Blue Devils..............88.0 Cavaliers................84.1 Blue Knights.............76.0 Colts....................74.2 Academie Musicale........72.5 Pioneer..................68.4 Troopers.................60.8 Thanks to GSNewell on r.a.m.d for these scores!
Message: Hello again to all those out there in drum corps world. After seeing my third show, I thought I'd send in one last review. Once again, these are just my views, and if you'd like to respond in a thoughtful manner, I'll get back to ya. Otherwise, quitchyerbitchin and go see a show!!
First off, let me just say a thank you to all of the people that put on this show in Ankeny. They did a great job of promoting and advertising the show, and these people deserve a hearty congratulations for pulling off a great show.
Now to the review:
The night started off with the Colt Cadets in exhibition. This is the feeder corps for the Dubuque Colts, and these kids are getting a great experience. I'm sure that we'll see many of them in a couple of years being the leaders of the Colts. While the show is far from perfect, it provides a great experience for the kids to stay involved in music during the summer. They performed the music of Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, and seemed to really enjoy their show. A great effort made by the youngsters.
Troopers (60.8)
This was the first corps out in competition, and they still have quite a bit of work to do. Their music consisted of American songs, and was played adequately. I think that they really need to spend time on working on an overall sound concept, and also some serious time on marching fundamentals. Lots of missteps/misdirection from my point of view.
Pioneer (68.4)
Guess what--they played Irish music--what a surprise!! There is only so much Irish music that is out there, and I think that this year Pioneer ran out of good music. They are playing the music of Riverdance, and some other stuff. I must admit, though, that this corps has improved significantly since I last saw them in De Kalb for DCM. The horn line has gotten some of the tempo under control, and the drums are doing lots better. I still don't enjoy watching the guard; lots of misses and not much that they do really goes with the show. Their score is deceivingly high, in my opinion.
Academie Musicale (72.5)
This corps goes out on the field and proves that size doesn't matter--on the marching field, course. Their show was very good for the 90 people that marched. I don't have the exact name of their music, but it involved the idea of a musical metamorphosis. Their guard had some of the neatest uniforms and flags of the night, and they did a great job of matching their movements to the music. Academie, with some recruiting to fill out the corps, could really be great in the future if they keep up the good work. The horns were in tune and BALANCED, and the drum line did really well, too. As it is now, however, this corps will be hard pressed to compete against the big sounds of the larger-sized corps.
Colts (74.2)
GO COLTS!!! Of the three shows that I have been to, this one was the best version so far. This show has gone through some serious changes since I first saw them, and they are going to change even more. The word that I've heard is that their show really won't be in it's final form until Allentown. Look out when the staff gets done having their fun!!
If you haven't seen this show, go watch it (don't over-analyze it) and just enjoy yourself. This show is not complex, doesn't have any hidden meanings, and doesn't have any gimmicks in the guard. It is just a really enjoyable, in-your-face, stand-up-and-cheer kind of show. Performing the music of Blood, Sweat, and Tears is the opposite of last year's Rutter show, and the Colts are really having fun with it.
The horn line has really started to sound great, and the drums are powerful. GO GUARD, too! They are in costume, and in attitude--watch some of their antics on (and off) the field once they put on their garb. This show was the crowd pleaser of the night in sheer entertainment value, even if the judges are scared of having fun.
Blue Knights (76.0)
These guys (fortunately for them) went before the Colts in the evening's competition. They put out a nice sound, especially after hearing the 90-member Academie, and had an decent show. I really don't think, though, that they will be ahead of the Colts when it counts. Down the stretch, this show will probably not change that much, and if it doesn't, they won't get very far. A good show for the 2nd half of July, but not a contender to beat other corps that are scoring within a couple of points of them.
Cavaliers (84.1)
I really enjoyed this show--yea, it's different, but man, is it cool! They are performing the music of Stravinsky's Firebird, and if you listen to the crowd's reaction during the first minute of silent drill, it sounds like the crowd is watching fireworks. At first, no one in the audience really knew quite what to make of the drill at the beginning, but after the first "shoop," the audience settled back with many "oohs" and "aahs." The first soloist should get some kind of medal--what a beautiful sound!! Haunting, dark, and lush, this soloist sets the tone for the show to follow, and what a show.
Cavvies guard has fixed many problems that they had in De Kalb, and the drumline is really, really good. Especially watch the guard toss the red flags from the sideline to the second row near the end of the show--what a cool effect. And then when they have the silence in the music where the guard has a unison flag throw with the same, blood-red flags, it is great!! The only thing that I don't like about the show is that it seems to be a guard and percussion feature--the horn line never really gets the attention they deserve, but when they do play, they play extremely well. Look for this corps to surprise some of the big boys on Finals night.
Blue Devils (88.0)
Well, the returning co-champs are not looking to share the title again--this year's show is beautiful. They performed the music of Casablanca, and I had no idea how it would sound--or look--on the field, but it was just stunning. Watching this corps perform was like watching a theater show--I was really just blown away by how good they are.
The horn line has their typical dark, orchestral sound and the drum line--WOW!!--they were definitely the best of the night. This show is a must see for all drum corps fans--anyone could enjoy it.
Cool parts of the show: BD's version of A Night in Tunisia was stellar--the soprano's were given a chance to show off some high chops and fingers in a harmonized double-time solo that will leave you breathless--it was just incredible. Also: the guard does a super job of portraying the emotion and substance of the show. Great dance, great flag work, and beautiful costumes made this the classiest guard of the night.
