Spencenlevi

So far my favorite moment is the opening of Leander's show. It's just so beautiful, and to amazing how big of a hit that is for just a high school. They're on the rise. They really are. I have been spending most of my time in Houston so maybe my opinion is a little biased towards houston groups and I've only seen One competition in person (Conroe), I'm heading up Saturday morning to Arlington, and maybe my answer will change after this week.

Prelims Top 20:
 
1)  Leander - 93.0
2)  Marcus - 92.15
3)  The Woodlands - 91.8
4)  Claudia Taylor Johnson - 91.8
5)  James Bowie - 91.45
6)  Hebron - 91.25
7)  Flower Mound - 90.6
8)  LD Bell - 89.85
9)  Ronald Reagan - 89.55
10)  Vandegrift - 88.85
11)  Cedar Park - 87.0
12)  Round Rock - 86.85
13)  Vista Ridge - 85.95
14)  Westlake - 85.7
 
15)  Hendrickson - 85.1
16)  Richland - 84.45
17)  Friendswood - 84.3
18)  Keller - 83.3
19)  Berkner - 83.15
20)  Keller Central - 83.05

Fun Fact: Leander was first in Prelims.

Just wanted to say that Leander HS left it all on that field. You should've seen them walking out through that tunnel. They have a strong connection and have been through some ups and downs, but they finally came through. Cant wait to see what they bring to us next year!

Hes been caught lol. I guess when you love your band that much you cant help but speak out on it

In my opinion I think they can win GE and rank high visually. Don't count them out. It's going to be really close at the top. I think the shows are so close this year that individual aspects are going to play a big part in the rankings this year. If only we could be on the field during all of their shows!

I love watching the debates on this forum. I think personally it will be something like this...
 
Music:
Marcus
Hebron
CTJ
 
Visual:
CTJ
Leander
Woodlands
 
GE:
CTJ
Leander
Hebron
 
It's will be a very interesting year because any one of these bands winning a single caption could be a good run for 1st. While music is a big topic of discussion I think the winner will ultimately be determined by visual and GE performances.
 
In Visual, it seems the CTJ has a good show (I haven't actually gotten the opportunity to see it so I'm using what I've heard) but I believe that Woodlands may have another late season push possibly beating them. Leander's points lie it speed. With a tempo exceeding 190, a clean performance could also win this caption. For now, it's almost impossible to determine who could win this, as it's so close it will depend on the quality of their runs.
 
On the other hand, GE I believe will come down to Leander and CTJ. Leander's show is packed with GE and I believe they could take this but CTJ definitely shouldn't be disregarded in this caption. As for Hebron, I find it hard to see them winning but they will place highly and combined with a possible win in the music caption, they have a good chance too.
 
Based on all this, I think the final way look like this...
 
1-3 alphabetized:
CTJ
Hebron
Leander
 
4-9 and possible 1-3 upsets alphabetized:
Bowie
Flower mound
LDB
Marcus
Round Rock
Woodlands
 
10-14 alphabetized:
Cedar Park
Hendrickson
Vandegrift
Westlake
 
Tell me what you guys think about it and if I forgot anything?

My 200th post will be completely wrong predictions for the top 6 at this Saturday's BOA contest. (Go Leander!) I've tried to watch the most recent videos of groups possible, and I just saw the Area F contest live. For those of you that are interested, there's a video of Hebron's Area finals performance already up on YouTube. Just search for "Hebron Nix". Great video and great performance. If I get a chance to watch the SA finals stream in its entirety, I'll be sure to update these predictions with ones that are much more accurate and complete. Hahaha. I certainly don't feel all that confident!
 
1st Leander
2nd The Woodlands
3rd Hebron
4th Claudia Taylor Johnson
5th Marcus
6th James Bowie
 
Outstanding Music Performance - Hebron
Outstanding Visual Performance - The Woodlands
Outstanding General Effect - Leander
 
Recent videos of Leander, Hebron, and Marcus are available on YouTube, but there really isn't anything recent for the other three. I just saw The Woodlands live, so that leaves CTJ and James Bowie as my "wild cards". The Woodlands' show has changed... uh... a lot since Conroe. Another very avant garde show brought to you by the guy that brought you Star '91, Blast!, and the Bluecoats' Tilt show. To paint a picture: the arrow props that spin and are moved around on the field are now painted magenta on top, which looks so much better than the blue (I think) they were colored before. The band begins in the endzone in body-sculpted chaos. As a pre-recording of Radiohead's Everything in Its Right Place plays, the band creeps out onto the field LD Bell 2006-style, Broken Arrow 2012-style and the arrow props that are already out on the field begin to spin chaotically. The opening set congeals, and after the announcer finishes, the band begins with The Canyon, now with added movement. Speaking of added movement, it's all over the place-- typical for late-season Woodlands. Even transitions into certain drill sets, like into the arcs of the ballad, have been made to look more "chaotic" with added movement. Even so, the show is clean. (I only see Bowie possibly challenging them in the visual caption, though who knows.) Big musical hits have also been modified. For example, they now end the opener with 3 power chords in what is clearly a homage to last year's show. They've also added some brass parts to the opener that I think were previously only played by a synthesizer. Throughout the show, Thom Yorke's distorted voice from EIIRP pops up in a way that's effectively disorienting. The band itself sounds great, very controlled, loud, though I'd prefer even a little bit more volume and energy. The enormous 50+ member guard is extremely well-integrated into the show, demonstrates a variety of skills, and is probably better than it has been since 2007. Unlike your typical Wes Cartwright show, they don't abuse the flag ocean, saving it only for the powerful last statement of the show. Anyway, my head says The Woodlands (or *maybe* Hebron) will win on Saturday, but my heart says Leander. So, I'm going with my heart, though I reserve the right to change my opinion when I realize that I've placed everything in its wrong place.

