Sunday's Crown performance

[chaddyt]

Thank you, btown50, for posting the link. I appreciate the thoughtfulness.

Upon 3 viewings:

* As everyone has pointed out, extremely proficient and technically impressive brass line. That being said, I still would take the Star 1990 - 1993 brass lines any day of the week -- and yes, twice on Sunday. As impressive as Crown's line is -- I believe there can come a point where "perfect" or "near perfect" technical execution runs the risk of being "cold"...almost impersonal. There is something about the music that, once I get past the initial awe over technical performance, there is not enough content to continue holding my interest. That commentary is directed about the music itself -- NOT the performing members.

* I didn't find the ballad choice to be particularly riveting. I would have loved to hear the slow section of "Jupiter" (I Vow To Thee My Country) programmed here; it would have lent a more human touch (not to mention a more emotional build) to the impersonal void that is space. But that is most probably just the raving of an idiot...

* Trampolines? Meh...

* During the "auto parts" percussion feature: did anyone notice the one kid on the left that appears to be all of about 15? Pretty impressive if he IS anywhere near that young.

* As for design: I won't speak on that, since I'm sure that there will be innumerable changes throughout the summer.

In general, I can appreciate that there is a lot of proficiency exhibited in those 11 minutes. Personally, however...it just doesn't grab me. JMVHO.

I would agree with pretty much this entire assessment. The brass proficiency is astounding as expected, but I wonder if they're starting to fall into "just because we can" routine. Impressive, sure. But I'm wondering how much serves the overall design and if it won't get stale soon.

Also seems to be the least amount of playing while moving from them in recent years. I'm not one to take a stopwatch to time stuff like this, but it seemed pretty striking to me how little of the show the brass was playing. Did anyone else notice this, or was it just me?

Overall, I think it's a solid show that's out-of-focus at the moment, but that's to be expected. I'm sure they will refine and sharpen this throughout the season and expect it to handily be in the top 3.

[cadet93]

I definitely found things in the show to enjoy, but not my favorite Crown offering. Great brass and body movement which we have come to expect. This post I found on Reddit sums it up well for me:

Watched it cold with no supporting information. Caught the Space Oddity beginning, but didn't recognize any of the other pieces.

The group I watched it with were equally confused about what was going on. There was general disdain for the uniforms, they look like something Spirit of Atlanta should be wearing. We couldn't figure out what effect the trampolines were bringing, and found them generally very distracting. The guard dance movements were also...lackluster in comparison to their flag work. The drum break on the mufflers left us wondering if it was an industrial show (along with the bizarre guard visors).

Overall, I'd say the show is coming across rather flat. They are already performing it surprisingly well, but we didn't particularly enjoy what they were performing. As of right now, it's the first Crown show I don't care for in over 10 years.

Maybe the space theme is more apparent if you already know it's there, and are looking for it. However, it's not terribly obvious to a casual observer who hasn't been following the corps pre-season. The journey of the astronaut/exploration told above would be plausible, if they had show that on the field. Perhaps having a guard member, or section of the corps, represent the astronaut. Otherwise, it's a mix of esoteric music, tons of props, and distracting percussion placement (why did they need all that stuff on the field?).

[BanditKir]

Purple and Teal just work together. I even had my guard wear turquoise last year with purple accents to go along with my band's proper uniform which features purple.

Is it a coincidence that Carolina Crown was conceived the very first year the Charlotte Hornets came into existence? Hmm

I do think purple and teal work together... but not on a green field. It's just overload for me. I think Crown would look utterly amazing if they just went with white pants instead, keeping the teal shakos and maybe changing the accent color on the jacket to teal. I just can't stand looking at the teal pants on green turf. It makes my eyes hurt.

Other than that I really loved the show. If they can give it some more emotional impact it could be a winner but I assume those things are to come as it's still June after all.

[MotorCityMusician]

I would agree with pretty much this entire assessment. The brass proficiency is astounding as expected, but I wonder if they're starting to fall into "just because we can" routine. Impressive, sure. But I'm wondering how much serves the overall design and if it won't get stale soon.

Also seems to be the least amount of playing while moving from them in recent years. I'm not one to take a stopwatch to time stuff like this, but it seemed pretty striking to me how little of the show the brass was playing. Did anyone else notice this, or was it just me?

