Tualatin - Drums of Fire

[skywhopper]

Yikes... I didn't think they could get any smaller than last year. Must be even harder to recruit now that there's another WC corps in the northwest...

Yeah, I wondered about that with Oregon going World Class, plus a new Open Class corps... Probably Oregon's move is the biggest reason. Stay Strong Neon Team!

[corps8294]

What was the section breakdown for the Seattle Cascades? It's sad when you see a corps scratch and claw through Div II and III, make all the way to the top 12 and slowly crumble back down. It would be nice to see the Pacific Northwest be a thriving drum corps area, like it was back in the '80s. The Spartans (Vancouver), The Argonauts, The Imperials, The Marauders...

Times are tough, competition is tight, there is no more "top 25" (at least in what it used to be and mean). Pretty sad to see corps struggling along when they aspire for more.

[ShortAndFast]

What was the section breakdown for the Seattle Cascades? It's sad when you see a corps scratch and claw through Div II and III, make all the way to the top 12 and slowly crumble back down. It would be nice to see the Pacific Northwest be a thriving drum corps area, like it was back in the '80s. The Spartans (Vancouver), The Argonauts, The Imperials, The Marauders...

Times are tough, competition is tight, there is no more "top 25" (at least in what it used to be and mean). Pretty sad to see corps struggling along when they aspire for more.

I counted 8 guard and 34 brass. Percussion seemed like a normal-sized line & pit. and it was by far their strongest section. It's hard to have much of a theme or effect with 8 guard, so that was their biggest problem.

It sure seems like the NW is getting stronger. OC was great and Spokane Thunder was really pretty good. The Cascades are just struggling for whatever reasons.

[cixelsyd]

Why were Columbians in exhibition, instead of competing?

[PurpleKnights]

My quick and possibly wrong eyeball:

Cascades:

32 Brass

8 Guard

11 Pit

20 Drumline

= 71 + DMs

Oregon Crusaders:

60 Brass

15 Pit

23 Drumline

22 Guard

= 120 + DMs

These corps are both about the same size as last year. I think about 6 years ago these corps were the opposite sizes.

Quick impressions:

Columbians: Cute. Wish they would have gotten scores. These guys look like they have an average age around 16 at best. Definitely some members who have never done anything like this before, but the group was unexpectedly polished and professional. Electric violin player in the pit was fun.

Spokane Thunder: Sort of forgettable. There was a step up in maturity from Columbians but not a huge step forward in entertainment.

It's great that there's more drum corps in the Northwest, but why are there two separate tiny drum corps in the same region of Washington?

Vanguard Cadets: Very fun show musically. Not impressive or challenging visually. Good percussion, as expected from SCVC. Didn't get the 'Art of War' theme until I read about it later.

Cascades: Still just not a World Class product at all. Getting ten-pointed by Oregon is just embarrassing. They will get stomped by 3 or 4 Open Class groups at DCI again. They have a flat, uninteresting musical program that does them no favors.

Blue Knights: I love First Circle by Pat Metheny. It's a piece that means a lot to me personally and hearing this much of it was a treat. I don't think their arrangement has enough impact points to make it the last 4 minutes of your show. I enjoyed it but I feel like they're a 10th-place-ish group again. Not that there's anything wrong with that. They sounded EXHAUSTED at the end. I heard they just added the closer. They'll improve.

Vanguard: Head and shoulders above everyone else here. Well-deserved standing ovation. Top 6 again, no doubt. "Castle On a Cloud" as a front ensemble feature was my favorite section. Will be a HUGE fan favorite this season. People will stick their noses in the air at everyone else and love the heck out of this show.

Oregon Crusaders: People are going to hate the uniforms. Purple/black/flesh tone. Indoor drumline style. I've always felt that having a jacket the same color as the field you perform on was not sustainable, especially moving on to World Class, but I don't know if this is the direction I had in mind. They were definitely cheaper than buying real uniforms and I'm sure it's just a one-year thing.

The show is not as entertaining as last year but they've definitely ramped up difficulty. The drumline seems to be the best they've had. The show concept isn't coming together without the last two movements on the field. This is a 5 judge show so the scores don't really mean anything but it was not a bad score... especially with so much show not there yet. They finished 19th last year and they will not make a surprise leap into finals or anything but unlike some other corps that have made the jump they will not regress. I put them in the 17th-19th range. They could catch Troopers/Colts but might have to watch out for Mandarins based on their last score from California. They do not have anything to fear from SCVC at DCI. If Blue Devils B is really only a point or so better than SCVC, they won't catch Oregon either. They have three more shows, nine more days of all-days, and then San Antonio on 7/20 is going to be a big freaking deal!