Going through the more recent videos, I actually think Leander could win the San Antonio Super Regional. They are unbelievable in that UIL video. What a wonderful show. I love how they use one of the progressions in Rocky Point Holiday to segue into Over the Rainbow at the end. It is so unexpected. Brilliant, brilliant stuff, and a really rousing closer to what was already a great show. Also, based on these videos, I'd be very surprised if Hebron or Marcus take the visual caption. (I guess that means I should replace Marcus as a nominee for the visual caption with Leander or a different group.) Then again, I'm going almost entirely on ensemble performance and not individual performance. Plus, they've got time to clean. It's not like it's the most desirable caption anyway. You just don't want it to cost you a win, which I know has happened to Marcus in the past (2006).

Knox,
 
Leander is certainly not a newcomer, unless you mean it more in the context of being in the
elite recently. They have a proud BOA history including a regional championship and a Grand
Nationals finals performance. They did however fall off the big radar for a few years but have
made great strides, and really stepped it up this year, to get back in the discussion of the best
bands in the state. I think they got new visual people they love right now, strong musically and
have one of the best guards in the state. That guard has really helped propel them as well.
They're not going away soon, they have tons of momentum, growing numbers and I'm close to
the program and know they have a great group of kids, attitude and talent right now. They really
believe in the product they are putting on the field right now and it shows. Even though people
know Leander, they are by far the 'most improved' or 'where did they come from' group this year.
I'm hopeful for a top 5 finish, maybe more, and a chance to fight for visual and GE captions overall.
Call me selfish but they can easily sweep 3A captions and win 3A convincingly at SA. They really
are a step above Cedar Park and Vandegrift this year. Gotta love LISD.

I know it goes against instinct to predict a (relative) newcomer to place higher than bands that are always on top, but Leander is looking and sounding far more exceptional than I was expecting. I'm going to go out on a limb and say they beat at least one of everyone's "top 5" (CTJ, Marcus, Bowie, Hebron, The Woodlands). At the very least, I'm willing to bet they are top 6.
 
REALLY wish they had taken this show to nationals, but oh well. Bet they would've taken the class AAA championship. Visually, I'd say they're currently near the top for Texas bands as well. 
 

 
 
As far as the order of the top 6 goes, I'm still really unsure. Hebron's music performance is incredible and I think they'll take the music caption (and probably win).
 
The Woodlands has a great design that musically is on par with what they had on the field last year in terms of GE. My favorite musical moment of any show I've seen this year is definitely when they play "Everything in its Right Place" by Radiohead. Super cool effect. However, their visual GE has taken a bit of a dip, but not a significant one. I'm honestly a little confused how they placed 3 whole points below CTJ at Conroe, but they're the same band that won a grand national class championship (GN semi-finals) 6 years before they even won their first regional championship, so by november I think they'll be at the top of their game. 
 
How Marcus, CTJ, and Bowie place in respect to each other is incredibly difficult to call. They have 3 very different show designs, and are 3 bands with very different strengths. I would hate for any band to be disappointed in their placements, but for one band to move up, one must move down. 
 
So that being said (and not having seen videos of Marcus or Bowie since BOA Denton and Austin respectively), my top 6 is now looking a lot like last year for CTJ and Bowie:
 
1. Hebron
2. The Woodlands
3. Bowie
4. CTJ
5. Leander
6. Marcus

I completely agree with you. 100% across the board, top six, bottom six. I think friends wood has a really good chance at making finals, but we will just have to wait and see! Finals is only 13 days away!

Top 6 I believe will be(in no particular order)
Hebron
Leander
The Woodlands
Claudia Taylor Johnson
James Bowie
Marcus
All of these bands will be in finals, almost guaranteed.
The next 6 bands also in no particular order
Flower Mound
Cedar Park
Round Rock
Ronald Reagan
LD Bell
Vandegrift
I believe the last 2 finals spots are up for grabs, some bands to look at would be
Vista Ridge
Richland
Plano East
Anderson
Aledo
Spring
Friends wood

Here are my thoughts on what I called the "Top Threats to the Top Five", as requested.
 