After retreat, BD was given the field for a final performance, and they did the whole show again in horn arc, with no guard. This is the most in-tune corps I heard all night, and the best horn line I've heard all year. Finals night is going to be one heck of a showdown for the top four--no predictions from me!! I think depending upon their performance that night, of the corps I've seen (BD, Cavvies, Madison, and Phantom), all have a shot at the elusive championship ring.
Hope you've enjoyed the review, and if you didn't, who cares? Drum corps is just about having fun and supporting a great activity, and the aforementioned comments are just my thoughts on what I saw. If you don't like 'em, go to a show and I'll read your review. Otherwise...
Adios
Kyle Engelhardt
"Flounder--why Flounder? WHY NOT?!?"
Colt Cadets (EXH): Good show, nice strong finish. As many guard members (14) as horns. No battery, but tenor player in the pit grooves! :)
Troopers (7th, 60.8):
A very entertaining show, but not well executed.
Horns had a very unsupported sound. Magnificent Seven was great!
Sunburst was cool, but was missing something, and after too much driving
home, I don't remember what it was. Drumline was small, decent, but
didn't capture my attention much.
Pioneer (6th, 68.4):
Guard does a lot of arms-at-the-side dance, ala
the dancers in Riverdance. It's just not visually interesting. I'm not
making comparisons between them and the dancers on the video...that
doesn't matter to me at all. It just doesn't look cool, and this
armchair GE judge wants to see cool stuff. :)
Guard added large purple cloaks since I saw them last. Looks great! Horns should be more powerful than they are right now. I get annoyed by seeing 10 contras on the field and not being able to hear them when they're needed!! Weapons work was not very extensive, which surprises me...Pioneer usually has a very tight, uniform guard...why not exploit it?
Academie Musicale (5th, 72.5):
Brass line makeup (14S/8M/10B/5C) gives them a very bright,
top heavy sound. I don't like it. It is clear and in tune, but it just
plain makes me uncomfortable. Lower brass needs to balance below
mezzo-forte; they do a good job above that. Brass line plays lots of
staccato stuff for impacts. Not a bad plan with an undersized hornline.
These guys were louder than Pioneer on their impacts, which absolutely
should not be happening. It's both a credit to Academie and an
underachievement in Pioneer.
Movement is very good. These guys and girls know M&M. Guard does a lot of dance, but I have to admit I kinda liked it. IMHO, this show is gonna max out fast...it's fairly clean, and there's not much more power that can be put into the musical impacts. (Yeah, now watch them prove me wrong and pull 8th at Finals...)
Blue Knights (3rd, 76.0):
Nice impacts, first truly loud corps of the evening. Big, rich,
blue/multicolored flags. Loved the effect generated by them, and how
they were used in the block at the back of the field. Drumline didn't
kick my butt like I thought they were going to. They seemed very
average tonight. Guard was decent, but took very few chances with
tosses (read: low level of difficulty, for all you divers out there...)
IMHO, justified placing above Colts tonight. That's blasphemy for me, having spent four years in the red and white, but it's the way I felt tonight.
Colts (4th, 74.2):
On the major impacts, who do you think was louder, BK or Colts?
Wrong--it was BK. What happened? I'm not sure. Maybe the hornline was
pointing their horns over the box. Maybe I was in a local minima.
Whatever it was, Colts just didn't have the same impact they did in
Dubuque two weeks ago. Baritones need to start treating their horns
like the weapons they are for 11 minutes, not just the start and end of
the show. More power!
I heard some of the cleanest licks from the Colts drumline tonight that I have ever heard from them in my life. They rocked me! Guard has a high difficulty show, and doesn't drop anything.
Lots of changes to the show since I last saw it in Dubuque. Trap set solo was cool, but I didn't even locate him until the solo was over! Needs a flag background or groupies right next to him or something.
It's beyond me how Academie managed to stay within two points of this show.
Cavaliers (2nd, 84.1):
Plenty of giggles to start, and ooohs and aaahs when they expand
out of their opening set. I like the drill (I could tell it was awesome
even from only halfway up in the stands!) Visual monsters once again.
Too early to count them out of top 3-4...there's enough potential here
for an August run...
Blue Devils (1st, 88.0):
Horns rocked me. Drums rocked me. Guard rocked me. Marching
rocked me. Ending sucked. Quite badly, I might add. 5-point GE
penalty for a down ending for no reason. Tension in the girl running
back and forth between "Bogart" and "?" was great...the stands were
deathly silent for what seemed like forever. Now, I know that this is
probably going to turn into some surprise ending come finals, but right
now, it's not effective. Their GE score better darn well reflect that
fact. After all that tension, to just bail out with a little
chorale-ish sequence of notes soft and backfield is a blatant cop-out.
You're a drum corps, remember? You're the Blue Devils, remember? Be
loud! I want closure!
Finale:
BD started AmeriCanada, and their sops were sickeningly out
of tune! For all the exaggeration I may be guilty of, a hornline that
played like BD starting finale would not even make DIII finals!!! It
was literally that bad! Do they just not care?
I was surprised that Academie was not carrying a Canadian flag. Loved the Colts' guard salute. I think the old "Why Drum Corps Is Better Than Marching Band" shirts need to add "vinyl" and "leather" to "SPANDEX!!!".
Can't wait to see this action again in Whitewater!
Jack
Cadets of Bergen County..88.9 Crossmen.................81.1 Bluecoats................80.6 Carolina Crown...........75.7 Boston Crusaders.........68.4 Blue Stars...............58.1
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