Thanks to Darren Webb for emailing us directly with this review! Here's my full report on the show at Butler, Pa. I lost my porgram that had all my notes on them, so I'm going by memory. Ridge Raiders: Man are these guys young. They really don't have the marching and playing thing down yet. Nice uni's. Keep trying! Lake Erie Regiment: Not bad. Like the changes they've made to the 'Coats uni's. Horn line put out more sound than most thought they would. GB Vagabonds: Very nice looking corps. They need a few more folks in the horn line (most notably a contra). There is no low sound in the horn line. Beginning of the show is much better than the end. Spartans: Biggest surprise of the night. They're big! 36 horns, 10 snares, 4 or 5 tenors, 5 basses, @20 guard. Unfortunately for the drumline bigger isn't better. They looked very impressive coming on (there were ohh's and ahhh's all over) but when they started to play it was kind of sloppy (ala Jeff Wise, "It's June"). they could really do with a MUCH smaller drum line. Color Guard does some neat stuff with the orgy (big blue pillows were cool). Horns have a GREAT sound. I'd watch out for these guys. If the drums pull together they'll be awesome. Spirit of Atlanta: I was shocked at how small they were (the Spartans are bigger). 30 horns, full battery, 14 CG? They have their work cut out. I don't like some of the arrangements from a normally very entertaining Robert Smith. There is no flow to this show. The soloists wer simply ok tonight. They'll pull that together. The horns have much further to go. Intonation problems, balance, and poor attacks haunt them right now. Visually it's not very exciting. They have a WONDERFUL park and bark section that really got the crowd going. When they stand still they can wail! Scores were right about where they should be here (mid 40s). Crossmen: Again, I was stunned at the size of the corps. (@40 horns). The drum line starts the show with a 1 minute drum solo. It is rammin! Unfortunately it seems they haven't gotten to much of the rest of the show. I'm so glad to see the Crossmen going back to doing vocal jazz stuff. It fits so well. The show is extremely entertaining. The horns have a very long way to go. They have many of the same problems that Spirit has. Visually, they are moving plenty. Maybe too much. They could hose some of the drill and make the show more playable for the horns (see also Cadets!). Their score of 63 is an out and out gift (sorry if that sounds harsh, but that show is not even close to being in the 60s). Bluecoats: I saw the 'Coats and Colts Thursday and Friday night both. Both corps had much better performances on Friday, most notably the 'Coats. After seeing the show for the first time on Thursday, I was scared. Friday night they were much more focused and extremely exciting. Pay special attention to this next statement: this show is not even close to being finished. What they have on the field right now is the skeleton of what is about to come. I was around the staff this weekend and they have a veritable cornucopia of little nuggets still to put into the show. The ending is rather bold as they end quietly down by the end zone on side 2. Horns: VERY strong contras and mellophones. These are the two most veteran sections of the corps and it shows. The horns have very nice blend and seem to have more volume than they usually do in June. Percussion: They have a ton of work to do, and we'll leave it at that. Color Guard: Their top 5 finish was no fluke in '95. These girls are hot. Great dance sections. Not too many airborn props, even with the expanded weapons section. Could use more color if ya ask me. Score of 66 is about right for this show. Colts: Biggest difference in this year's Colts and Colts corps of the past: they have a very mature approach to marching. Technically their bodies are better than in August of last year (ie, thye don'tlean into every move now!) Horns are nicely blended and have a nice bottom sound with the bigger bored contras they now have (Yamahas I believe). Percussion is very average. At times, brilliant, other times....yikes. I don't like the yellow and black on the color guard. Overall, with red, yellow, and black out there, they look like they should be working in a fast food joint. Aside from the weird colors, they didn't do an aweful lot to impress. Enough negativity, this corps is for real. They have stepped up their look (visually) and sound (crisp and dark). The show lacks intensity and impact however, and that can't be helping the GE scores. They were correctly placed ahead of the 'Coats, but the 2 point spread was not correct. Should have been around a 66 or 67. Cadets: Wow. The show doesn't let you rest. There is something innovative going on at every second of the show. Color guard doesn't do their normal bevy of brethtaking moves but do more role playing. They do have a couple of cool tosses within the hornline. Percussion was typical...awesome. Horns sound like mid-80s Garfield....wow. What was there to dislike about their show? Well, tonight was not a good night. They had several wipeouts and tons of Color guard errors. The drill is a real problem right now. It is very typical of the Cadets. They come out with an unperformable drill, which will get modified into something that finally works. This current drill will not work. There are too many instances were people can't make sets, can't play the part while getting to the set, or it's too dangerous. The big back drops got mixed reactions from the crowd. I think they've cut the field down too much. They are regulated to the area in front of the center X and that's all. When this show gets tuned up, it will have a great chance to win. It's VERY exciting! My friend Dan and I had a great two days of drum corps. All of these corps are doing well. It looks to be a great summer!
