93Bluecoat Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 Ok Gang, I have to PLEASE ask that you disassociate me from the Bluecoats Board of Directors just for the purposes of this review! I'll be as objective as possible and give you my honest opinions of what I saw and heard (which for the most part was GREAT from all corps). It's 3 am, I'm cracked up on coffee and cappuccino right now so I might as well write a drum corps review, right?! Weather was perfect for drum corps. High 60s and no humidity. I was with my fiancee and this was her first drum corps show ever, so I spent most of the night answering the "What's that thingy? Who's that guy? What are they doing?" Blah blah blah. If you've ever taken a drum corps virgin to a show and they came away completely hooked (like my fiancee tonight) you know what a neat experience it is (she talked about every show all the way home!). I was half way up on the 40 yard line, side 2. Southwind (My score: 57.5, actual score: 53.8): Ludwig drums. Did they use those last year? They weren't bad sounding, just haven't seen too many corps using Ludwig in awhile. They've got some holes on the field so it makes the drill very difficult to read. They are taking a few more risks with this show than previous years. It will pay off in August....right now, it looks risky! Although the corps proper is black and white, the CG provides great color contrast. Only complaint with the CG is that they aren't integrated into the show too well. Lots of framing. SW has a nice bari/euph section that gets featured (yeah!) and a tremendous tenor feature (it's dirty, but very creative and entertaining....it will come around). I wish more corps did stuff like that. The end of the show is very ragged (looked like it was just learned) and seemed like fatigue was a problem. Overall, a good start to the season for SW. If they can pull 25 point gain this summer, they've got a shot. Capital Regiment (My score: 60.25, actual score: 56.5): They have this giant sculpture (?) on the field that kind of bugs me. It's the old "It's art, BECAUSE WE SAY IT IS!" thing. It really doesn't have a purpose, but it's there and they march around it. Maybe I'm missing the point. You can see that this corps is trying to push things up a notch just by the show design, but they've got some fundamental things to overcome. The middle section of their show is PAINFULLY slow and VERY visually exposed and their back technique (pulling toes up at this tempo?) is a mess. It makes for about 3 minutes of awful foot technique, poor directions changes, and form displacement. If they can clean that up, it will be impressive though. The guard seems small...I only counted 18. That was small for even when I marched. Most guards are marching over 30. That seemed to be an area that needs desperate upgrading. The percussion section is very aggressive (think SCV from last year), but I can't stand Dynasty percussion. Are the tenors tuned that low or is it the drums (or is it just me)? Maybe the mallets? The show isn't complete, but you can see that they are trying to get a very mature look and sound. Strange show, I think I need a libretto. They have a shot at finals as well with a 25 point summer. Cavaliers (My score: 77.0, actual score: 74.75): They've got lead trumpets, and they're featured prominently! Cavs aren't sporting a huge brass sound just yet though. I think they are really working on control right now, because their sound wasn't as big as Bluecoats or Cadets tonight. The first two minutes of their show, honestly, are uninspiring. Color guard rocks, but other than that, the intro lacks effect. The second section (Hope springs eternal/baseball) is very playful. The HR at the end is priceless (amps!). I suspect they'll add some more to this section as the summer progresses. Ok, the firefighters....first off the color guard uniforms are terrible (my opinion, the fiancee loved them), and when they put on the plastic, fake looking fire fighter helmets, it looked like a Halloween costume gone horribly wrong. This section probably needs the most attention because of the exposure both musically and visually. There's a definite lull in the show here. Great use of the 12 foot ladders in the show. Mellos climb to the top and play a feature very well. Cavs do amp several things in the pit including the drum set in closer. There were timing issues tonight between set and tubas (minor) and some stylistic issues in the tubas (low brass guys, think back to how many times you've had a teacher try to teach you 'walking bass' figures). Color guard is fantastic and it's a complete travesty that they didn't win CG tonight. They have a small amount of work that isn't complete, but what is on the field is some of the best Cavs work ever. Overall, it's a great show. Reminds me of a Cadets show, but with distinct Cavies flare. Certainly entertaining. I think it's beatable though...there is a ray of hope for someone out there! Cadets (My score: 71.5, actual score 71.95): It's really difficult to make a judgement on this show. So much of it isn't out there. I didn't time it or anything, but I'd say the color guard only has about 5 minutes of work on the field, and what's out there isn't typical Cadets if you catch my drift. No