Popular Post 2muchcoffeeman Posted July 14, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted July 14, 2019 (edited) A few observations from DATR -- both the Casper and Denver editions. Casper NCHS is a small but excellent venue to watch drum corps. Same could be said, from the fan perspective, about Casper. There is no question that it is in the middle of nowhere, but once you get there -- and it takes some effort -- the city offers quite a bit. The local restaurant scene is vibrant and a tasty variety of local brews can be found on taps. It's not New York City, but there is more street life than you might imagine. For the corps, Casper is not as accommodating. NCHS itself provides everything a world-class DCI corps could want, but there aren't enough schools of that size, or willing to house a corps, in a 60-mile radius to provide housing for more than a small handful of corps. There may have been a day, a generation or so ago, when the name Casper Troopers could unlock any door in the city, but those days are gone, sacrificed to the national-brand imperative of drum corps, to the rise of risk management, to the demise of arts in the schools, etc. These days, the Troopers have to market themselves to their home city as hard as any other local competitor for entertainment dollars. The venue itself, however, is heaven for a drum corps fan. The field is tucked close to the stands, the box is low, and you can see the sweat on every performer's face. From the leafy neighborhoods beyond the school, the rumble of batteries warming up and the sound of big brass chords can be heard. Plus, the Wyoming sky is always a great backdrop. Some distant lightning bolts to add to the mood on Friday. It was a tidy 4-corps lineup, and the MC announced a slate of 5 judges, all of them box-oriented, no perc or brass judges on the field. Genesis has a well-constructed show with some really nice ideas and some cool moments. The 'wall of brass' maneuver with the horn line (except tubas) on the wall is very effective. Brass has a good sound; percussion writing seemed a bit thin but the members sold it as hard as they could. I could have done with about 70% less of the lecture from 'Mother Nature' at the start of the show, but when she finally stepped aside, the music and movement took over nicely. After I don't know how many years, I have found a Crossmen show I enjoy. For so long, Bones has been competent, smooth, polished to a mass-produced corporate sheen . . . and difficult to remember. This year is different. You will remember Crossmen. Will they execute to the level they are known for? That's another quesiton, and on Friday, the answer was no. The front half of the show is lots of scowling, big hits and power-posturing, and not a whole lot of melody, but they definitely own the field and are selling hard. The dark, ragged skirt-like bottom half of the uniform makes the legs and feet all but insivible, which I'm sure was the objective. The electric guitar fits the mood, but at times covers up the brass. The show gels better in the second half, where there is some very nice brass ensemble work and that classic, glossy Crossmen sound comes through. Love the way Wagner's signature work gets an over-the top treatment; it's very effective and connects with the audience. Drums are dirtier than I usually hear from Crossmen, but it could have been my side-1, 25YL listening vantage point. The dozen disc prop/platforms have a cheap & cheesy look to them, but they don't distract. A passing storm cell dropped no rain but pushed some strong wind gusts across the field during Xmen's show (it's Wyoming), and carried airborne flags and rifles well away from their intended landing spots; the guard worked hard to keep equipment under control. And props to the baritone who, very busy with his own responsibilities, saw and scooped up a dangerously large bass-drum mallet that had been dropped on the field, did some body movement with it, then found an opportune moment to chuck it under one of the prop/platforms. Overall it's a relatable, if sometimes cartoonish, show with lots of audience appeal and, finally, some emotion and connection from the Crossmen. Over the years, Casper fans in their tiny HS grandstand in the middle of nowhwere have been treated to an intimate encounter with some astounding drum corps: E=mc2, Kinetic Noise, Propaganda. This year, it was Behold. Well, there is a lot to behold, all right. Cadets are all over the place. Look here, look there . . . what exactly is going on? Brass sound at times is just about perfect, but there are long stretches between full-ensemble playing. This show takes to an extreme the "small group on an island" ensemble approach. Little pockets of playing here, there, over here again. . . . and for what purpose, I'm not entirely clear. Visually, too, there are a lot of small groups, disconnected from each other, doing their own things, and not as much in the way of full-ensemble formations. For a show called "Behold," there is definitely a "ta-daa" feel to the show, a sort of continual introductory fanfare, but this production had the least continuity of the four on the field. Nor was there the attention to detail we expect from the 10-Time World Champion Drum and Bugle Corps. At times when the horn line was barging around the big staircases, fans were treated to the backside view of the props, and to all the guard and other equipment stored on them. Musically, the drums are nails as usual, and they move and attack constantly. The (long!) tenor feature on the elevated platform was a highlight of the evening for me, a former drummer. Cadets gave us that signature brass sound in spots, but left me feeling they had served a snack tray, not a full meal. More than a few visual individual-performance issues in more than a few spots, but I understand they've been inserting some changes recently, and Casper is a nice low-profile show to get them worked out. The guard had big problems with the wind; one rifle got carried downfield, and as the guard member tracked it, he wound up straddling the back of a brass performer -- who was, coincidentally, purposefully scrabbling along the ground at the moment -- and dragging him along as he lunged for his rifle. Flags were heroic in keeping their work under control. So, some challenging conditions, and I guess some new parts or movements or something, but man, the Cadets look like three busloads of tremendous talent in search of an idea. But then, Cadets have always been the kind of outfit that bulids the airplane during flight. By the time they land in Allentown, who knows? Troopers got lots of love from the home crowd, and their show is evolving nicely. They've worked out some 3rd-movement transition issues and put them on display Friday. There are some tricky section-to-section timing challenges among the brass, and when the execution is there, the effect is really cool. Troopers are the palette cleanser to the Cadets: they