East Rutherford, NJ - Tuesday, July 2, 2019

[Amazed&Stunned]

So , I finally did get to a show.  Too bad about the rain at the end of the night. It was brief but it did, as we know cause challenges.

A short review:

The Bluecoats are good. I love the Beatles, I saw LOVE in Vegas 3 or 4 times and always thought that somehow it would translate.  Good work. I do think that they are going to need to generate more obvious effect. I hear, through some friends, that there is a big ending coming, something like an encore. But, all captions are strong even now. I would like to see this show again. I know I missed a lot. 

I love Boston. The story may have been stronger last year but the guard is outrageous, the visual of Leon May is compelling and they play very well. I am not a percussionist so I hesitate to say but, the spreads here are odd.  I wonder if this has anything to do with the judging system and the percussion guy on the front sideline? Cadets are up front so much and it is easy for the judge to get to. Boston has some moments but, it seems like a more complete package and not necessarily meant to feature the battery  Do they need more exposed drum time? 

Cadets were ok. Perhaps the delay and all of that but, the guard performance is lacking and as many have said, more obvious are the design shortcomings. And as a fan over the years, I am not sure how they fix it? Do they have time? They are on their way to Chicago now, and then Denver. They don't have a schedule that allows for a big rewrite. The percussion are the stars of the show for sure, the brass is improved but overall it was underwhelming. I also think that following the Bluecoats did NOT help. There was a clear drop off and you could hear the comments in the audience.

I was also wondering how the Cadets pay for that stadium? I am not the best person to guess crowd size but this was not what I expected for a stadium show. And then again, a Tuesday night, and not the best lineup?  I hope they did not take a financial hit here. Don't get me wrong, the parking was better than Clifton 🙂 but it was odd to be in such a huge venue that felt so empty.

All for now. Back to Flo for some viewings. It could be a while until my next in person show.

 

[Cadevilina Crown]

2 hours ago, cfirwin3 said:

Edit:

In fact, just last week, I think it was Boston, was delayed on the field due to a medical emergency in the spectator stands.  A couple people on the forum were uttering 'penalty... penalty..."  It was nonsense then and it still is.  Penalties are very rare.

Here's a fun discussion of penalties from back in the day.  Should give a sense of what 'earning' a penalty looks like and how it has changed over time:

 

I believe it was SOA that got delayed last week in Pittsburgh.

And we've certainly come a long way in how judges have assigned penalties. The most common penalties I've heard assigned in recent years have to do with either electronics delays or warm-up violations, and even then I think the last time I've heard about either one of those happening was during the 2015 Championships.

[Old Corps Guy]

I'm beginning to truly love the Bluecoats show.  I feel like I am watching a well choreographed concert. 

I must give credit for the use of costumes that are not consistent.  The fact that no two are the same hides the inconsistent choreography well. 

I'll go hide in my corner now.

[kkrepps]

Sorry to interrupt the thread, testing photo upload ability (it is a picture from this show at least👍)

posted from the DrumScorps app

[pbeau]

1 hour ago, Tim K said:

For me, what happens on Friday: Crown v. BAC in Lexington, SC and SCV v. Bloo In Lisle, IL will be interesting. 

Yes, Friday and this weekend have some great match ups and should add to the story.
From last weekends Rose Bowl show performance its clear that SCV is once again bringing it in 2019!

[cfirwin3]

Just now, Old Corps Guy said:

I'm beginning to truly love the Bluecoats show.  I feel like I am watching a well choreographed concert. 

I must give credit for the use of costumes that are not consistent.  The fact that no two are the same hides the inconsistent choreography well. 

I'll go hide in my corner now.

For all the silly talk about uniforms vs. costumes... it's worth noting that Bloo's uniforms (because they aren't costumes and this is neither a play nor is it a Halloween party) are the only uniforms that are entirely NOT uniform.

[Eleran]

2 hours ago, kkrepps said:

For those that went, how was this venue? Parking, concessions, bathrooms, seating...any comments?