Overall, I think it's a solid show that's out-of-focus at the moment, but that's to be expected. I'm sure they will refine and sharpen this throughout the season and expect it to handily be in the top 3.

i think the reason they sound like they are playing less (didnt stopwatch or anything) is because they are putting the drumline out there with more features. At one point I thhought to my self there are alot of drums and the brass would then come in and just do double/triple tongue chord and back to drums.

[seen-it-all]

One performance before tour starts and already out of the running-- Tough crowd!

You better believe it's a tough crowd. Why would anyone expect any different with DCP or die hard drum corps fans in general for that matter?

I think part of the reason why so many homers here seem to be taken back by the criticism is because this is a corps that has gotten more love and absolute adoration (dare I say worship?) than any corps in the last ten years or so. Way beyond what even the Cavaliers were getting when they went on their dynastic run. And for so long, Crown was so close for so many years to actually pulling off the impossible and actually winning. Upsetting the natural order of things. AND they fielded these shows that everyone seemed to love. That made people root for them even more. Then you throw in the perfect villain with the Blue Devils, whose performance brilliance was never questioned but their show designs were cast as the "the problem with DCI" and Carolina Crown suddenly became cast as the solution. And then Crown finally won. People lost their minds. And they were wonderful. And everyone loved them.

Well now they are defending champions. No longer on the outside. People's expectations are higher. Many fans will want things to be exactly as it was in 2013, and anything less than that magic (which may just be a once in a generation thing, we shall see) will seem like a let down. And suddenly the hunters become the hunted and that target is squarely on their backs, getting larger and larger by the day. Flaws begin to become magnified and exaggerated. Resentment starts to sink in amongst fans of other corps and arrogance begins to grow amongst the homers, so it starts to feed on each other. Which just inflames the passions of everyone involved. And what's the famous saying go? As soon as you win, you start to become overrated.

This whole thing with the Crown homers getting snippy about critical remarks against their corps reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Crazy Joe Davola leaves a nasty message on Jerry's answering machine. Jerry's parents are in town and his mother asks, "What's wrong with this Davola person?" Jerry responds, "He doesn't like me," and Jerry's mother totally flips out. "Doesn't like you?!! How could anyone not like you??" Well, get used to it Crown fans. Now that you're at the top, there will be a growing faction of fans that will simply be more difficult to please. You will not be loved by everyone, no matter how good the corps is, no matter how popular they are in general. And let's face it, this criticism is an absolute rain drop in the ocean compared to the love this corps gets. Be thankful that you're fans of one of the most beloved championship calibre corps to come along in quite some time. Be thankful that your legion of fans grows by the day every time someone sees your corps in person or on video. The impression this corps has made on the DCI fan base in recent years is nothing short of remarkable. It's OK if there are a few fans who just aren't along for that ride. Really. It's OK. Don't take it so personally. Focus on the love because, man, there is so much freaking love for you. There are corps out there who can barely get people to look their way when it comes to the off-season, who would KILL for the kind of attention and worship you guys get.

As for the criticisms, I think they're valid, but as most everyone has stated in those criticisms (which have been all but ignored by the homers looking to pounce), it is very early and everyone expects things to be ironed out by season's end. (Oh, and just because a criticism seems to be recycled from years past, doesn't necessarily make it untrue.) It's pretty clear reading these comments (and criticisms) that NOBODY expects this corps or this show to NOT have a legitimate shot to win or be a crowd favorite. That they may be pointing out some early season flaws or concerns just means that they're paying attention. Rest assured the staff and design team at Crown is astutely aware of the areas of their show that need tweaking and reworking. They know that no DCI trophy will simply be handed to them just because they won it all last year and everyone loves them. Be grateful for the criticism. That means that what Crown is doing is working. Enoy it. That is all.

Some of these Crown homers in a nutshell...(all in fun, folks)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSbuIPYGqNM

Edited June 16, 2014 by seen-it-all

[msumello]

**wrong post**

Edited June 16, 2014 by msumello

[Cappybara]

I think this show has the potential to win. It's soo raw right now that I think this show will remain fresh through finals night because of all the changes that the corps will need to make. Unlike last year's show that started to become stale mid/late season.

[MotorCityMusician]

You better believe it's a tough crowd. Why would anyone expect any different with DCP or die hard drum corps fans in general for that matter?

