eightyonepointthree Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 I think that this is a symptom of BD in general. Yes, they play very difficult, very impressive music, and they play it very well. Yes, they perform very difficult, very impressive physical maneuvers. They almost never do both at the same time. This lack of simultaneous demand is not punished by the score sheet, which the Blue Devils design team has figured out and is abusing in order to score well. This isn't a slight, it's just the truth. Watch their shows over the last decade or so, and it's obvious. Meanwhile, other corps are attempting to combine the musical and the physical; sometimes they pull it off, and are rewarded, and sometimes they don't, and are punished. This. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3PoC Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Based on periscope potatocam viewing, I'd say BD over Cadets in brass and guard, Cadets over BD in drums. Both shows were solid but Cadets guard and BD drums seemed to have runs that were a bit below recent shows. The end of Kpop section seemed less tight than usual. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clutchtow Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 This was on Periscope mind you and they were pretty high up in the stands, but drumline was not good tonight. Section bewteen the Kpop dancing and the "INK" formations was terrible. As bad as I've ever heard it. ScoJo has already hosed down the tenor feature. He may need to rinse off what the snares are playing during the dance feature. Very high risk and inconsistent. I wish I could hear what drummers hear in drum lines... They all sound the same to me :/ 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlenI Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 It's also entirely possible that all of the kids marching this summer aren't really robots and ARE in fact susceptible to fatigue if worked too hard and merely pointing out that fact in no way takes away from the accomplishment of corps scoring higher than them unless of course someone is desperately looking for something from which to be offended. Sorry folks! Can't talk about things that might effect the performance of a corps. Might annoy someone on DCP. I have to preface this response with an admission that I've never marched at this level. But I've been watching this stuff for 30 years. My take is several fold: 1) This is the best overall season for design, talent and execution that I've ever seen... by far 2) The creative content is varying in more divergent ways than I've ever seen before, which creates difficulty in making apples to apples comparisons 3) The top 4 shows right now are all amazing pieces of performing art - all exceptional in their own right regardless of the scoring 4) I've always been a Cadets guy - but even so, I think it is safe to say that the show they are fielding is more technically demanding than the other 3 - please understand this does not mean I think it's better - just that I think it is harder to accomplish. They may or may not get there. 5) Due to the physical demands of the Cadet's show content, and the fact that they have added very sophisticated fundamental changes during the season (this show barely resembles what I saw in Foxboro on 7/2) - it is possible that the performers are both physically and metally tapped out 6) For this year, my head wants the Cadets to polish that thing and take it all - but emotionally, I'll still love the Crown experience. In the end - the experience is the thing. And what an experience we've got in '15. Woohoo! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cappybara Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Bloo's contras... insanely good. Love their sound. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mboogey73 Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 I wish I could hear what drummers hear in drum lines... They all sound the same to me :/ Goes both ways. I don't have much of an ear for hornlines unless it's a phasing problem or obvious missed notes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pudding Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Tightest I've ever heard the Electric Counterpoint trumpet satellites. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwillis35 Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 (edited) BD was spectacular, as always! Just got done with that periscope. They march well, stage well, integrate the guard well, and they play well (perc and brass). No real weaknesses. At times this particular show is cluttered for my taste, but most of the time I find it another display of how well BD can show so many visual concepts in one show. That's the key with them. It's a variety of visual displays mixed with music. They've got it down to a science. I love that they are parking for a lot of the show this year. Some hate it or think it's easy. But they setup these beautifully staged hit points in the show, some completely standing still, others only with slight motion, and they let the brass wail as they deliver high GE Music impact from a visual set that is allowed to breath and be fully digested by the audience. It somewhat reminds me of the old concert number days from the 70s and early 80s. We used to love them. BD 84 for example (La Fiest, Maynard Ferguson style). Go tell me how many corps could play that standing still. Those were often the best moments of the show. Now days we make fun of it, call it easy. We spend too much time calculating how much a corps moves or how many notes they play, and not enough thought is put into expression, musicality, power, range, rhythmic demand, and overall presentation. There is nothing easy about playing the way BD does, even when they are parked. So when they showcase their brass like that (or percussion), in stand-still or slight-motion, they exhibit some of the best sounds, articulations, and musical impacts in the business. That definitely generates GE. Those that compare them to a corps that moves more must be objective enough to ask the question "yes, my favorite corps might move more and play just as much, but does it sound as good?" Perhaps with a corps like Cadets or Crown this year it comes darn close and at times sounds as good (both are top 3 corps). Bluecoats too. But the bigger point is that the Blue Devils make some things so obvious, like my example above, that we knock it for its' so called visual "ease," or we say things like "it lacks simultaneous demand." What we should be doing is listening. When the music gets to that level, judges don't care about simultaneous demand. That is overblown for sure. Most of the other corps couldn't stand still and play that good, and when they try to move faster and end up playing sloppy and average, what's the point? Great stuff BD. :) Edited August 1, 2015 by jwillis35 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrumManTx Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Bloo's contras... insanely good. Love their sound. Who is periscoping? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachDrumCorps Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 This lack of simultaneous demand is not punished by the score sheet, which the Blue Devils design team has figured out and is abusing in order to score well. This isn't a slight, it's just the truth. Watch their shows over the last decade or so, and it's obvious. Basically my single gripe with the Blue Devils, since I was born basically 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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