Coming Soon

I was expecting Hart's website to be up and running today, but it is still showing "coming soon". From the information I received the website should be up tomorrow, but I will reserve further comment until I see that actually happen. In the meantime registration at Harts is going at a steady pace, the deposit on costumes is $600.00 and two more sections have sold out:


White Mountain Female BLACK costume is sold out, the white costume is still available:


and both options of White Mountain male are sold out as well.


There are two turquoise/orange/brown female costumes with pheasant feathers on the headpiece, one I mentioned in an earlier post is sold out but the other option is still open. The one that is still open is called Shangrila and there is a pink/orange costume in that section as well. Now, the turquoise/orange/brown Shangrila costume is almost sold out with only a few spaces left, so here is hoping that if the website goes up tomorrow there will be costumes still available in that section.

I enquired about the option of registering via telephone since the website is not up and was told registration for overseas masqueraders can only be done on the website BUT you can call Nigel at 622-8038 (Harts mascamp) and ask him for more information.

$$$Money Matters$$

When I am discussing costumes and costume prices with my co-workers (who are not mas players) they are sometimes overwhelmed with my enthusiasm and astounded that I am willing to pay so much for a bra and panty covered with beads and feathers.

I don't know how to explain it to people who have never played mas, but there is no price you can put on that feeling of euphoria for those two days. Now I am not saying that the price of costumes have not been steadily rising while the product is simultaneously getting smaller. The ideology now with all-inclusive bands is that you are paying for more than a costume since we all know the costume costs nothing close to $3000.00.

My husband broke it down and justified the pricing for both me and my friend G by comparing Carnival Monday and Tuesday to an all-inclusive party spanning the course of two days. His philosophy is that the better all-inclusive parties cost around $500.00 from 6:00P.M. to 12:00 midnight. That's six hours of music, security, food and drinks.

Then by using the same principle you get food, drinks, music and security for 6 hours on average on Carnival Monday and 12 hours on Tuesday, using $500.00 as our standard that's $1500.00 for the all-inclusive component of Mas. Then add in all the "perks" such as transportation for latecomers, mobile resting stations, cool-zones and mobile toilets and chalk that up to another $500.00 per masquerader, even if you not using all the facilities it is still provided for you.

Finally you have your costume,(and frankly if you are going to a $500.00 all-inclusive you would have to get something new to wear) so the price of the costume will vary from bewteen $500.00 to $1000.00 because apart from raw materials you need labour to assemble it, box it and distribute it.

The final analysis is that you can justify the prices of $2600.00 to $3000.00 for a costume since it takes into consideration MORE than just the costume. It takes alot of money for the bandlaunching, renting Cascadia for hosting the costume viewing, printing all the TRIBE booklets with the costume information, setting up the lunch area on Monday and Tuesday, goody bags,plus paying their employees (in whatever form) and I am sure there are other cost overheads that I have not take in to consideration such as website hosting, telephone, lights, internet etc. Coming to think of it, I did this as a project for my Project Management class but on a smaller scale, my project was producing a section in a Carnival band and there are lots of hidden costs that I did not even have a clue about until I started talking to friends who have sections of their own.

Since I am not stupid and know the bandleaders will still make a profit come Ash Wednesday, I can see them making this proft through sponsorship to offset some of these costs. And, I know TRIBE has alot of sponsors that's why they give such a sweet goody bag!

So in the end I can say I am comfortable with the prices now, even though I have my ceiling on how much money I am willing to spend for two days of euphoria. Taking into consideration what I am getting for my money with TRIBE I can safely say it is worth it, since they do deliver on all their promises unlike other all-inclusive sections that I personally know of.

With the cost of living in Trinidad rising steadily and basic food items costing an arm and a leg it's not only mas that's being affected, everything is getting more expensive. If prices for costumes becomes ridiculously unattainable (though some may argue they are already unattainble to the working poor and are aimed at only the socioeconomic groups that can afford to drop $3000.000 on a costume) I think mas bands might just have to re-consider all-inclusive and offer costume only which works for HARTS (you have to pay extra for toilets and/or a drinks cart with lunch).