[corps8294]

If the Seattle Cascades are still performing esoteric shows with the numbers they have, they are going to remain stalled. When a corps has a smaller membership, they have to work much harder to capture the audience. It's not a matter of coming out with a Div II or III show or a cheesy show; it's a matter of knowing where they are, who they are, and what they are trying to gain.

[ShortAndFast]

Vanguard: Head and shoulders above everyone else here. Well-deserved standing ovation. Top 6 again, no doubt. "Castle On a Cloud" as a front ensemble feature was my favorite section. Will be a HUGE fan favorite this season. People will stick their noses in the air at everyone else and love the heck out of this show.

It's an outstanding show, and it's absolutely going to be a crowd favorite. It seems like Cadets/Crown/BD are pretty solid as the top 3, so I'd guess Phantom & SCV are fighting for 4th come August. SCV's drums are definitely top 3 and could possibly win. And who knows, maybe SCV really catches fire and this show takes a medal.

[emtbill]

My quick and possibly wrong eyeball:

Cascades:

32 Brass

8 Guard

11 Pit

20 Drumline

= 71 + DMs

Oregon Crusaders:

60 Brass

15 Pit

23 Drumline

22 Guard

= 120 + DMs

These corps are both about the same size as last year. I think about 6 years ago these corps were the opposite sizes.

Quick impressions:

Columbians: Cute. Wish they would have gotten scores. These guys look like they have an average age around 16 at best. Definitely some members who have never done anything like this before, but the group was unexpectedly polished and professional. Electric violin player in the pit was fun.

Spokane Thunder: Sort of forgettable. There was a step up in maturity from Columbians but not a huge step forward in entertainment.

It's great that there's more drum corps in the Northwest, but why are there two separate tiny drum corps in the same region of Washington?

Vanguard Cadets: Very fun show musically. Not impressive or challenging visually. Good percussion, as expected from SCVC. Didn't get the 'Art of War' theme until I read about it later.

Cascades: Still just not a World Class product at all. Getting ten-pointed by Oregon is just embarrassing. They will get stomped by 3 or 4 Open Class groups at DCI again. They have a flat, uninteresting musical program that does them no favors.

Blue Knights: I love First Circle by Pat Metheny. It's a piece that means a lot to me personally and hearing this much of it was a treat. I don't think their arrangement has enough impact points to make it the last 4 minutes of your show. I enjoyed it but I feel like they're a 10th-place-ish group again. Not that there's anything wrong with that. They sounded EXHAUSTED at the end. I heard they just added the closer. They'll improve.

Vanguard: Head and shoulders above everyone else here. Well-deserved standing ovation. Top 6 again, no doubt. "Castle On a Cloud" as a front ensemble feature was my favorite section. Will be a HUGE fan favorite this season. People will stick their noses in the air at everyone else and love the heck out of this show.

Oregon Crusaders: People are going to hate the uniforms. Purple/black/flesh tone. Indoor drumline style. I've always felt that having a jacket the same color as the field you perform on was not sustainable, especially moving on to World Class, but I don't know if this is the direction I had in mind. They were definitely cheaper than buying real uniforms and I'm sure it's just a one-year thing.

The show is not as entertaining as last year but they've definitely ramped up difficulty. The drumline seems to be the best they've had. The show concept isn't coming together without the last two movements on the field. This is a 5 judge show so the scores don't really mean anything but it was not a bad score... especially with so much show not there yet. They finished 19th last year and they will not make a surprise leap into finals or anything but unlike some other corps that have made the jump they will not regress. I put them in the 17th-19th range. They could catch Troopers/Colts but might have to watch out for Mandarins based on their last score from California. They do not have anything to fear from SCVC at DCI. If Blue Devils B is really only a point or so better than SCVC, they won't catch Oregon either. They have three more shows, nine more days of all-days, and then San Antonio on 7/20 is going to be a big freaking deal!

The Oregon Crusaders' uniform does look a little awkward in my opinion. A form-fitting top (WGI, wintergaurd), with traditional marching pants and a shako. I'm sure its much cooler than the traditional jacket though. It will take some time to get used to. Doesn't make them look bad-a**, but makes me think to expect more dance, a more feminine uniform. A shorter jacket makes the marching member appear taller. A V-shape torso from the jacket evokes power. The jacket could hide (most times) if you're skinny or chubby, this uniform wont do that, except that most of it is black.

I did notice a baritone struggle multiple times to keep her shako secure on her head, as it kept slipping backward on her head.

I don't know what the surprise was from OC, except the uniform, which I didn't think was a surprise.