New Haven Cook Out

[garner63077]

maybe X-men turned the tempo's up because half way in i fell asleep during that show. I thought cadets marching at faster tempo's than anyone, but the music book didn't seem nearly as hard. I also enjoyed the colts show better than X-Men;however colts feet were terrible.

[kickhaltsforlife]

It's about time Crossmen's music effect scores went up. Should be a strong caption for them all summer IMO. Since they actually play phrases of music. I think the Cadets, Crown, Scouts and Spirit are the only other corps who do that.

[OrlandoContraAlum]

Quick pseudo-review...

Caveat: I took my three kids to the show (ages 5, 7 and 12) and knew going in that we were not going to be able to see everyone. Got to the stadium as CT Hurricanes were on the field, and they sounded really good from the side. HUGE guard (as expected). We were getting souvies during Spartans, but they look pretty big and sounded nice. It's good to see them out there, and their show is enjoyable.

7th Regiment from New London CT was next, and had a sizable number of fans in attendance. I will admit that I did not know a lot about this corps, but they were a pleasant surprise. They have pretty tight drill, their music is accessible (I recognized the theme from the new Star Trek right away) and their guard was very good. An enjoyable show, and the crowd appreciated them.

Next up was Jersey Surf, the main reason that my kids were with me. We saw them a week ago at the Bayonne Tournament of Stars (I saw them from the side, the kids from up front). They had the advantage of going on under the lights last week with a very partisan crowd, and this week they were on before the intermission, under a twilight sky. I felt that the hornline was a little bit tentative tonight, but the visual was markedly better, especially in the color guard. The guard had a somewhat tough time with the wind in Bayonne, but were much tighter tonight. The corps itself has added a few more gags and such, and there is a lot of layering in going on. A lot of "little things" that add up to a more polished show. I also felt that there were some mixing issues with the amps tonight, along with some static. That said, the crowd loved the show, and rewarded the corps with a spontaneous standing ovation at the end of the show. Now, this may sound like an overly critical review, but the corps is already getting to the point where the little things stick out a lot more, which is a good place to be at your third show. My kids ate the show up, with my daughter singing along to Party Rock Anthem and my son (literally) dancing in the aisle throughout the show.

After Surf, we took a break (for everyone's sanity... my kids, myself, and the great Cadets fans sitting around us) Walked down to the buses with the Surf kids and talked with a few of them. They had a really tough rehearsal day today (it was in the low 90s and very humid today) but were in great spirits, and felt that this was their best show yet (which the scores bore out).

We got back into the stands in time to see Crossmen... and WOW, what a corps. I last saw Bones live in, I think, 2007. This is not that corps. All around us agreed that Bones has a hornline unlike any that they have had in recent years, in a very good way. The show is layered, complex, and enjoyable. The guard seems very tight, and the drill is very nice. The white accents and black sequins on the uniforms really pop under the lights. I am assuming that the flags in the second half are not the show flags, since the opener flags are quite complex. The other flags are solid blue and red, so I have to think that other flags are on the way.

The final corps of the evening was the Cadets, with their 12.25 program. I will be the first to admit that I had serious reservations about this show, figuring that it was in the vein of following a championship with a more relaxed or avant garde program. Well, I was wrong. The show works, and man, are they good. The kids loved it, since they knew the music, and my older son was blown away by the drill. This is a VERY good show, and it is being performed at a very high level. They are quite clean, but I can see where there will be more layering and changes. The only negative I have is that the guard, which I have always enjoyed, didn't catch my attention all that often. They are very good at what they do, but, for whatever reason (staging maybe?) I just didn't notice them very much. Having said that, anyone who counts out the Cadets this year does not know what this corps is capable of in August.

All in all it was a great night of drum corps (although it was pretty hot and humid), sorry that I don't have reviews for the corps that I couldn't see. It was great to have a show just down the road with such a good lineup, and I hope that we continue to get shows like this. Based on the size of the crowd (not huge, but not small by any means). Thanks to all of the corps for pushing through a hot day and muggy night to deliver a great show!

Edited July 2, 2012 by OrlandoContraAlum

[ctbonesfan]

I was there last night. First time I've seen any shows since the theater and I haven't been on here much so I didn't know what to expect. I don't have a big review but I will say that Jersey Surf was the crowd favorite, The Colts screamer was the favorite soloist and The Cadets had the strongest show.

This has probably happened in shows already but the Jersey Surf drum majors came out to the retreat with directors chairs and an umbrella. Their laid back attitude seemed to spread to the drum majors around them and when the fans were clearing out, the drum majors from Surf, Bones, The Colts and Teal Sound stayed around to talk and to thank the fans for coming out.

Edited July 2, 2012 by ctbonesfan

[skywhopper]

Awesome score Cadets! And keep up the hard work, Bones! Lookin good!