And if that is not an option for the future and prices continue to rise, then as much as I love Carnival I will have to consider playing mas every two years instead of every year. Though I can afford a $3000.00 costume now, I cannot afford it if every year the costs goes up since life does go on after Carnival. So for 2007 I plan to enjoy Carnival to the fullest, who knows, I might not be able to afford 2008 and will have save up my pennies for 2009 because Lord knows I am not putting myself in debt for Carnival.....but that is a whole other topic!

TRIBE Costume viewing

So I am back from viewing TRIBE's costumes at Cascadia and I took along a friend who has never played mas before but was very blunt and honest in her opinions on seeing the costumes up close in person. Firstly, I like the layout of the viewing area, there is ample room compared to the tiny area allocated to costumes in the mas camp. As you can see from my pics there were lots of people there already and we were very early. Newsday and Triniscene photograhpers were even on hand and I saw many people snapping pics of the costumes on their camera phones.

The two costumes that we both agreed were outstanding were Fireman and Fancy Sailor, my friend, who I will call G, said that both of them looked "richly decorated". I was surprised by how much I liked Fancy Sailor when seeing it this afternoon, that is one lovely costume. G also liked Dame Lorraine which I had to admit looked much prettier and detailed than on stage, the frontline Dame Lorraine (with the large headpiece) is very pretty.

Other costumes that we both liked and found to be better looking in person were Bat frontline and backline (though I still hate the backline headpiece), Pierrot Grenade Frontline , Cow Mas and Majorette.

Jamette has a fabulous headpiece with an abundance of plumes, however G said the beads on the belt looked cheap, in actuality they are clear red beads with paiettes at the ends, as they are light materials it does look cheaper than heavy beads. I liked the bustier, and for those who don't like the bustier there is also the option of a regular bra.

Dragon has been one of my favourites since I saw it at the launch and still is even though G did not like it for whatever reason (I think she finds it is too skimpy). The fabric on the bra and belt is a fuzzy material that you cannot see from photos. Pierrot Grenade is a cute costume, but again G found the strips of ribbon hanging from the belt looked cheap, though she liked the bra and the headpice.I think the fabric suffered some wear and tear to be honest, it did look a tad bit worn, but I honestly did not find it looked cheap.

Fancy Indians is nice as to be expected, but not spectacular since we have seen different versions of it before. Jab Molassie backline and Midnight robber were just bland, nothing to make you look twice. The yellow and orange Jab Jab were liked by both G and myself, but the pink screamed Anemone to me.

Jean and Dinah was not on display up until the time we left, and the one costume we both agreed rank lowest was Imp. On stage the costume looked great but hanging on the wall and even in the TRIBE book the costume does not look very appealing.

I tried to get an idea of what prices are going to be like since rumours are circulating of extraordinarily high prices for Carnival 2007, and even though he would not committ to giving exact prices, I was told by a TRIBE offical that the prices should be between $2600.00 and $3000.00 for the regular costumes. Frontline costumes and individual characters will be more.

Finally G also went with me to view Harts costumes and she said she prefers Harts costumes to TRIBE's. Being a newbie I will expect her to say that since Harts has the heavily beaded costumes and large, feathered headpieces that are really "in your face". Having played mas many years with HARTS I have grown tired of that type of costume even though I have to admit it is attractive and looks fantastic on the road. I am excited by the new mas designs that TRIBE and Island People have brought to the table, and I like that as added bonus you get an all-inclusive experience as well. For me mas is more than just a costume, to some the costume is the most important thing, the beauty of it is that you can be sure to find a band to suit you and your tastes.

Island People Launch

Sunday 27th at Hasley Crawford National Stadium

Masqueraders $125.00
Non-Masquerders $175.00

Tickets will be available at the Mas Camp between 1PM to 6PM from today until Saturday.

2-4-1 Drinks Specials all night.