Thanks to Jonathan Willis on r.a.m.d for this review! Hello everyone, Just got back from the Butler, Pa. show. Again I saw a wonderful outing of drum corps and was most suprised by the Spartans of Nashua, NH. They are sporting a very sophisticated show and a very good horn line. The drums need some work, but should come around. I did not write down scores so please refer to another review for an accurate list of scores. However, here are the placings: 1. Cadets 2. Colts 3. Bluecoats 4. Crossmen 5. Spirit of Atlanta Div. II 1. Spartans 2. Lake Erie Regiment 3. Butler Vagabonds [4. Ridge Raiders] I was very dissapointed with Spirit of Atlanta's Show. They really need a lot of work in all areas. It was there first show, so maybe I'm being a bit too hard, but I think they should be competing Div. II. The General Butler Vagabonds were pretty good for their size. It seems to me that many of these small corps try to do things that the larger corps can get away with, and I think it hurts them. Not many standing ovations from the crowd tonight. It wasn't until Colts hit us over the head with some sound and a beautiful show that has already come a long way since I saw it in Port Clinton, Ohio. As good as the Colts are, they leave me somewhat flat at the end of the show because I am not able to recall many moments from the show. In my opinion, there are not many high GE moments that grab you the way Crossmen and Cadets do. Speaking of Crossmen, WOW!!! Only 40 some horns, but they can play and the charts are extremely demanding. Mark my words: they will pass up both Colts and Bluecoats if they clean this show. From start to finish the show is a "Gas." My favorite tune was "Birdland" which was non-stop fun. Oh, did I forget to mention the drum line. Well, they are amazing with a capital A. A 7th or 8th place finish is not out of the question for these guys. The Bluecoats are very good, again, but lack some visual and musical punch. I am told much work is still being planned for the show. The music of the different holidays of our country is really nice. The opener of new year's eve music is great, but the closer of some Christmas music leaves the audience a bit flat. Watch for this show to grow as the season goes on. They are also a definite top 7 or 8 corps. As for the Colts, I think they are cleaner than anyone on the field right now. At least at this show. How far they take it is the question that remains to be answered. I don't think the demand is quite there for them to fight of the Bluecoats or Crossmen. By the way, tonight was Bluecoats first judged show. John Rutter's "Magnificat" was much more musical tonight than I have heard it the other two times. Baritones still play with tongues flying through the mouthpieces at times, but the overall balance of the horn line is excellent. As for the Cadets, all one can say is this is easily the most entertaining show on the field, and the crowd seems to agree. They are a treat to watch and listen to. For all of you that complained about the Cadets not marching enough last year, you better tighten your seat belt when you watch them this year. They are blazing the field with whip-lash drill and nearly impossible moves. The horn line easily has the most difficult book I've heard so far, and the most entertaining and musical book as well. The end of Rodeo left the crowd speechless tonight. The drum line is even better if you can believe that. The Cadets are very dirty at the moment, but should this show reach its potential, there is no contest unless BD is able to muster something up. From what I've seen of the Midwestern corps, and all 3 major contenders are excellent this year, none even has a chance if the Cadets clean. For all you Santa Clara Vanguard lovers out there, you will especially love the Cadets opening number of "The Promise of Living" from "The Tender Land" by Copland. It is performed almost identical to the Vanguards 1984 and 1985 renditions of this work. A classy opener to say the least. As for the props, I do not think they are over-bearing at all. In fact, the Cadets are pretty much using them as curtains to help seperate the different acts of the show, as well as a back-drop. Jonathan Willis
Seattle Web Factory
CyberCorps Web Page Designers.
CyberWebMistress Cathy DoserLast updated: June 30, 1996
Web and Page design ©1995 Seattle Web Factory