturday we spent a majority of the day on the beach. What a great day for a Drum Corps show. The last time I wrote a review, I tried to not hurt anyones feelings. After reading other reviews and the comments that followed that review, I figured I would be a little more, let's say, less reserved. Please don't crucify me, i'm just being a little more honest.... We got their a little late and caught the very end of "The Banner", which also meant we didn't have the best seats in the house. As you are looking at the field, we were on the 30 on the left side. First on were The Sunrisers. These guys have made major improvements since their performance in Wayne, NJ. Specifically speaking, the costuming and the musical performances. If this season ended on Saturday you could say that the rebuilding of The Sunrisers is a success. I personally hope that they can bring back all of the new Drum Corps people they have created and build from there. Hold on to the designers and add some techs and this group will make strides in the future. Welcome back!!! Next on was Carolina Gold. All I have to say about this group is that they are FUN FUN FUN!!!!! The 2 soloists are soprano gymnasts. Playing in the stratosphere with great strength and endurance. The show is a blast to watch. For an "A" corps if they get a little more detail oriented, this program has championship legs. Fusion on the other hand, has made drastic improvements to their show. Since I saw them last, they have gotten clean and have increased the difficulty on the performer. The guard seems a couple weeks behind the musicians but they have what it takes in their book. I have to mention that the duet in the middle of the program is cute. Someone in the stands said that the two performers are married and are the founders of the corps. That is very sweet. To compare these two "A" class corps is difficult. Fusion is clean/safe and might be close to maxing out their show. Gold can use the next few weeks before nationals to clean their show, which is a good thing because they have something to clean. It seems what the hornline is playing is a little more challenging for Gold than for Fusion and the other way around for the drumline. Either way, Fusion and Gold are going to make the "A" class finals enjoyable to all that can make it to Ra-cha-cha. The Caballeros from Hawthorne, NJ were next. It was yet again a privilege to hear the Great Frank Ponzo playing on the field with this group. He sounded great at Wayne and sounded AMAZING on Saturday night. This group gets the "MOST IMPROVED" award from me. The progress they have made is miraculous. The hornline sounds like a hornline now and the Front Ensemble is playing together with musicianship. They are marching the drill better for sure. The drill itself is very awkward. Lots of incomplete thoughts and uncomfortable transitions. This is not a performance criticism at all, as a matter of fact, I think the performers are doing the best they can with what they have, which isn't much. The guard performs the heck out of their show. I'm not sure they have gotten much better than the last time I saw them in Wayne. Maybe it has something to do with their warm up. They originally began their warm up right behind the stands and were quite distracting during Sun's performance. I'm assuming they were asked to move, because they did. Knowing how important a warm up is, I hope the instructors plan ahead next time and understand that they can really ruin a performance with a bad warm up. Moving forward Caballeros, please reconsider what you want from your Drill guy and your Drumline Guy. If you can make some changes there, I'm sure you will get out of this 4 year middle of the pack slump you are having. Please bring back whatever it was you were doing with the Carmen show in 2008. That show was EXCELLENT. I thought you should have won that year. Next on were the Buccaneers. I'm not sure about what everyone else saw out there, but it is safe to say that they are not as strong as we think they are. Or at least they weren't on Saturday. This is not the Buccaneer drum corps we are used to seeing in the middle of August. Don't get me wrong, they weren't bad by any stretch of the imagination. They are simply not as polished as you would have wanted them to be at this time in the season. Lots of performance errors which led to many distractions from the hornline. The end of the show was strange. It was like watching TV during a thunderstorm. Lots of static with the picture and sound going in and out. You can somewhat understand what the performers are playing and what the drill is supposed to be but it doesn't make alot of sense at this time. This definitely needs some TLC going into the next few weeks. On the other hand, I LOVE THIS COLORGUARD!!!!! So much detail, so much musicality, so much to watch. Even the Ballet Bars (which I understand what they are now) made so much sense. This Hornline and Drumline can really play well at times. I would have liked my last impression with the Buccaneers to not have been a sour one. This Bucs Drum Corps could be the best one