For more info call the mas camp:
625-1386

Harts and TRIBE on Triniscene

Gone were the days when Triniscene was the only website you could find photos of Trini parties and events, now they are lagging behind when it comes to updating photos and their competitors are much quicker on the draw when it comes to posting photos. I guess they saved the best for last because they finally updated their website (after lots of Cropover galleries) and have both Harts and TRIBE photos.

Tribe has updated their website with the information I posted below from the email they sent me and I will be at Cascadia this afternoon taking in the costumes upclose and personal. Harts website is still saying "coming soon" and I have to get information on Island People's band launching! I know it will be at the Hasley Crawford stadium this coming Sunday but what about tickets?????????????

More TRIBE pics..............

With the plethora of photograhpers at TRIBE's launch I know more pics will surface over the time, but Trinipulse has two galleries up with lots of very good pics showing closeup shots of the costumes. The only caveat is you have to sign up as a member to view full sized version of the pics, though it is free, quick and easy.

The more I look at the pics the harder it is to decide on a costume choice. Now I have my favourite top three costumes, but each time I look at new photos something else appeals to me! I am now loving Imp frontline and Fancy Indian Soca Warriors version (my husband's new favourite) and they were nowhere near my top three last week. Also, I have to take back my earlier comment on Baby Doll being this year's Nylon Pool/Machu Pichu, I think Dragon is the skimpiest costume this year, damn that costume is wicked!

As for my poll, the top three results so far are as follows:

Fireman - 16 votes

Dragon - 15 votes

Fancy Indian - 8 votes.

No one has voted yet for Majorette..... maybe that will change when viewing opens tomorrow because it is actually a very nice costume. I am thinking of running the poll until registration day, so keep voting !

Pulse 8

With Island People rumored to drop a "surprise" bomb of having Rihanna model one of their costumes at their launch next Sunday it got me thinking of how competitive the mas arena is these days and how few choices there are compared to the number of people wanting to play mas.

With Poison out of the game there should be more than enough masqueraders to go around, some may even say that there will be a surpluss of masqueraders with no viable option of a band to play with.The fact is the top two large bands among the 18- 40 age group are Tribe and Island People( Harts has a niche clientele) . Each of those bands cater to roughly 3500 masqueraders, so you can see that the thousands upon thousands who were absorbed by Poison are now left "homeless".

Now that Tribe has their loyalty card system, effectively making it near impossible for new masqueraders to register with the band for 2007, I am guessing that Island People may have something similar since they did allow Galvanize supporters to register with them first last year.
So what options are there for persons who do not get/want to register with Tribe or Island People?

Well, coming out of Poison's depature from the Carnival scene are two bands, Pulse 8 and the Dream Team which is to be headed by Maxine Richards. And I have yet to hear anything about Sonia Mack though some sources are saying she has joined with Island People which remains to be seen, but as a designer and section leader her costumes and service has always been top mark so if she brings a band I know she will get alot of support.

I have seen nothing from the Dream Team as yet (and personally I do not find Maxine Richards' previous sections to be great, hope she hires a new designer for the band) but Pulse 8 had their media launch on July 11th and previewed a few costumes. Carnivalscene has photos from that launch and the few costumes look interesting ,albeit seemingly stamped with the Poison brand. I like the white costume, the gold is ok and that blue is not too appealing to me personally. With TRIBE and Island People creating a new standard in costume design, I think I am looking for something more than I have grown accustomed to when it comes to costumes.

To be fair, my sources have informed me that the sneak preview from Pulse 8 is only a teaser, the more spectacular costumes are still to be released so I am looking forward to see what will be revealed at their launch on September 3rd. Apart from having great costumes I know alot of my friends who always play with Poison are somewhat skeptical that Pulse 8 will be just another Poison with 50 sections and counting. From everything that I have read about Pulse 8 they will only have 14 sections and the entire band is all-inclusive, which is a great depature from the Poison formula of a mega band with individual all-inclusive sections and varying levels of service.