I think part of the reason why so many homers here seem to be taken back by the criticism is because this is a corps that has gotten more love and absolute adoration (dare I say worship?) than any corps in the last ten years or so. Way beyond what even the Cavaliers were getting when they went on their dynastic run. And for so long, Crown was so close for so many years to actually pulling off the impossible and actually winning. Upsetting the natural order of things. AND they fielded these shows that everyone seemed to love. That made people root for them even more. Then you throw in the perfect villain with the Blue Devils, whose performance brilliance was never questioned but their show designs were cast as the "the problem with DCI" and Carolina Crown suddenly became cast as the solution. And then Crown finally won. People lost their minds. And they were wonderful. And everyone loved them.

Well now they are defending champions. No longer on the outside. People's expectations are higher. Many fans will want things to be exactly as it was in 2013, and anything less than that magic (which may just be a once in a generation thing, we shall see) will seem like a let down. And suddenly the hunters become the hunted and that target is squarely on their backs, getting larger and larger by the day. Flaws begin to become magnified and exaggerated. Resentment starts to sink in amongst fans of other corps and arrogance begins to grow amongst the homers, so it starts to feed on each other. Which just inflames the passions of everyone involved. And what's the famous saying go? As soon as you win, you start to become overrated.

This whole thing with the Crown homers getting snippy about critical remarks against their corps reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Crazy Joe Davola leaves a nasty message on Jerry's answering machine. Jerry's parents are in town and his mother asks, "What's wrong with this Davola person?" Jerry responds, "He doesn't like me," and Jerry's mother totally flips out. "Doesn't like you?!! How could anyone not like you??" Well, get used to it Crown fans. Now that you're at the top, there will be a growing faction of fans that will simply be more difficult to please. You will not be loved by everyone, no matter how good the corps is, no matter how popular they are in general. And let's face it, this criticism is an absolute rain drop in the ocean compared to the love this corps gets. Be thankful that you're fans of one of the most beloved championship calibre corps to come along in quite some time. Be thankful that your legion of fans grows by the day every time someone sees your corps in person or on video. The impression this corps has made on the DCI fan base in recent years is nothing short of remarkable. It's OK if there are a few fans who just aren't along for that ride. Really. It's OK. Don't take it so personally. Focus on the love because, man, there is so much freaking love for you. There are corps out there who can barely get people to look their way when it comes to the off-season, who would KILL for the kind of attention and worship you guys get.

As for the criticisms, I think they're valid, but as most everyone has stated in those criticisms (which have been all but ignored by the homers looking to pounce), it is very early and everyone expects things to be ironed out by season's end. (Oh, and just because a criticism seems to be recycled from years past, doesn't necessarily make it untrue.) It's pretty clear reading these comments (and criticisms) that NOBODY expects this corps or this show to NOT have a legitimate shot to win or be a crowd favorite. That they may be pointing out some early season flaws or concerns just means that they're paying attention. Rest assured the staff and design team at Crown is astutely aware of the areas of their show that need tweaking and reworking. They know that no DCI trophy will simply be handed to them just because they won it all last year and everyone loves them. Be grateful for the criticism. That means that what Crown is doing is working. Enoy it. That is all.

[msumello]

You better believe it's a tough crowd. Why would anyone expect any different with DCP or die hard drum corps fans in general for that matter?

I think part of the reason why so many homers here seem to be taken back by the criticism is because this is a corps that has gotten more love and absolute adoration (dare I say worship?) than any corps in the last ten years or so. Way beyond what even the Cavaliers were getting when they went on their dynastic run. And for so long, Crown was so close for so many years to actually pulling off the impossible and actually winning. Upsetting the natural order of things. AND they fielded these shows that everyone seemed to love. That made people root for them even more. Then you throw in the perfect villain with the Blue Devils, whose performance brilliance was never questioned but their show designs were cast as the "the problem with DCI" and Carolina Crown suddenly became cast as the solution. And then Crown finally won. People lost their minds. And they were wonderful. And everyone loved them.

