Ierie Love.....

Heaven and Earth...

Cupid/Love - Red with WINGS!!Medium sized,feathered Wings

Ierie (irie) - Red, Yellow and Green.... of course!

New Kids On The Block...

Trinidad Carnival 2009 will see three more new bands enter the arena; Elements, Kaotic and Spice. This is in addition to the new bands that debuted in 2008; Ronnie & Caro, Evolution, Wee International and D Krewe plus the bands already in existence such as Harts, Island People, Mc Farlane, TRIBE, Pulse 8, Dream Team, Legacy, Genesis, Masquerade, Trevor Wallace, Image Nation, and Trini Revellers. That makes a total of 19 fairly popular bands (medium and large category) that masqueraders will have to choose from. We all know some bands will have more success than others in attracting masqueraders with the popular large bands being the most sought after.

From what I have seen of teaser costumes from the new bands so far they are all attractive, some more spectacular than others, however, I know very well that basing a choice to play mas with a specific band over another going by costume only is not always a wise move; other factors should motivate potential masqueraders in choosing the right band for them.

I expect that all new bands would have hiccups; TRIBE reached the Savannah at night in their debut year of 2005 due to a route detour to avoid waiting behind massive band Poison, not to mention their costume distribution was a mess because the mas camp was too small. Island People suffered late costume distribution because costumes were stuck in China when they burst unto the scene in 2006. Pulse 8 had to scrap a whole section because “materials did not arrive on time” in 2007 and in 2008 both Evolution and D Krewe had problems with costumes being delivered to masqueraders on time. Most of us were willing to give these bands a second chance, sometimes third, because other areas made up for the shortcomings, even though it seemed as if some bands took much longer to get their act together than others. So, note to new bands, masqueraders are forgiving people, but that does not mean you should not try your best to give us all that our hard earned money pays for and what is promised when trying to lure us to play with you!

For me I would hope that in addition to having gorgeous costumes the new bands that want to make an impact might be willing to heed some of the following suggestions coming from me, an avid lover of mas:

1. That costume prototypes displayed at the launch are what masqueraders get; no skimping on beads, sequins, baubles and feathers!
2. Online registration and website services should be made available on time so that overseas masqueraders get the same priority for registration as those locally based.
3. Prices are competitive, higher prices will not make your product more exclusive as you have NO history on which to sell the “experience”.
4. Costumes get into the country on time (for those ordering costumes wholesale) and are distributed on the days they are supposed to be distributed and with ALL pieces intact.
5. Road management is on point; lots of drinks, good flow of the band, adequate security.

Now some feedback is wanted from all you other masqueraders. If you decide to play with one of the new bands entering the Carnival arena what criteria would influence you to give them your support, and money, having no prior history to go by? What concerns do you have in playing with a new band and what assurances would you like to have to know that all that is promised is delivered and if not what compensation would be fair for a breach of this contract?