of the championships, if they want it to be. Moving forward, change nothing. All of the designers and instructors should stay the same. This drum corps seems to have the best of the best working for them. Maybe the Cabs need to reach into the Alumni and find the funds to get the Buccaneers' Drill person. Our host Drum Corps were The Bushwackers. Last time we saw you, the show wasn't done. This time, the show is completed. Good luck to you for the rest of the season and start cleaning. We all want to see the mighty Bushwackers back where they belong in the top of the pack. I know there has been a much needed administration change. Is this the reason why the corps is so small and young? I'm curious as to what the last Administration did to do this to this once admired organization. Moving forward, leave the drumline instructor alone and see if you can get someone like him/her for the other sections. The Bushwackers get the "Little Engine that could Award" Good Luck to all of you in the next few weeks and at Nationals Olive 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorpsBuff Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Thanks for the review :-) Carmen was also in 2007, but I agree that it was a phenomenal show! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florida Sun Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 (edited) Thanks for the review great inside look at the corps that where there . Edited August 15, 2011 by Florida Sun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irishbugle Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Thanks for the review! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkmummer Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Good Evening (or morning should I say?) Just got back from the Jersey Shore and we had a splendid weekend. Luckily we changed our plans and did the Seaside Boardwalk on Friday as our original plan was to go on Sunday. Saturday we spent a majority of the day on the beach. What a great day for a Drum Corps show. The last time I wrote a review, I tried to not hurt anyones feelings. After reading other reviews and the comments that followed that review, I figured I would be a little more, let's say, less reserved. Please don't crucify me, i'm just being a little more honest.... We got their a little late and caught the very end of "The Banner", which also meant we didn't have the best seats in the house. As you are looking at the field, we were on the 30 on the left side. First on were The Sunrisers. These guys have made major improvements since their performance in Wayne, NJ. Specifically speaking, the costuming and the musical performances. If this season ended on Saturday you could say that the rebuilding of The Sunrisers is a success. I personally hope that they can bring back all of the new Drum Corps people they have created and build from there. Hold on to the designers and add some techs and this group will make strides in the future. Welcome back!!! Next on was Carolina Gold. All I have to say about this group is that they are FUN FUN FUN!!!!! The 2 soloists are soprano gymnasts. Playing in the stratosphere with great strength and endurance. The show is a blast to watch. For an "A" corps if they get a little more detail oriented, this program has championship legs. Fusion on the other hand, has made drastic improvements to their show. Since I saw them last, they have gotten clean and have increased the difficulty on the performer. The guard seems a couple weeks behind the musicians but they have what it takes in their book. I have to mention that the duet in the middle of the program is cute. Someone in the stands said that the two performers are married and are the founders of the corps. That is very sweet. To compare these two "A" class corps is difficult. Fusion is clean/safe and might be close to maxing out their show. Gold can use the next few weeks before nationals to clean their show, which is a good thing because they have something to clean. It seems what the hornline is playing is a little more challenging for Gold than for Fusion and the other way around for the drumline. Either way, Fusion and Gold are going to make the "A" class finals enjoyable to all that can make it to Ra-cha-cha. The Caballeros from Hawthorne, NJ were next. It was yet again a privilege to hear the Great Frank Ponzo playing on the field with this group. He sounded great at Wayne and sounded AMAZING on Saturday night. This group gets the "MOST IMPROVED" award from me. The progress they have made is miraculous. The hornline sounds like a hornline now and the Front Ensemble is playing together with musicianship. They are marching the drill better for sure. The drill itself is very awkward. Lots of incomplete thoughts and uncomfortable transitions. This is not a performance criticism at all, as a matter of fact, I think the performers are doing the best they can with what they have, which isn't much. The guard performs the heck out of their show. I'm not sure they have gotten much better than the last time I saw them in Wayne. Maybe it has something to