cfirwin3 Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 9 minutes ago, MotoSurfBass said: Thing is... last year Bloo really didn't add anything from Premiere to Finals. Everything was fleshed out and locked in from the first show, and it hurt them at the end of the long run. I normally agree with the sentiment that this phrase is just a myth, but it came to fruition last year, certainly. I don't disagree with you there. These programs (for both groups) isn't last year. It seems that Bloo, specifically is trying something different strategically from the last couple years... there's a lot of expansion room there and they have divulged that they have a lot in the works on their media posts. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MotoSurfBass Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 1 minute ago, cfirwin3 said: I don't disagree with you there. These programs (for both groups) isn't last year. It seems that Bloo, specifically is trying something different strategically from the last couple years... there's a lot of expansion room there and they have divulged that they have a lot in the works on their media posts. Definitely agree there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Dixon Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 My feelings regarding Bluecoats is that last year they put it all on the field, this year it seems they’ve spent more time on basics and technique and have a shell in the field they will layer upon: more of a BD approach. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post jwillis35 Posted June 24, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted June 24, 2018 (edited) A few initial comments from being at the show live. It was a great show, great venue, and there are things to enjoy about everyone. From a live perspective my placements would have been as follows: Bluecoats Carolina Crown Crossmen Phantom Regiment Cadets Genesis I will write a more detailed revue for tomorrow, and I must mention the Sound Sport group that performed tonight sounded excellent. Forgetting the name but they had some excellent brass musicians and fun music. Also, Bluecoats alumni corps performed very well and pulled out a few new twists in terms of repertoire. It was nice to hear some of those older charts. The soloists were all excellent with the alumni group. Great stuff! This may be one of my favorite Bluecoats shows ever...even over Tilt and Downside Up. Once you see Bluecoats live you are drawn into this show and taken for a ride. It is fantastic in every sense!!! The brass is one of their best lines yet. Percussion will improve and lock in, and the guard was much improved over the YT video I saw from Detroit. The drill is perfectly staged and flows so well with the music. The props are used well, and all in all I feel this may be a potential Gold Medal show. It has that kind of potential. A must see this summer. Carolina Crown is another fantastic show that screams unique and daring, and also has that edginess to it that you would expect from a show called The Beast. The music is wonderful, staging is also amazing, and I just love watching the colors mix as they move to that drill. This is another show you must see live. This show also has medal potential and should be a strong contender down the stretch as they finish the closer and fine tune all the details. Loved it! To say that the Crossmen put on a show would be a understatement. I honestly would have had them 3rd, but I am sure that the excitement factor helped me put them there. They are playing some of the best music on the field this summer. The drill, guard, brass, and percussion are all solid and will mature into a killer ensemble come Finals. But it's the GE with this show that I feel may push them up the ladder once cleaned. A super fun show! Absolutely one of the best shows of the summer and you simply must see them live. Phantom Regiment is definitely stronger for this time of the season vs last year. They should finish strong. This show has legs and much room to grow. Visual and GE will need the most work. The brass sounds very good already. Guard is beautiful and staged well. I love the music and feel with the right changes to visual and staging that this should could be a top 7 show. Not wild about the props. The Cadets are interesting to say the least. For starters they got a wonderful reception from the crowd when entering the field. Fans are genuinely happy to see them out and performing. I'm happy for the MMs and hope they have a fantastic summer. We are all rooting for them. Competitively, however, the staff will have some structural work to do. The show feels unorganized and choppy for the first half. I imagine all the changes they had to make in the winter has slowed their progress. The best part of the show is the closer which is really nice. I am not wild about the uniforms. I had them in 5th for tonight but they have plenty of solid material to work with. Genesis continues to grow and mature and they put on a fantastic show tonight. They have a rich, dark sound and feature the guard and percussion in fine fashion. They have a big sound and yet I felt they held back some. Very controlled, and I liked that. I actually really like the uni they are wearing. I am not wild about grey, but it was dark enough to really present the corps. Edited June 25, 2018 by jwillis35 10 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 (edited) I just got home to West Virginia. I really enjoyed the show sitting with drum corps buddy @jwillis35 directly upstream ^^^. Jon sorry I couldn't linger longer but I really got tired on the way home. I was so psyched up after watching that MONSTER of an early season show I completely forgot that by the time I drove home that means I was awake 21 hours. That's too long for an old fossil like me. I saw the Crown shuttle vehicle on its way through West Virginia. I believe it was piloted by our new friend Joe, from Carolina Crown who sat with us. Cool guy and a real drum corps fan. He clapped for every corps not out of politeness, but for what I perceived was a genuine love for all the kids on the field putting it all out there for us fans. I'm headed to bed but I just want to say briefly Bluecoats are the Real Deal. GE was off the chart with this high powered high energy show and it could absolutely take home the championship trophy in August. +++ Edit: I just briefly looked at the scores on DCI.org. If I were scoring at home it would have been Bluecoats, Crown, Crossmen (great show!) Phantom, Cadets and then Genesis, the latter I saw for the first time ever tonight. They have a really nice smooth style and were obviously well instructed. Edited June 24, 2018 by wvu80 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.E. Brigand Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 1 hour ago, jwillis35 said: ... I must mention the Sound Sport group that performed tonight sounded excellent. Forgetting the name but they had some excellent brass musicians and fun music. ... Rogues Hollow Regiment from Doylestown (for those who don't know, that's about halfway between Akron and Wooster). Don't quote me on this, but I think the group was originally an offshoot of the Chippewa High School band. This appears to be the source of their name: http://www.forgottenoh.com/rogueshollow.html 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueStainGlass Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 Score correction - cadets got 67 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfirwin3 Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 Was able to see some closer footage of Blooo... I'm not a percussion guy, but seems to me that the field line is projecting a heathly dose of aloofness on the featured moments. Now that's ingrained in the theme of the show and it's part of their stylistic shtick anyway... But I can't help but wonder if it makes the most important stuff a bit harder to read (if not outright affecting performance). It's not like they are getting hammered in drums, but they certainly aren't going to be competitive when all groups come together. I wonder if there is any easy boost to be had there by simply posturing the featured moments a bit better? This topic might end up being the '2017 baritone solo' of 2018. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeRapp Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 8 hours ago, George Dixon said: My feelings regarding Bluecoats is that last year they put it all on the field, this year it seems they’ve spent more time on basics and technique and have a shell in the field they will layer upon: more of a BD approach. If I didn’t know better, I would think Sesson 44 is Blue Devils. With hipper costumes. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 11 hours ago, Newseditor44 said: I honestly believe this is one show where the traditional cadet might be warranted: I don’t think the uniforms do anything for the show, not in the least. I 100% agree! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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