Friday, August 5th “DCI Eastern Classic” J Birney Crum Stadium Allentown, PENNSYLVANIA

[Ediker]

1 hour ago, Rylan said:

Who knows? But it seems that all the corps upped their fabric budgets this year.  

They’ve been getting a lot of sheet(s) for it

[DrumCorpsRelic]

5 hours ago, spacewill said:

Academy has hit a lull. They started the season at 62 and just can't clean it up enough to get past 72-73 ish.  I though they started the season with potential and it seems they just couldn't build on it.

Spacewill, Point is well taken. And thank you for the opportunity to embellish on my personal observation. DCPers, I've followed, toured, with this Pride of Arizona Corps since 2004. (Til I retired in 2016). In following them closely since this May and through almost every one of their shows, Thanks to Flo. I have found it personally Frustrating, Maddening, Disappointing and Discouraging to see the devastating impact Covid has dealt THE ACADEMY Corps(along with a good number of others).  While Immense challenges have been met and overcome, the loss of so many marching members in rehearsals and performances has been one nut that has yet to be shelled. It comes down to a numbers game, and when you are marching up to 25+ holes in rehearsals and performances that is one WW tough Nougat  to overcome.

 Missing a plethora of marching members, the lagging scores, and boldly facing the challenging task of effectively cleaning up the show prior to Indy, that due to circumstance, for the most part. are out of their control is proving, pardon the pun, beyond one's imagination.

I do want to commend THE ACADEMY Corps members and staff for bringing to the field of competition their entertaining, Fan Friendly, Fan Favorite production of "A CREATION OF MY IMAGINATION," along with it's very animated creation and talented Willy Wonka Character. Who, along with his crew "Oompa-Loompas" has delighted audiences and fed their imaginations and memories with something far more indelible then scores on a judges sheet.

As The Academy Motto proclaims "The Effort IS the Prize."  if measured by the smiles and joy expressed on the Academy kids faces, along with their audiences extended standing ovations and the love they are graciously embracing each and every performance with, The Academy in return, in the belief that it is Better to Give then Recieve, is presenting THEIR AUDIENCES with the most precious award of all, A "GOLDEN TICKET."

ENJOY 

[DrumCorpsRelic]

47 minutes ago, Ediker said:

They’ve been getting a lot of sheet(s) for it

Oh Ryan, you really did go there.  Brilliant! LMAO

[DrumCorpsRelic]

4 hours ago, jasgre2000 said:

Do they male guard members of BAC oil themselves, or were they just sweating from the humidity?

jasgre2000. come on, what's your gut tell you. Hint: Their men, their vane, they have killer bodies, they know the crowds are adoring them ( as assuredly as they are each other.) Yup they be Proud. I am a former college athlete, ironically played in Boston.  I'll tell you in all my college playing days, I never sweated "the pretty." LOL

[Cappybara]

5 hours ago, jameseuph said:

Nope. Don’t buy those numbers at all. 

Lol

[DrumCorpsRelic]

7 hours ago, scheherazadesghost said:

Truly, any corps has me at cyms!

Scheherazadesghost  you hit a soft spot in my heart! I played 24" Concert Cymbals in a "Boston Area Corps" Nah, not that one. LOL. The Casper Wyoming Troopers of 1969 on the cover of that years classic LP Cover, where the Corps posing among some tall buttes, includes a couple of cymbalist Flairing out their 24" "plates". It inspired me to play 24" Concert Cymbals in my local Corps, and I adopted their Flair out style. I became of "Cymbal Groupee" from that point forward, a Big Fan of SCV's Cymbal lines for many years. Got involved with THE ACADEMY'S  CYMBAL Line from their their "Debut Season" in 2004. I passed down to them my own "Classic Move" where I  flaired out, and spun my 24" Cymbals completely around my head. At 6-foot-7, with my extremely long arms it became my "Cymbal Move of Pride", I nicknamed THE ACADEMY'S  Cymbal line the "Cymbals of Excellence," the year their line took home DCI I & E Gold. THE ACADEMY would discontinue it's cymbal line beginning in 2017. I literally became Heartsick! Joined a petition of 1200+ in hopes of reversing the decision. Sad to this very day. 

[jwillis35]

4 hours ago, NakedEye said:

In contrast, BD has such deep content layering that, even on a flat night, there is just so much in it visually and musically that it will still communicate. Their staff filled the show with fail-safe moments as insurance.

Agree. This is the "don't reinvent drum corps" aspects of their show that some may miss because at times we ( as a community ) can be critical of Blue Devils for what some people may refer to as clutter...usually with body movement and how they transition from scene to scene. But if you dig deeper you notice we get the big hits of sound, we get the ballad (Moon River), we get the great jazz riff or two (like near the end of Carnival of Venice), we get the up-tempo jazz, fusion, rock style music (Cowboy Bebop), and we get the great solos. BD does not avoid the standard language of drum corps they just integrate those things in a modern way visually. 

There is a lot more to the Blue Devils visual program than what most think. I hear the phrase "park and bark" or "not enough traditional marching" used in the pretense that somehow these things make their visual book easier. But this would be a poorly analyzed way to view BD and visual. 

Having said that I love Boston's show top to bottom. I would still love to see them challenge BD, and a Silver or Bronze medal for Boston would be amazing and well deserved. They are AWSOME in every sense. In my opinion what they may need in order to challenge Blue Devils is two things: 1) an extension to the scene where the trombones are doing the head-choppers (it's such a good song and the ending is fabulous but perhaps make the build to it even more intense, or a short extension at the end that really takes the audience over the edge), and 2) they need to grab the audience even more with the last big build before they do the silent ending. It would be great if they could have the audience on their feet before the last section. 

 

[jaylogan]

4 hours ago, Ediker said:

They’ve been getting a lot of sheet(s) for it

Yeah, just take a look at the thread count!

[keystone3ply]

6 hours ago, DrumCorpsRelic said:

An Absolutely Horrible and Sounding Title. But a Terrifically executed show MUSIC CITY! luv the coordinated Unis and Set Pieces,  Brilliant visual use for GE Effect in the way the Unis are manipulated front to back and visa versa throughout the show. Extremely Eye Appealing. They are sure giving my ACADEMY a run for 16th place. They have a very impressive and full size and sounding Corps wishing them all the best in their continued journey up the DCI World Class competitive ladder. 

Seriously? Do you understand the paradoxical use of the title "Gasoline Rainbow" & how it applies to the show? While not a fan of some of the brass book, it's the perfect title for the MC production. S. Gwaltney knocked the design 'out of the park'.   

Edited August 6, 2022 by keystone3ply
cx

[Poppycock]

2 hours ago, jwillis35 said:

Agree. This is the "don't reinvent drum corps" aspects of their show that some may miss because at times we ( as a community ) can be critical of Blue Devils for what some people may refer to as clutter...usually with body movement and how they transition from scene to scene. But if you dig deeper you notice we get the big hits of sound, we get the ballad (Moon River), we get the great jazz riff or two (like near the end of Carnival of Venice), we get the up-tempo jazz, fusion, rock style music (Cowboy Bebop), and we get the great solos. BD does not avoid the standard language of drum corps they just integrate those things in a modern way visually. 

There is a lot more to the Blue Devils visual program than what most think. I hear the phrase "park and bark" or "not enough traditional marching" used in the pretense that somehow these things make their visual book easier. But this would be a poorly analyzed way to view BD and visual. 

 

Both BD and Bloo have a very clear understanding of what makes their productions special.