CG unis, and obvious filler flags, so there's not much color or contrast yet (was there any silk change tonight? So why did they top a clearly superior Cavaliers guard tonight? Hmmmmm). Visually, the corps is having uncharacteristic drill issues (people missing direction changes tonight....something you usually don't see from them...ever). I'm not a fan of the uniform (the fiancee, loved them). I went in with an open mind, but just as I suspected, their profile creates visual clutter. Front to back or vice versa, it's fine, but from the side it looks dirty (even if it's clean). The first half of Dancer in the Dark was cool. Very peaceful and the drill is actually very similar on every set, which I found interesting. I was loving it (Bluecoats played it in '02)...then, the percussion comes in just ramming....and they keep going for about a minute, all the way to the end. Made NO MUSICAL SENSE. It was pretty incredible, but made no sense. Ok, the door in the middle of the field....I know it was used once or twice, but why leave it right on the 50? I agree with an earlier review, it looks kind of plain/shoddy....and for the majority of the show, just sits there. Hornline was the loudest thing on the field tonight. They know how to put air through the instrument, but they are not playing very musically yet. There's contrast, but it's terraced and done only in large sections. There is a lonnnnnng way for this corps to go musically. Bluecoats topped them by .5 tonight in brass, and accordingly so. Amps were used for their percussion speak section. It's cool, however the tone is thin and their usage seems kind of forced (using amps for the sake of using amps). Seemed to me like the guy with the large mike had it WAY too close to his mouth. This show, if not significantly upgraded soon, could be caught, by a lot of corps. If/when it's finished and solidified, could be great. Bluecoats (My score 70.3, actual score 69.25): I know I'm a homer, so I'll try to be objective. It's a great, entertaining show. I know everyone that saw the show has to comment about the amps....they had some noticable flaws (I believe they had an interference problem). Wasn't anything major, just a some flips and blips, but it was enough to distract the crowd. Some of the good: Incredible, incredible, incredible horn line (think Blue Devils type sound, big big big and balanced). They are very musical (moreso than just about everyone tonight). Field coverage is outstanding. They use the field both visually and musically better than just about everyone (including Cavs who have cut the field down this year). The visual book to some may not "look" challenging but on second and third read, check out how much exposure (the end of Ombra for example) they have compared to everyone else. For June 18, they look great, but the feet still have a long way to go. Color guard is incredible and their score of 12.6 makes no sense, it's a travesty really. It's well written, to this point, well performed and effective. The entire show is not on the field (they've got most of Ombra still to learn and a small amount of Hajj). However, the Cadets barely have half a show and the Cavs (although they are amazing) have a lot of their show unlearned. The 3 point spread in this caption is unwarranted (even the fiancee agreed on that one), and in my opinion very difficult to justify. GE in this show is what is going to carry this corps. Well written top to bottom. Some of the bad: obviously problems with the amps, percussion let a few phrases drop off the table tonight, but overall they are top 5 drumline, feet are inconsistent (one part will look flat out, drop your jaw amazing, then another section, you can't tell what they are doing). I thought even my score (70.3) was low. 69.25 is way too low. CG number should be 2 points higher (if they give Cadets a 15.4) if not more. I think second and third reads are going to help the Bluecoats numbers. This show should be a crowd favorite. Enjoy their new Yamaha sound. It really is incredible. Glassmen (My score:67.3, actual score: 66.3): Best Glassmen corps in several years. Right now, they are actually pretty clean visually (they beat Bluecoats and Cadets in Vis. Perf), however the demand of the show is safe, this will level off as more demanding shows clean up. I like what they've done with New World, many styles and directions in the music. It's very refreshing. They do need to address their stylistic interpretation and articulation in the jazz section though....whew. They tend to lose their ensemble blend as they spread out (great when they are on top of each other). They have some typical June musical mistakes (phrasing, intonation, blend) but overal the musical package is good and entertaining. I wasn't a fan of the choice of color in this show....it NEVER changes. The CG unis are purple, orange, and teal (?) and so are all of their show silks. You lose the guard because the colors are all the same from feet to flag pole. They had a case of the drops tonight too. Gmen have a very exposed soft section in the middle where the horn line does what looks like Pilates while a couple of soloists play the very recognizable melody from the New World. There needs to be more beef to the music, and less Pilates (that's a joke, I think). Once again, this is just silly movement for the sake of doing movement. Doesn't really make much sense and it looks silly. They have their ragged moments (it's June 18), but overall this is a good, fresh product. Clean visually and should do about 20 points this summer with some tweaks. Ok, I hope I didn't start WW3 with my comments. Like I said, honestly, I enjoyed every performance tonight. Good enjoyable moments from every group. I think I've stated this on another post, but I think this is going to be one of those "good years" for drum corps when it seems like every corps has an enjoyable show. One more note on the corps that used amplification (Blue, Cadets, Cavs). Everyone needs to relax and just enjoy the product. Are there still some bugs? Yep. 2nd show for everyone. It's not the end of the world if there are a few flaws to be fixed. Cadets had a BIG snafu in Elizabeth and the Bluecoats had some minor issues tonight, but it's nothing that can't be mastered (just like a flaw in the drill). I didn't HATE any of the A/E on the field tonight (as I did from some groups last season). Most of it fit the shows PERFECTLY, and in many cases made them much more enjoyable. Please keep an open mind and remember, that drum corps staffs are just now learning how to effectively use this new medium (just like it took several years for everyone to use a grounded pit!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abercrombiedevon Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 thanks for the review....that kinda makes me mad that cadets didnt have all their guard work done but scored so much higher than the bluecoats guard that did....weird. i too have always enjoyed the bluecoats guard they are usually well integrated into the corps and provide excellent field coverage. go green machine! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhioStateTad Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 As someone who used to go GAGA at the knees over the Cadets, I have to say this: they're in for a rude awakening this year... they could very well fall from grace (ala top 5... or more). The two corps that absolutely make no impression on me did so tonight: Cavies are incredible in that they know how to flawlessly meld DESIGN, PERFORMANCE and a great sense of FUN (Showmanship) into this show (which is a first or second placer in August). But... the real winner tonight (my God, I cannot believe i'm saying this): Bluecoats. Wowie, what a show.. and the best ending in their HISTORY!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhantomR Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 great review.. looks like the Boats are bringin it to the field this year. ALMOST caught up with the Cadets THIS early in the season? WOW! and apparently the Glassmen are gaining some MUCH needed respect. and as far as Cap. I see them going somewhere this year... I know they have holes, and some visual problems, but from what I hear, it's the most difficult show for this corps ever. ~>conner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 in reference to Cadet uniform: I went in with an open mind, but just as I suspected, their profile creates visual clutter. Front to back or vice versa, it's fine, but from the side it looks dirty (even if it's clean) EXACTLY. It's the profile drill that causes all the visual clutter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideways Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 I would write a different review of the show but I happen to agree with what most of Uncle Darren had to say. I will just comment on some of the differences I observed. Southwind - Major step up in design and talent level for them this summer. Entire low brass section was wonderful. They need to focus the trumpet sound and reign in on few individuals in a major way. That is was a major distraction to their overall ensemble sound and most certainly dragging down the effect number. Drill design was a nice improvement and the only part that needs some major reworking is the ending. The ending drill needs to cook and now it is of slow with too much standing around. Honestly it does look like placeholder drill, something they put in just too finish the show. The only other thing that really bothered me was how much the corps relied on facing backfield for dynami contrasts. Overall a solid show design with many more risks and exposure than last year. They should be solid semifinalists this year. I swear that I was hearing little snippets of Wind and the Lion mixed into the Imagination theme! Capital Regiment - Great ensemble sound from the hornline. Battery has some chops and is not afraid to show it off, extremely aggresive. The design of this show is their most complex to date, I am questioning it though compared to the talent in the corps. Either the show is just that much more demanding and will come along later in the season or the corps just does not have the same level of talent as last year. Foot technique, especially in the brass, was noticeably inconsistant, mostly because of how strong a number of them were. The slackers were definitely standing out. From watching their plumes these guys are even starting to march the same style as Cadets (not