Flower Mound. For some reason, I thought this group was doing a bunch of Samuel Barber music, though it turns out that it's only their ballad that is by Samuel Barber. Anyway, their show this year is by far the best they've ever done. It opens calmly with concert French horns, and then it floors you, typical Texas GN finalist style, with a wall of sound. If I recall correctly, it then segues into Torke's Javelin. There's something about the calm and deliberate way that they play Javelin that reminds me of their neighbor, Marcus. The drill, while not extremely fast moving here, is also reminsicent of Marcus in its level of sophistication. I also love their color palette this year. Lots of purples and pinks and whatnot that look great on the green of the football field. The white columns from last year are put to good use, producing beautiful tapestries pulled out onto the field. The bassoons in the box during Barber's Violin Concerto is like a cherry on top, a little gift for the audience. (Careful with that double-reed intonation, though!) It's like a purple flower opening up on the field. I expect FM to comfortably make finals at Grand Nationals this year. Best of luck to them!
 
L.D. Bell. What is there to say about L.D. Bell, really? They're one of the most consistent groups in the state of Texas, and until recently, they were the best marching band in the state. While the level of the performance might not be what it was a few years ago, that's not saying all that much, because a few years ago they were the best. Their show this year, Vertical Meditations, has a creepy, Hollywood movie aesthetic to it. In parts, the guard and band seem to worship ladders. The general feel of the show is mysterious, dark, and gloomy. The audience is lulled into the nightmare with a very beautiful, but eerie flute solo-- something which seems to have become an L.D. Bell trademark. I love how the somewhat minimalistic, tango-like woodwinds in the opener give rise to pointed trombone attacks and glissandos. Even more, I like how all of this music is reflected in the visual package.
 
Leander. Who would have guessed that this group would have done as spectacularly well at BOA Austin as they ended up doing? Their show this year is just so far beyond what I expected from them that it's breathtaking. The opening drill is a masterclass in how less can sometimes be much, much more. It fits the music perfectly. The entire opener has a very suggestive feel to it, as if to indicate that something great is on the way. That's when they hit the ballad, which is far and away the best ballad of the year. Yes, it was sort of creepy of me, but I immediately looked up Leander's All-State results from last year to see if they had a clarinetist make it, because that clarinet solo is just an absolute wonder. The tone quality, the complete warmth of it, the way the phrases are perfectly contoured. Julliard, I say! Julliard! The ballad actually made my eyes get a *little* wet. That's a pretty powerful thing, especially since I was watching a video recording of it and not a live performance (and I'm not a terribly sentimental person). Anyway, Leander is my top pick for top threats to the top 5. When you see them, you'll understand why.
 
Round Rock. Top Five Grand National Finalist last year. If anything, that tells you to never rule out Round Rock from hitting a home run late season. I think in the early season video I saw of them, I mentioned something about there could be a bit more clarity in their sound. Round Rock is very much an exciting, wall-of-sound kind of band. They are in no need of energy or excitement, though a little more control would be a welcome late-season development. They open with Arabian Nights from Aladdin, which I found to be super charming and should thrill all the Disney lovers out there. They segue into The Wind and the Lion, and very quickly everything is fast, exciting, and Lassiter-esque. I absolutely love when they pull the Persian rug out onto the field. It's such an unexpected visual moment. I know some people criticize bands when their props don't do much but sit there, but I would argue that any prop, regardless of whether or not it's a cardboard cactus or a rocket ship that shoots off into the air, completely changes the visual balance of a program. For instance, I think Hebron's props added a ton of visual effect to their show, especially since it's clear that the drill was written with them in mind. It's all about that balance, and Round Rock understands this.

Top 5 (In no particular order):
-Claudia Taylor Johnson H.S.
-Hebron H.S.
-James Bowie H.S.
-Leander H.S.
-Marcus H.S.
 
6-10 (In no particular order):
-Flower Mound H.S.
-L.D. Bell H.S.
-Ronald Reagan H.S.
-Round Rock H.S.
-The Woodlands H.S.
 
11-14:
11.) Vandergrift H.S.
12.) Cedar Park H.S.
13.) Spring H.S.
14.) Vista Ridge H.S.

1-3) Hebron, Leander, or CTJ
4) Bowie
5) Marcus
6) TWHS
7) Round Rock
8) Flower Mound
9) L.D. Bell
10) Ronald Reagan
11) Vandegrift
12) Spring
13) Cedar Park
14) Aledo

Prediction:
1-3) Hebron, Leander, CTJ. No order.
4) Marcus
5) Bowie
6) The Woodlands
7) Round Rock
8) Flower Mound
9) LD Bell
10) Reagan
11) Cedar Park
12) Vandegrift
13) Spring
14) Vista Ridge