• Parking:  A+ (slightly confusing for newcomers because the State Fair is also occurring in part of the parking lot; did not charge for parking)
• Tickets:  B (unsure why they don't allow for "print at home" tickets instead of having to go to "will call" window)
• Seats:  A (padded seats, padded backs; somewhat tight squeeze)
• Visual:  A+ (my section was lowest level and centered on 50 yard line, but visual lines seem fine in all sections that were open)
• Acoustics:  A- (during the encore - the ONLY unplugged portion of the evening - you could hear a decent reverberation after release; though planes landing at Newark could be frequently seen flying over, they weren't very obtrusive audibly
• Concessions:  C+  (standard stadium fare (water, seltzer, soda, beer, coffee, and various greasy food items) all at exorbitant prices, but with fairly short lines.  But frankly, that's still probably preferable to most people than the extremely long lines and uncertain quality you get from a parent booster group from the local high school running concessions - though you'd rather your dollars go to them than MetLife).
• Bathrooms A:  (large enough for a pro football game, so plenty big enough for a DCI show, and generally clean, though I noted soap dispensers seemed empty)
• Host Facilities:  A (it's an excellent facility for the host corps, which rolled in around 5:30 am and spent the day there.  They got floor time; use of the visitor locker rooms for showers and changing; a segregated parking and set-up area inside the gates, as opposed to outside in the main parking lot like everyone else, and a pro-level turf field to rehearse on all day; only real hiccup is that they ordered lunch through the stadium caterers (in part because they also had a few score of high schoolers there for a Music is Cool camp) and the lunch was not there when it was supposed to be, but it came within an hour).
• Negatives:  the inherent sense of emptiness in an 82,500 seat venue, especially at an early season event within only 3 Finalist corps.

Cost to the Cadets?  No idea. They probably work a package deal with the USBands use of the stadium during Autumn.  They would certainly have a greater return at the gate later in the season when a better crowd is more likely to come - a TOC show would be ideal., but they already host Chester, PA during the late season swing.

Edited July 3, 2019 by Eleran

[Jeff Ream]

3 hours ago, craiga said:

Yes, penalties are rare.  Just don't use baby powder on the field.

or not move when warming up in a place you were told to move from

[Jeff Ream]

1 hour ago, Amazed&Stunned said:

So , I finally did get to a show.  Too bad about the rain at the end of the night. It was brief but it did, as we know cause challenges.

A short review:

The Bluecoats are good. I love the Beatles, I saw LOVE in Vegas 3 or 4 times and always thought that somehow it would translate.  Good work. I do think that they are going to need to generate more obvious effect. I hear, through some friends, that there is a big ending coming, something like an encore. But, all captions are strong even now. I would like to see this show again. I know I missed a lot. 

I love Boston. The story may have been stronger last year but the guard is outrageous, the visual of Leon May is compelling and they play very well. I am not a percussionist so I hesitate to say but, the spreads here are odd.  I wonder if this has anything to do with the judging system and the percussion guy on the front sideline? Cadets are up front so much and it is easy for the judge to get to. Boston has some moments but, it seems like a more complete package and not necessarily meant to feature the battery  Do they need more exposed drum time? 

Cadets were ok. Perhaps the delay and all of that but, the guard performance is lacking and as many have said, more obvious are the design shortcomings. And as a fan over the years, I am not sure how they fix it? Do they have time? They are on their way to Chicago now, and then Denver. They don't have a schedule that allows for a big rewrite. The percussion are the stars of the show for sure, the brass is improved but overall it was underwhelming. I also think that following the Bluecoats did NOT help. There was a clear drop off and you could hear the comments in the audience.

I was also wondering how the Cadets pay for that stadium? I am not the best person to guess crowd size but this was not what I expected for a stadium show. And then again, a Tuesday night, and not the best lineup?  I hope they did not take a financial hit here. Don't get me wrong, the parking was better than Clifton 🙂 but it was odd to be in such a huge venue that felt so empty.

All for now. Back to Flo for some viewings. It could be a while until my next in person show.

 

with the youth organization aspect, I believe the stadium isn't as expensive as it would be for other groups

[jwillis35]

6 hours ago, rpbobcat said:

I was at Metlife last night.

I've got a few questions about the Bluecoats perfromance:

1.Who makes the decision to stop the show for safety ?

2.Does stopping and restarting affect their score ?

3.I can see if this only happens once,but what if it happens 

frequently,are there any "penalties "?

Why penalize a corps for protecting its' members? The corps did the right thing. Stop, and startup again when you can. The judges understand and can score effectively even with the break.