do with their warm up. They originally began their warm up right behind the stands and were quite distracting during Sun's performance. I'm assuming they were asked to move, because they did. Knowing how important a warm up is, I hope the instructors plan ahead next time and understand that they can really ruin a performance with a bad warm up. Moving forward Caballeros, please reconsider what you want from your Drill guy and your Drumline Guy. If you can make some changes there, I'm sure you will get out of this 4 year middle of the pack slump you are having. Please bring back whatever it was you were doing with the Carmen show in 2008. That show was EXCELLENT. I thought you should have won that year. Next on were the Buccaneers. I'm not sure about what everyone else saw out there, but it is safe to say that they are not as strong as we think they are. Or at least they weren't on Saturday. This is not the Buccaneer drum corps we are used to seeing in the middle of August. Don't get me wrong, they weren't bad by any stretch of the imagination. They are simply not as polished as you would have wanted them to be at this time in the season. Lots of performance errors which led to many distractions from the hornline. The end of the show was strange. It was like watching TV during a thunderstorm. Lots of static with the picture and sound going in and out. You can somewhat understand what the performers are playing and what the drill is supposed to be but it doesn't make alot of sense at this time. This definitely needs some TLC going into the next few weeks. On the other hand, I LOVE THIS COLORGUARD!!!!! So much detail, so much musicality, so much to watch. Even the Ballet Bars (which I understand what they are now) made so much sense. This Hornline and Drumline can really play well at times. I would have liked my last impression with the Buccaneers to not have been a sour one. This Bucs Drum Corps could be the best one of the championships, if they want it to be. Moving forward, change nothing. All of the designers and instructors should stay the same. This drum corps seems to have the best of the best working for them. Maybe the Cabs need to reach into the Alumni and find the funds to get the Buccaneers' Drill person. Our host Drum Corps were The Bushwackers. Last time we saw you, the show wasn't done. This time, the show is completed. Good luck to you for the rest of the season and start cleaning. We all want to see the mighty Bushwackers back where they belong in the top of the pack. I know there has been a much needed administration change. Is this the reason why the corps is so small and young? I'm curious as to what the last Administration did to do this to this once admired organization. Moving forward, leave the drumline instructor alone and see if you can get someone like him/her for the other sections. The Bushwackers get the "Little Engine that could Award" Good Luck to all of you in the next few weeks and at Nationals Olive NO EXCUSES! But . . . the Buccaneers had last weekend completely off from competition and rehearsal and were getting back into it at Toms River. And I believe that they would agree with your assesment that they were rough around the edges this week. They paid for their weekend off by practicing through the rain all day yesterday. 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BJenner Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Another thing of note, the Caballeros Pit was performing on all borrowed equipment as the corps truck that carries all the equipment, broke down at the rehearsal site and needed to be towed to a shop. Thanks to Carolina Gold, Fusion Core, Buccaneers, and Cabs Alumni for loaning the Cabs equipment to perform. It is deeply appreciated I am sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorpsBuff Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Another thing of note, the Caballeros Pit was performing on all borrowed equipment as the corps truck that carries all the equipment, broke down at the rehearsal site and needed to be towed to a shop. Thanks to Carolina Gold, Fusion Core, Buccaneers, and Cabs Alumni for loaning the Cabs equipment to perform. It is deeply appreciated I am sure! Indeed... A TON of thanks to those corps... Ray, Gordito and I actually got the truck STARTED, but then we blew a hydraulic line and so no transmission and the brakes were locked! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knightsbari Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Maybe the Cabs need to reach into the Alumni and find the funds to get the Buccaneers' Drill person. If my memory serves me correctly, the drill writer for Cabs 2007 Carmen show was the current drill writer for Bucs ( For DCA he has written for the Buccaneers 2005, 2008 - current & Cabs in 2007 ) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Moving to Reviews forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Ream Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Good stuff! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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