Each band that debuts for the first time has challenges as is to be expected, but something tells me that Pulse 8 will attract many masqueraders who have no interest in playing with the top two bands because they are perceived as "hoity" and populated with the young, thin, beautiful people. Masqueraders who have always enjoyed Poison's "we have more fun", bacchanalist, anything goes vibe will be looking for a substitue and so far, from the responses I have gotten from Poison loyalist, Pulse 8 looks like they fit the bill.

I can't wait to see what they bring to the table at their launch!

Email from TRIBE

Viewing of Costumes

You are invited to view the costumes which will be on display for one week at the Sky View Lounge, Cascadia Hotel on the following days:



Monday 21st to Friday 25th Aug. 2006 - 5:00pm to 8:00pm.

Saturday 26th - 12noon to 6pm





Website – www.carnivaltribe.com

Our website will launch on Monday 28th August and costume prices and down payment amounts will be posted by Wednesday 30th August 2006.





Tribe Loyalty Card (TLC) Distribution

2006 Masqueraders who have not yet collected their TLC can pick them up at Cascadia Hotel from

Monday 21st to Thursday 24th August, 5:00pm – 8:00pm.



Thursday 24th August is the FINAL DAY to pick up your TLC cards!



-Overseas Masqueraders

2006 masqueraders residing overseas must send their information by Tuesday 22nd August in order to obtain their TLC Code. A copy of a valid picture ID should be emailed to info@carnivaltribe.com or faxed (with email address attached) to 1-868-625-6800.



We are currently processing all the applications which have already been emailed or faxed to us, and we will be sending you your TLC soon.



-2005 Masqueraders

We are making every effort to accommodate 2005 masqueraders who were unable to return and play with us in 2006. Therefore we are asking such masqueraders to email us at info@carnivaltribe.com with your name and contact information. (Stating the section you played in 2005 will assist us in expediting your request.) Costume packages will be allocated on a “first come, first serve” basis. You will be contacted via e-mail with information regarding your TLC process.



-New Masqueraders

Please keep posted to the website for information regarding your registration process.





Registration

Registration will begin in early September for TLC Masqueraders only. Dates and times will be posted on the website from Monday 28th August 2006.

So that is the email I got from TRIBE last night, the website has not been updated with those new details so if you were expecting the new website to be up on Monday like me, it appears that we have another week to wait again as it's Monday the 28th that the new site will be up.

What I find interesting is that after all this we still have to wait until the 30th of August to find out prices and downpayment amounts? steups! If anyone knows the prices email meh ! trinicarnivaldiary@yahoo.com. I already hear the downpayment will be $900.00 if you did not know before.

Well I guess they are really being generous for masqueraders who might be waiting to see what Island People has to offer. Maybe they don't want us signing up in two bands so they are giving us enough time to check out the competition before staking a claim in either band.Or maybe they are not lettting anything out of the bag until AFTER Island People has launched for a reason, hmm, I wonder why? I do have to say thanks to TRIBE though, thanks for waiting until after month end to start registration!

Oh, and here is another interesting piece of information that I read in the Newsday yesterday; Peter Elias and Calvin French's section is Jean and Dinah. Now, this is news to me since I am sure I read on another website that Peter Elias will be designing for Pulse 8, who will be having their official launch on September 3rd at Zen.

Video clips!

Here is a clip of the Fancy Sailor section, I like the traditional sailor man dancing his mas. For those without dsl or a highspeed connection the video will be choppy.

For a bigger clip of the video check this link and the following links for more video clips.
I apologise in advance for the poor quality but that is all I had to work with:

Jamette:

Pierrot Grenade:

Jean and Dinah




Enjoy!

Running on "Trini Time"

So I woke up this morning, clicked on the url for Harts website,waited for the page to load fully, only to be greeted with a COMING SOON steups!



Harts sticking because before today when I visited the website there was a message saying that the website will be up on August 18th. Now it is a wait and see situation, maybe the site will be up later today or maybe sometime over the weekend, who knows when. I guess I should be thankful that they took the time to change the information to "coming soon".