a bad thing at all). I am sorry I really didn't notice the guard, probably because of that #### prop. Until the prop is complete and they know what they are going to do with it, I would suggest to keep it off the field. Cavaliers - Last year they had a great show and this year's version is much better. Hornline has by far the best and most controled sound of the night. I just love a number of the articulated passages in the upper brass in the opening segment. Absolutely crystal clear. I know what the hornline is doing with their sound and it will payoff big time come August but I was just dying for them to let it hangout even just a bit more. I love the baseball segment. I agree that the Great Fire portion needs to be more ominous and much darker. I am sure it is incomplete in its current version, but basically it needs to be made more obvious as to what is going on. The mellophones on the ladders and the weaving in of the Amazing Grace melody was absolutely beautiful. The ending section is obviously incomplete as well but is seriously going to rock this summer. The only way I can justify them not winning top guard tonight was because of lack of work in some segments. Skill and design wise they are a superior unit to Cadets though. This will be a show to watch this summer!! The controlled sound they are playing with, for now, is going to ding them in GE but that should go away as the let things open up (I hope) later on. Cadets - Huge sound from the brass and very deservingly to Music GE tonight. One can certainly tell that Gino is back with this line. They are playing much more aggressively and a lot more confidence. What surprised me, though, was how ragged the line was sounding at a few points. Maybe its a function of the demand in the tempos and they are just letting the members blow for now, but they were clearly the third best line of the night. This is the edgiest hornline I have heard from them since '99 (again they had crazy tempos that year though). Show design is definitely more out there and better than the past few years. They need to do more with the door and yes it does look very cheaply put together. I like the idea with the uniforms but they seriously need to keep the pants all one color. Even though they did not march a show like they are capable of, I would agree that their pants are not helping them at all either. The field looked extremely cluttered. Change the pants to one color, use the door more, more clear define just what the school girl is doing, and more than anything else this show needs.....MORE CADETS DRILL. I know the tempos are mad and it is early in the season but for Cadets this drill is way to safe. Dust off some charts from the 90s (92-93, 96-99) and practice your jazz running and this show can really take off. Blue Coats - Impressive brass sound tonight and deserving of beating Cadets in that caption. There was some very suggestive movement by the guard at the very beginning. I loved it ^0^ but some of the women around were I was sitting were a little red faced after it. I am sure others will talk about this as well. Maybe Uncle Darren was right in saying this show needs to be very several times to really understand the drill. I loved the opening and closing segments but thought te middle half, drill wise, was very plain and honestly a throw back to the mids 90s. I will reserve further judgement on this till later in the season. Hornline though had very exposed and difficult entrances all over the place handled them very well. Drums were great and guard was beautiful. I believe it was Coats that had a unison toss were the rest of the corp was silent. Awesome moment in literally hearing the flags. Should be a good summer for the Coats. Glassmen - I loved this show. However, I was the only one in my group that did. Most just couldn't get over the whole it isn't true to Dvorak thing. Yes the music book is quite ragged right now, but it has tremendous potential and the entire package is honestly fun. A very colorful guard, which I will agree could use more variance in the silks they are using. They have a tough and very thickly scored horn book which either needs some serious cleaning and/or to be thinned out in certain sections. Very typical of a Robert W. Smith book though. A lot of clutter in the horn book will take care of it self with the players becoming more conifidant with such a book. The corps marches extremely well, but needs to address intervals (even considering the couple wholes they are marching). Drill design is a strong suit again. The middle portion when the horns are laying on the ground needs more detailed work, again it is early and it is likely unfinished. Overall, I can not really argue with any of the placements tonight other than Cadets over Cavies guard. Each corps and section, otherwise, was where they should have been and scores were just about right. Of all the corps though I believe Cadets are in the most dangerous position right now. The music package is fine even if ragged at some points. They need to seriously consider major visual changes (then again they always rewrite like mad) to both uniforms and drill or fear falling into the 5-7 pack. It is early yet, they have an incredibly experienced design team. They make the proper tweaks and they could just as easily find themselves in contention. Just as likely to go either way right now though. Like Uncle Darren said above, if this show is any indication, it should be a great summer for DCI!