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Stanford, CA - Saturday, June 22, 2019


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2 minutes ago, Terri Schehr said:

That’s because they, along with BD, are actually (gasp!) marching. 

Queen Bee! Thank you! Instead of fluttering to and from a prop or staging point and doing ring around the Rosie a few times, climbing and posing for a selfie while playing, Cavaliers are sweating their shirts off marching. 

Staphen is a Vanguard alum and he would tell you that he believes you are supposed to be able to play clean standing still or posing. Stephan actually said here comes the bay pajama party when Vanguard entered the field. Ramon said there’s nothing rebel about that look Stephan unless they added a lightning bolt to it and made it a onesie. We were laughing so hard. Stephan took it well, after all he’s the one who called the costumes pj’s. 

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If you want to hear what BD's show is supposed to sound like, there's a recording from the stands on YouTube that sounds significantly better than the production from Flo last night 

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7 minutes ago, Cappybara said:

If you want to hear what BD's show is supposed to sound like, there's a recording from the stands on YouTube that sounds significantly better than the production from Flo last night 

That’s a sad commentary.  

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1 hour ago, Poppycock said:

Someone is actually watching and not all Gaga fan boy SCV. Bravo!  Vanguard is winning because they are cleaner and why wouldn’t they be with a less demanding production. 

Devils hanging close with a very unfinished and let me say not executed very well considering the design demands. That will change. There is no caption to be concerned about. Give this production a few weeks to mature. It’s a diamond in the ruff right now.

Cavaliers are very dirty visually and expect them to clean up nicely. 

Eventhough I feel like BD’s shows at this point are ad nauseum with a sort of predictability as far as their style goes, they are still fun to watch.  

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39 minutes ago, Forevergreen said:

Eventhough I feel like BD’s shows at this point are ad nauseum with a sort of predictability as far as their style goes, they are still fun to watch.  

If you enjoy their formula like I do, they haven't had a single miss since like 2007. The consistency in how much they entertain me every year is crazy, I can't say I genuinely love every show put out in the past decade by a corps like I can for BD. 

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8 minutes ago, Cappybara said:

If you enjoy their formula like I do, they haven't had a single miss since like 2007. The consistency in how much they entertain me every year is crazy, I can't say I genuinely love every show put out in the past decade by a corps like I can for BD. 

BD won in 2007...

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1 minute ago, KPinCAL said:

BD won in 2007...

I'm just talking about my personal preferences, not the actual success of the BD shows. 

Their style changed dramatically in 2008 and then it evolved one more time in 2014 to give us the BD that we have now 

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Saw the show last night at Stanford, sadly SCV did nothing for me.  Bf loved it, he was not as much of a fan of Babylon as I was.

I liked BD for the first time, lol, loved Academy and Cavaliers, thoroughly enjoyed Mandarins.  

Everyone seems very raw, look forward to the season progressing.

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What a gorgeous night for drumcorps at Stanford! I really enjoyed every performance, from Freelancers to BD...

Really liked Troopers and thought they looked great on the field.

Loved Academy visually. Their uniforms are so cool/classy and effective, and along with the orange props....it was eye candy for me. I really like this current Academy, less cuteness and more sophistication.

Yes, Mandarins took forever to set up but the wait was soooo worth it. Amazing. Jaws were on the floor. I was giddy happy that they could blow away the crowd for a second year! The standing O said it all. Go Mandies!

Beyond thrilled to see Cavies in person. THANK YOU, Cavaliers, for coming west! Still buzzing from Mandarins... Cavies kept the thrills going and jaws were on the floor again. 

I am baffled by so much criticism of SCV. They were Extraordinary. I felt like, for the third time the crowd was leaning forward, riveted by the performers on the field.  Jaws on the floor one more time. I have zero problem with the corps uniforms, and the guard is super cool in their super neon. I said it last year when so many questioned Babylon, and I'll say it again with Vox Eversio.... you gotta see it live. Not Flo Marching's version. The crowd seemed to really love it. I loved it. Can't wait to see it again....there was just too much to take in.

I loved BD, too. After 3 aggressive thrill-rIde shows, Ghost Light did feel a little slower, a little more traditional. Still super entertaining, and loved the clever clever use of the platform/door props. I think I'm alone in not loving the tap shoes segment....it struck me as something Academy would have done (the last year or two)....didn't strike me as very BD-ish. Still, BD will always deliver and satisfy.

SCV was unquestionably top dog. I would have had Cavies in second place.....but, what do I know. Nothing.  I know nothing. Lol.

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Great night all around. Some general impressions.

Troopers: Seemed like they made some stylistic changes this season. Enjoyed the show, refreshingly free from gimmickry.

The Academy: Very interesting visually. But, as with last year's show, it seemed that the props got in the way more often than they added to the show. I know that they made a lot of improvements as the season progressed last year, and I would expect the same to happen this year. The music and the overall look has a lot of potential, but it seems very rough right now.

Mandarins: With the crowd largely split between SCV and BD, the Mandarins once again got the biggest response of the night -- and deservedly so. They are really pushing the envelope this year with the weird, dark, and creepy themes. The props make their macabre intent way more obvious this year. But, man do they ever sell it! This show just grabs your attention and doesn't let go. It's a jawdropper from start to finish. Very high ceiling with this show. It needs a LOT of refining and cleaning up, but the foundation's in place.

Cavaliers: The railroad theme felt a bit hokey at times, but the level of playing and the pacing of the drill were outstanding. They were cramming a lot of elements into their show. More so than the others, this one probably demands multiple viewings to appreciate how much is going on. Great to see them.

Santa Clara Vanguard: I would say that this show had the highest level of difficulty. It's also very obviously not close to complete. Yet, they still won the night. Make no mistake this is a great show, with some amazing moments. But, unlike last year with Babylon (where at Stanford, SCV beat BD for the first time in nearly a decade), Vox Eversio doesn't feel like an obvious championship show in the making. Once they clean things up and put the closer into the show, then it might be a clearer winner ... or maybe not.

Blue Devils: I thought Ghostlight was visually stunning. The show had a good narrative thread running through it and I found it the most enjoyable of all the shows. It wasn't trying for a thrill a minute. It was good music, good drill, and probably the best use of props among all the shows. The angled doorways added visually to the show and allowed for some clever choreography.

SCV won on the scores, but they were separated by less than a point from BD. A lot can and will happen.

Edited by Woochifer
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