march, and they play, and they make formations, and they don't mess around with any props (they do have a tarp, but they didn't use it Friday because of the wind). There was no perc judge at the show to verify, but to my ears Troop drums sounded cleaner than Crossmen, and their book is full of some sweet Rennick writing. The brass is disciplined, well-coached, and young. They make a very good, balanced sound, deliver some strong impacts, and are still learning how to master the more challenging technical demands. Their trumpet soloist makes a gorgeous sound. The ensemble still needs horsepower, but that will come with age and experience. And that, of course, depends on retention. With that in mind, and with the change to a broader programming palette this season, the staff has got the members on a multi-year plan to grow their capabilities, while the admin is 100% focused on member experience. The most powerful influence on auditions tomorrow is the show design you put on the field today, combined with the quality of the summer you deliver to the members. "Beyond Boundaries" is an entertaining, satisfying show that is worth the price of a ticket, but even if it doesn't electrify the drum-corps world the way "Downside Up" did, it is meant to serve as a new foundation for the Troopers' new direction. If the members go home happy and wanting more, when they come back they'll get a show and book that will take them even further. Denver At 9 p.m., after the contest was cancelled, after the Troopers and Pacific Crest left because their drivers were on the clock, and as The Cadets brass entered the Mile High field to kick off a series of standstills . . . . it was a beautiful night for drum corps. No rain, no wind, and a diminished but still large and extremely responsive crowd. It was just a real shame that, during that one 90-minute window that mattered most, the weather ruined everything. It was a gorgeous day up until those 90 minutes, and it was a wonderful evening after those 90 minutes, perfect for drum corps. But life is all about timing, they say. Cadets gave us O Holy Name and a couple other chorales and called it a night. It was beautiful, it was stately, it was Cadets, and it was over. Crossmen saw the Cadets brass and raised them one battery. They ran through a couple abbreviated bits of their show, which was difficult without the FE. They gave us the Rocky theme that they use in parades, and that was a strange moment, hearing Rocky come from a corps looking like a Teuto-Norse-Ninja invasion party. Genesis then came out and earned it. They gave the crowd a big chunk of their show, with battery, and brought a passion that the Cadets had left on the bus. By the time the Cascades lined up, the stadium camera crew had figured out that close-ups of the members during their setup was generating some funny and charming Jumbotron moments of recognition by the players, and so that became part of the routine. It loosened up the awkwardness of standstills. Blue Devils, brass and battery, lined up and clinically ran through Toto's "Rosanna", space chords and a couple other examples of lot wizardry, then zipped off the field. Then the Columbians pushed their pit onto the field and brought out their guard and gave their final performance of their season, in standstill. BD may have impressed the crowd, but The Columbians, desperate to perform, owned it. They played their entire show, and the standing O the crowd gave them lifted the members 3 feet off the ground. It had to have been a bittersweet moment for them, and the crowd did its best to tip the scale toward the sweet. It was the final show for Battalion, too, and they got their own standing O. This corps is slowly, surely, gathering strength and sophistication. Their new uniforms look sharp, too. The Blue Knights were, undestandably, crushed by the rainout. Guys, listen, this show is electric, it is starting to pop off the field, and the members know it. The kids could barely keep their feet on the ground during their afternoon production runs, in anticipation of going against the Cadets at their home show. So when they got to the stadium and got the word that they would do a standstill, it was a huge letdown, especially for the age-outs (to say nothing about the fans). But. Someone BK talked to someone Mile High, and badda-bing badda-boom, BK was going to do their full show because weather conditions were perfect, they had rented the stadium, there were no judges, they were last on, they didn't need to travel overnight, it was their home show, there were still thousands in the stands, and who was going to stop them? So the brass emerged from the tunnel, then the guard and their equipment emerged from the tunnel, and the USS Front Ensemble emerged from the tunnel, and then the battery, and the crowd went nuts. The musicians performed in uniform, though the guard did not. No matter. The home crowd was here for it, and BK let it rip. You can call it weird. You can call it unique. You can call it typical BK. Whatever you call it, it is compelling. Someone else on these boards said it, no one puts a mood on a football field like BK, and that is the truth. The show is unified and seamless, a complete thought -- however esoteric that thought might be. There is an endless amount of content in this show, with tremendous dynamic variety. There is still some dirt in the brass in "Liquid," and the players know it, and they know that as they have started to master greater amounts of it, it is turning that segment of the show into its powerhouse. The battery's sound during "Hurt," all scratches and distant thunder and echoes, is only enhanced by the canyon walls in the big stadiums like Mile High. Enormously effective. The guard is performing at levels not seen since 2014. The closer features a killer trumpet solo that introduces a groove to the show that feels like a bright, positive awakening from a long, introspective thought. There is still much visual to clean in the closer's final moments, but the picture is coming into focus. When I talked to the members, they express a sense of where this show can go. They have an air of momentum about them. They sense the moment. And they are having a blast. Oh, and the field, subjected to a monsoon for those critical 90 minutes, wasn't a factor. No falls, no slips. I asked a couple members of the horn line after the show about the field, and they shrugged. It was fine. Didn't give it a thought. Edited July 14, 2019 by 2muchcoffeeman 9 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Dixon Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 thanks so much - some great observations & I both agree and appreciate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfrontz Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 (edited) Just read this - Great stuff! Edited August 4, 2019 by mfrontz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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