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideways Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 (edited) double post. Edited June 19, 2005 by MagicAlto99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTBeck1 Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 I'll add my comments about the show here...........I missed Southwind. Cap Reg: Rather overrated. There performance level was about the same as it was at this time last year. The music was pretty good, just needs to get cleaned up a bit. Glassmen: From what I heard, they performed much better the night before. And the runthrough that afternoon was MUCH better than the evening performance. The hornline seemed to play it rather safe. The impacts just didnt have that punch-in-the-face that they had every other time I've seen them. I will still say that this is the loudest G-hornline that has come by in several years, but last night certainly didnt prove that. Although I'm not a guard person, I'm glad to see that the GCG had a very complete show, very few spots (if any) where the guard doesnt do any work. I think the drumline is definetly a step up from last year. From what I am told they have more notes this year, and they certainly sound more in control than this time last year. The show is getting better and better each time I see it, and the awkward moments are becomming fewer and fewer. This show is all about the music and having fun with it. Sure the drill isnt as difficult as some of the other corps, but its not ment to be. Like I said, this show is about the music, not marching 200 bpm for half the show. Once the hornline cleans it up, and gets all the butterflies out of their tummies.....people will like this show, if they dont, they suck! Bluecoats: I liked this show. The hornline is very strong and the drill is quite impressive. They seem to be in that "lets see how fast we can march" mode. Which is cool with me, i like fast drill. I need to see this show again to get a better read on in, but for the most part the music was good, just a few sections that left me feeling a little flat, but im sure that will change as the season goes. Cadets: I THINK I like this show. I must say the new uniforms are really cool, they do PLENTY of visuals to show them off. The hornline was definetly the loudest of the night. There were just so many parts of the show that I felt that I SHOULD or WANT to like it, but I was just like, "hmmmmm". I didnt get the door at all. I'm sure the little school girls comming out of them is a reference to Kill Bill, but dont quite see how they fit into the show. I'll have to see them a few more times for it to make sense. They also werent finnished with the show, stood and played the last 30 seconds of the show, BOOOO! Cavies: Clean. The hornline didnt play above a Forte the entire show. Very safe dynamics, but excelent tone quality and control. The show itself is basically a series of gimmics. I liked the opener, mostly because there were no gimmicks. The second movement, horns form a baseball dimond while the guard swings their rifles around like baseball bats. I was almost expecting the horns to start playing "take me out to the ball game" (the may have and I was just distracted by something else). Third movement, guard dresses up as firemen and climb all over ladders while the percussion makes fire sound effects....the great Chicago fire, got it. And the closer is supposed to be a blues club. Not much needs to be said there. Sure this show will be popular with the band kiddies and average corps fans, but it didnt do much for me. General comment: HOLY DRUMTALK BATMAN! I thought it was cool with BD did it 2 years ago, but It was total overkill(bill) with Cadets and Bluecoats doing it. I can definetly say that cadets do it better, but that doesnt mean I like it. This is why I was against amps in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawn craig Posted June 19, 2005 Share Posted June 19, 2005 Sorry to hear about the Glassmen's choice of guard costumes. They sound similar to the ones in 03, which in my opinion, were the wrorst costumes in several years. Last years were different, but they did some effective things with them. I thought they made an improvement in that area. The reviews are great. As always it will be interesting to see who can clean and put it all together by Aug. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
93Bluecoat Posted June 19, 2005 Author Share Posted June 19, 2005 General comment: HOLY DRUMTALK BATMAN! I thought it was cool with BD did it 2 years ago, but It was total overkill(bill) with Cadets and Bluecoats doing it. I can definetly say that cadets do it better, but that doesnt mean I like it. This is why I was against amps in the first place. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> What the Bluecoats and Cadets are doing really isn't the same thing. I can see how you could come to that conclusion though. DW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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