Jump to content

Another Kennesaw Review


Recommended Posts

After last year's standstill due to rain, most of us down here in the deep south were very nervous about the show last night. It was raining all around all day long. And I don't mean a light shower either...it was a downpour. I drove up from Alabama, about a 1 1/2 hour drive, and during the entire drive to metro Atlanta it rained heavily. But, when I got to the south side of town (Kennesaw is on the NW side) the rain stopped and the sky lightened. Thank God. I don't know if Kennesaw Mtn could afford two rainouts in two years.

Because of the usual metro Atlanta traffic and a short stop for dinner, we arrived in the stadium VACININTY with only minutes to spare before showtime. I say vacinity because as we neared the traffic light that led into the school parking area, I could see people being turned away and led to another parking area, so I whipped the truck onto a street where these cars were heading. I guess it was an official overflow parking area for the school, but it was quite a ways from the stadium and you had to either walk uphill and down the busy roadside or follow the crowd on a path through a wooded area that seemed to lead to the stadium. We chose the later, which was a bad idea. After the rain, this path was more like a quagmire. Once we stepped through the soft slippery ground, we had to negotiate a pretty steep and slick hill. At the bottom, there was an ambulance that had loaded someone into that back and was about to head for the hospital. I would guess that someone fell trying to get down this hill. Once we got through this area, we were near the stadium and literally had to rush to get to the gate in time for the first corps. Not a good start.

After getting to our seats in the middle of the reserved section, I was ready for a good night of drum corps. It had cooled off earlier after the rain, but now, the moisture had made it quite steamy and still. Nonetheless, the weather was great, so I'm not complaining!

Troopers - I was expecting to see a small struggling corps. What I saw surprised me! They had a very nice and balanced sound in the brass, even powerful at times. Some parts of the brass book were simply gorgeous. Their guard also impressed me. Their strength is when the guard is all on flag, during which times they really help the visual. Their drill was typical Trooper fare, which needed help with interval control and form alignment. All in all, I was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the show.

Spirit - I was set for my corps to take the field and blow me away. This was my seconding viewing of Spirit, and I was anxious to see the improvements since the first show back on June 20. Boy, this corps has made some big strides! The once dirty alto licks in the opener were so much cleaner and it just got better from there. If the corps continues to clean as they have this past month, they will be hard to stop in Madison in the push for finals.

The guard wins some kind of award for the biggest turn around in the past year. These ladies are not only gorgeous on the field, but they perform with a confidence that I haven't seen from a Spirit guard since we won the auxillary trophy in 87. They really help in so many ways. They are classy and poised, in an era when so many guards seem to desire to be sexy and naughty. Kudos to them and the guard staff for putting things together so nicely.

The brass have come a ways too. They have cleaned most of the dirt out of the ensemble. They can play with quite a punch at times. Their sound is very balanced from top to bottom. I didn't hear any individuals sticking out of the ensemble. They were tight and powerful, yet, on this night, even after only one prior viewing, I could tell that this just wasn't a very emotional performance. It didn't move me as I thought it would. As I was viewing, I guessed that the corps remembers last years rain out and the poor field conditions all too well, and since we had had rain and lots of it earlier that day, I imagined that they were a little tentative. After talking to some of the members after the show, I was right. No matter, flat or not, it was a nice performance!

Madison - Of course, anyone that reads any online discussions about corps will expect to see a weak Madison corps. I found quite the contrary. The horns are tight and by far were the most powerful of the night, and the percussion have many moments that grab you. The drill is standard, but with some cool moves, particularly in the opener, although these cooler moves were a bit dirtier than the rest of the drill. The guard was not nearly as bad as I expected when the show started. I was surprised. But as the show progressed, the guard regressed. The guys have virtually no projection or performance mentality from mid point in the show to the end. It is as if they are simply going through the motions, and not that well, I might add. The guard uniforms are also very sloppy, which did not help their overall effect. Some of the unis looks to be a couple of sizes too big for the guys.

As far as the show... is it exciting? Well, not the usual degree of Madison exciting. For the most part, the wows and applause in the audience was a result of the extremely loud brass. There were several times where I could tell that the designers wanted some audience reaction, but it just didn't come. As for the theme...I am a little confused. I really never felt like this was a spanish/latin show. There are times in the second half where the pit brings out large drums that look and sound like conga drums. They played a very african tribal beat which threw me. I don't see how it fit.

In years past, Madison's guard always help to portray their theme, and that might be why I felt like I couldn't get into their show. The guard has a hard enough time with their equipment, much less help tell a story. The show was loud and powerful, but not the usual standard from Madison.

