Elizabeth Forward @ Elizabeth, PA on 6/29

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First thing is first. The directions that they gave you on their website (Their Website) really stunk. From where I live, it should of taken me 2-3 hours to get there, but it ended up taking me around 5 because their directions were so poor.

That being said, I made it there finally around 6. It was sunny out and it just started to actually get warm. I went and tried to find some of the staff at Glassmen that teach me at my high school. Then, I watched the glassmen pit warm up. Their warmup was really tight. It kind of made me miss my season last year with Cap Reg. There was just something about it that made me wished that I would of marched again.

Eventually, I headed back up to the stadium so see the first performers. Spirit of America, in my opinion, shouldn't have been there. I came to the show to see drumcorps and not marching bands with 50 year olds in it. I mean, they sounded ok. They had a couple moments with their hornline that made me a bit excited. Their guard wasn't very good and their drumline didn't march for a little bit of the beginning. Also, from where I sat (on the right side of the field near the 30) their drill was kinda sloppy. Overall, I didn't really like them.

Next came Marion Glory Cadets. From what I hear, they have been having colorguard issues this year. I just thought it was funny, because you could tell which one had just learned the work and which one had known the work for a while. Other than the fact that they sat out for half the show, the one that did know her work rocked. Their drill was cleanish from where I sat. I'm not much of a hornline person, but I think that they sounded pretty good tonight. There were some people who stuckout to me, but not so loud that I got annoyed. They also stood in a arc for like 3 minutes of the show. I hope that would be missing drill. Overall, I think they will do great this year if they get the guard situation fixed up, the finish their show, and work on blending.

Next, came Glassmen. Tonight was just not their night guard wise. Their whole guard was a mess. They had drops left and right. Good recovery, but there were still too many drops for my taste. Their hornline was phenominal. The sound was just, awesome. I can't even put into words how much I am loving their hornline right now. Their drill was still a bit sloppy though. They need to work on their visual program a bit more. The drumline sounded good and their pit was pretty good, although I think they could probably fit a few more notes into their program. Overall, I think Glassmen has a big shot at making top 12 this year, as long as they get their visual program and their colorguard under control.

Then, there was Magic of Orlando. It was nice to see them, because I have 3 instructors that march their colorguard. That aside, I really don't know if I like this show or not. Their music sounded decent, in the beginning, but it seemed to die out as the show went on. I also didn't think that their drill was very clean at all. At some points, I was so confused by the forms that I would try to look for my friends in the colorguard just so I didn't have to look at the dirt. The colorguard uniforms were.... interesting. They have the Pirates theme going on. Some of them were very VERY revealing, especially on girls that they shouldn't be. There was this one girl that looked like she was seriously going to pop out of her costume. Aside from the uniforms, there were some part of the guard work that I really liked. The plank idea was cool. One of my instructors is actually the guy that pushed the girl off the plank. He was telling me about how they had to first learn it in a padded gym. He was really nervous at first and so was everyone else, but eventually they just got used to it. Good for him and his solo! They need to finish out their guard work if they are ever going to get anywhere this year.

Then, came intermission. The thing that ticked me off most about intermission were the food prices. $1.75 for a bottle of pop is crazy. I ended up going back down to the area where all the corps parked to look for my people from Magic. After waiting for the lecture that my friends were getting to end, they finally came rushing down to hug us all. I was so happy to see them. Seeing them also kind of made me miss tour because I remember the days where I would get to see family and friends. Those were always the best days. Everyone would crowd around you and give you hugs, and food!

I ended up staying with them through Spirit of JSU's show, but I got back just intime to see Carolina, thanks to a delay that seemed to have happened with their corp. Their show was really good. All around, it was really good. Their colorguard work looked extremely hard, but they handled it well. I actually don't remember ever seeing them drop the whole show. Their hornline was just wow. They sounded good both soft and loud. Their pit was a bit of a bag though. For being amped, they still didn't seem to play a lot of notes. In fact, I will go on to say that their pit book looked easy. The singing annoyed me for a little bit. The second singer seemed to come in a little jittery. After the initial shock and awe of it all, I actually kind of enjoyed it and I feel that it added something good to the show.

Next came the Boston Crusaders. Let me just say that this show clocked in for me as the funniest show of the night. To start things off, their microphone wasn't working. They spent all that money on the amps and stuff to not have it work. It was funny to watch the show in the back progress and have the person speaking flipping out because it wasn't working. Eventually though, the mics came back on and I stopped laughing, for a moment. Then, somewhere in the middle, the guard all ran behind the big box things. Because of the fact that the light was shining through the white boxes the right way, I got to catch like 5 guard members picking their wedgies! It made me laugh so hard. After I finally stopped laughing at the blunders of their night, I noticed that their visual program this year looks very hard. They are basically flying around the field the whole night. Their colorguard had some pretty hard work also, but I saw a couple drops. What impressed me the most about this corps was their pit. Their pit plays a ton of notes and they are super clean. I was amazed at how good they really are. They are lacking a little bit in the performance area, but that will come with time.

Finally, came Crossmen. Their show is still a bit dirty. Visually, I was confused at times, but nothing where I thought they stunk. Their music was what I liked the most. The talent they have in their drumline is phenominal. They sounded amazingly clean, considering it is only July. Their pit still has a bit of dirt, but they perform really well. It seemed like the show was very good at first and then it died away. I think they will need to fix this if they are going to place the same as they did last year.

Overall, I felt that the show was nice. The stadium was a really nice stadium and I had a decent view even though I was on the 30 yard line the whole night. I'm still bitter about their direction giving abilities, because I asked one of the staff people for directions and they got me lost again. I said my goodbyes to all the people I knew at the show and even ran into someone that marched with me at Capital who now marches Glassmen. Then, I hit the road.

[decompressed]

very nice post...i like your vernacular!!!!! You keep it simple but your comments are quite observant! Keep it up! :)

[bigdaddy]

Note:

Crown's pit is not amped. Only the singers and narration are amped..

[Crownmember]

Good review, thanks!

[dimstint]

Really? I could of swore that carolina's pit was amped. They are pretty loud then for only playing 8th notes the whole show. :P