Well now they are defending champions. No longer on the outside. People's expectations are higher. Many fans will want things to be exactly as it was in 2013, and anything less than that magic (which may just be a once in a generation thing, we shall see) will seem like a let down. And suddenly the hunters become the hunted and that target is squarely on their backs, getting larger and larger by the day. Flaws begin to become magnified and exaggerated. Resentment starts to sink in amongst fans of other corps and arrogance begins to grow amongst the homers, so it starts to feed on each other. Which just inflames the passions of everyone involved. And what's the famous saying go? As soon as you win, you start to become overrated.

This whole thing with the Crown homers getting snippy about critical remarks against their corps reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Crazy Joe Davola leaves a nasty message on Jerry's answering machine. Jerry's parents are in town and his mother asks, "What's wrong with this Davola person?" Jerry responds, "He doesn't like me," and Jerry's mother totally flips out. "Doesn't like you?!! How could anyone not like you??" Well, get used to it Crown fans. Now that you're at the top, there will be a growing faction of fans that will simply be more difficult to please. You will not be loved by everyone, no matter how good the corps is, no matter how popular they are in general. And let's face it, this criticism is an absolute rain drop in the ocean compared to the love this corps gets. Be thankful that you're fans of one of the most beloved championship calibre corps to come along in quite some time. Be thankful that your legion of fans grows by the day every time someone sees your corps in person or on video. The impression this corps has made on the DCI fan base in recent years is nothing short of remarkable. It's OK if there are a few fans who just aren't along for that ride. Really. It's OK. Don't take it so personally. Focus on the love because, man, there is so much freaking love for you. There are corps out there who can barely get people to look their way when it comes to the off-season, who would KILL for the kind of attention and worship you guys get.

As for the criticisms, I think they're valid, but as most everyone has stated in those criticisms (which have been all but ignored by the homers looking to pounce), it is very early and everyone expects things to be ironed out by season's end. (Oh, and just because a criticism seems to be recycled from years past, doesn't necessarily make it untrue.) It's pretty clear reading these comments (and criticisms) that NOBODY expects this corps or this show to NOT have a legitimate shot to win or be a crowd favorite. That they may be pointing out some early season flaws or concerns just means that they're paying attention. Rest assured the staff and design team at Crown is astutely aware of the areas of their show that need tweaking and reworking. They know that no DCI trophy will simply be handed to them just because they won it all last year and everyone loves them. Be grateful for the criticism. That means that what Crown is doing is working. Enoy it. That is all.

took the words out of my mouth......Once you reach the top you will be given less slack....

I was actually able to download the whole preview from youtube...after watching it a few more times I'm liking it a lot more. There really is some great stuff in there ...their horn line is right around 80. Trumpet's do some playing while on a trampoline.Pretty happy with the percussion(including front ensemble)Gunna really love the ballad when they're through with it..not sure about the guard's bit during the ballad though.....was looking for a story......isn't it funny, last year we were complaining about all the narration in the show and this year we want to hear more of the story behind the music.

I'm wondering what they're going to add onto it throughout the summer.Seems like another medal contender though.

[Kevin.]

This whole thing with the Crown homers getting snippy about critical remarks against their corps reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where Crazy Joe Davola leaves a nasty message on Jerry's answering machine. Jerry's parents are in town and his mother asks, "What's wrong with this Davola person?" Jerry responds, "He doesn't like me," and Jerry's mother totally flips out. "Doesn't like you?!! How could anyone not like you??" Well, get used to it Crown fans. Now that you're at the top, there will be a growing faction of fans that will simply be more difficult to please. You will not be loved by everyone, no matter how good the corps is, no matter how popular they are in general. And let's face it, this criticism is an absolute rain drop in the ocean compared to the love this corps gets. Be thankful that you're fans of one of the most beloved championship calibre corps to come along in quite some time. Be thankful that your legion of fans grows by the day every time someone sees your corps in person or on video. The impression this corps has made on the DCI fan base in recent years is nothing short of remarkable. It's OK if there are a few fans who just aren't along for that ride. Really. It's OK. Don't take it so personally. Focus on the love because, man, there is so much freaking love for you. There are corps out there who can barely get people to look their way when it comes to the off-season, who would KILL for the kind of attention and worship you guys get.

Please don't interpret my comment as taking offense! I made what I thought was a short and fair statement and I certainly didn't mean to make anyone so upset. I really don't want to be lumped in as someone who is a bad sport. Just participating in the banter. I'm looking forward to a great season from all the corps . Hope everyone enjoys it!

Edited June 16, 2014 by Kevin.