Crown - I'm afraid to review them, as I will be quite redundant in repeating what so many have said thus far this season. They are good, no doubt, but unmemorable. The greek theme never really came across extremely well. If you closed your eyes, you might not be aware that was the theme of the show, which is sad for what should be a musically driven activity. Their drums can flat out play some notes and their hornline can be quite tight and sweet, although I did pick a few people out of the ensemble more than once. The guard is excellent as I have come to expect from Crown. But the "cupid" in the middle of the show, complete with wings and a bow and "sabre" was just too cheesy. Even my non-drum corps wife rolled her eyes and chuckled.

When the show was over, there wasn't a sound for a few seconds. No one knew they had finished until the DM turned around for his bows. I heard many say "That's it?"

Honestly, I thought Madison had beaten them, with Spirit ahead of both.

Bluecoats - I wsa looking forward to seeing these guys, as I had heard a recording of them from a couple of weeks ago. They have a solid package across the board. Their drill is nice and compliments the show and music well. Their horns can wail. The guard is quite good, although I do wonder why they have a lone female dancer for so much of the show. It just doesn't make sense nor add anything.

The show is very entertaining and my wife loved it. The last couple of minutes of the show is quite enjoyable, with a funky bass riff being played in the contras. Many toes were tappin'! They deserved to widen the gap between them and the rest of the pack.

Cavaliers - what else can be said that hasn't been said? This is one beautiful show. My only regret is that the good people of Kennesaw didn't get to witness it in a larger stadium with more substantial backfield seats, as they were simply aluminum bleachers that allowed the sound to pass right through, instead of bouncing back for that gorgeous effect. So much of the Cavies show is backfield, which was lost in this venue. Even though I had only seen them once back on June 20, I could easily spot the many changes in the closer particularly. This corps and this show will be so hard to beat as the season draws to an end, as they have no apparent weaknesses.

CorpsVets - This corps continues to rock. Loud, in your face, and agressive. Just what I like. Not to forget that they can also play soft and beautifully. And Blues in the Night...well, no soloist can work a crowd like Hunter Moss. I'm proud to state that I aged out with this fella 17 years ago and he hasn't lost any of his talent. In fact, he seems to have gotten better with age!

The CVs have a good time and it shows. As a result, the audience eats it up. Keep up the good work guys and gals. You're making me yearn for a trip to DCA one of years.

Scores - most people around me had Madison over Crown and Spirit over both, and these were not all necessarily Spirit people. I predicted an 86 for Bluecoats and a 93 for Cavies.

As the Cavies set up for their encore, word quickly spread that Spirit was about to play a concert in the parking lot for parents and alumni, so we headed out of the stands. When we finally got there, I would guess that there were several hundred people standing around to hear Spirit play a tune or two. Although we had already heard the CorpsVets play Georgia in the stadium, no one can pull at my heart strings like Spirit when they wail on that tune. It brought many tears to many eyes. Thanks Spirit for sticking around to play for us. We all knew there was a LONG drive to Indiana for a show in less than 20 hours, but your admiration and devotion to your fans, family, friends, and alumni are to be commended.

It was a great night for drum corps. I wish I could make it to Murfreesboro Friday night, or Madison in a couple of weeks, but it is not to be so. I wish all corps the best of luck, but most of all, I wish Spirit continued success. We are proud of you!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great review Steve!!!!

Did you see my early impression of Spirit at Clifton?

One of my favorite shows again this year, both design and the performers.

BTW, at Clifton there were a handful of non-marching members in uniform standing at the front sideline. Were these late additions that had not yet learned the show?

Also BTW, at Kennesaw Madison was ranked 5th in percussion, 4th in music ensemble, and 3rd in brass performance and Music Effect, not to mention their across the board 5th place visual ranking.

And, Spirit was 5th in Brass and Music effect.

Mike

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mike, yes, I saw your review from Clifton. Sorry I didn't note that earlier. As for teh members on the side in uniform...I have no idea.

Jeff, I haven't forgotten. I'll get with you soon with my number!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great review, Steve.

Sorry, I did not get to meet you in person last night. :lol:

It was funny, I was sitting in the midst of Crown people during the show, and they even were left with the "that's the end?" feeling. :lol:

Some one needs to tell the Crown guard it is not sfae to run with lightning bolts, someone could put their eye out. ;)^ :blink:

It was a great night for Drum Corps!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great review. I just don't get Crowns show at all. Mostly the Gaurd, the same for the Scouts. I just gave them both one eyebrow up. Scouts horns were sweet. Spirit was well rounded over all. The prettiest Guard on the field. Oh yes and a real good job too. Cavies were great, It did kinda remind me of SCV's New era. But a great show. Corpvets, Just wow!! I love seeing the GEEZERS.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"geezers?"

LOL, funny....

In all seriousness they are VETS!!

I'm counting the days until open house in Nov.

Please post some mp3's of the Kennesaw show on the site if you can, CV!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...