As for Synergy TV, I well prepare myself at 9:00 P.M. last night to take in the show on Tribe's launch. Imagine my surprise when five minutes past nine the show had not started as yet.......so I waited and waited and waited some more until finally the show started about 17 minutes later than the advertised time!

The actual show was so poorly done that I was vex I wasted 45 minutes of my life on it. Alot of time was sucked up with advertisements and the actual content of the show consisted of Peter C. Lewis chatting with people at the launch, pointing out which women he would horn his wife with and a few seconds of the actual costumes on stage.

Then, all of a sudden they started showing music videos! There was no wrap up by Peter C., no credits rolling, nothing to indicate that after only 20 minutes, of which half were advertisements that the show had ended. I am guessing they ran out of time and had to move on with the schedule but I only got to see three costumes on stage before the abrupt end. Needless to say I will not be wasting my time on Synergy again, unless they get their act together. Seems like everything in Trinidad either does not run on time or is poorly done or leaves people hanging! See why I have to choose a Mas band carefully ?

Loyalty Cards and Loyalty to Friends

Now I am the kind of person who can go the movies by myself or hop in my car and go to the mall alone, I don't really need company, maybe that comes from being an only child but I consider myself to be very independent. After being somewhat dependent on other people's decisions, or indecisions, when it came to playing mas I made a promise to myself that for 2007 I would be playing in the section/band I wanted to whether my usual mas cohorts were in agreement or not, even if that meant I would be playing alone.

I have played mas solo once before, the very first time I played "big people mas" (I have been playing mas since 5 years old). What happened is that the friend I had signed up with decided she did not want to play anymore, and since I made the deposit for us both I was stuck with her costume and the dilema of if to play mas by myself, or not. Well, I decided that I was not going to let her ruin my plans, so I sold her costume and made up my mind that I was playing mas that year alone. The girl I sold the costume to was a tourist who was visiting with friends and decided at the last minute she wanted to play mas. When they heard that I was abandoned by my friend they invited me to lime with them on Monday and Tuesday. And even though I was quite young and somewhat shy, I limed with them and made lots of other "friends" in the section that day. Apparently Carnival time is a time when we make friends readily and easily!

The only thing that worried me was getting home after playing mas so my family met me at the Savannah after I crossed the stage and then they joined in the band as we chipped our way the rest of the evening. It may seem intimidating to play mas without company but it can also be very liberating as the only opinions you have to listen to are yours. As long as I am meeting someone when it gets dark to accompany me home I feel quite safe playing mas by myself. Besides, I always seem to bounce up someone I know in other sections so it's not like I feel I don't know a soul in the band at all.

So it is with little concern that one of my friends has started fussing that we might not be in the same section. She is a 2005 Tribe masquerader(missing mas this year becuase she was pregnant)and I have my TLC card, so chances are we may end up in two different sections for 2007 IF she decides she is still playing mas since she does not want to play in a section alone. What I don't understand however, is why that should matter since the entire band is all-inclusive, freeing you from staying at one truck and enabling you to lime in any section for the day.We can jump up all day together and therefore I don't see a problem. The only time he would need to get in ger section is to cross the stage.

Now my friend is saying that she does not want to be in a section by herself, and I am not too sure if she wants me to wait and register with her so we can both have the same chance of getting in the same section, but that ain't happening! After looking at the costumes since the launch I have already selected the section that I like the most, and if having the TLC card increases my chances of getting to register for that section I am not waiting on anyone, even if I have to play alone.

Website Launch, Vieiwing and Regsitration

Even though Tribe has not launched their new website they have updated the old website with recent information (I guess they get tired of the flood of calls, including mine!)

So if you have not taken a look at www.carnivaltribe.com recently, here is the information they have given:

The Website Launch

The Website will be launched the week begining 21st August 2006. Here, you may view the costume designs and learn more about our 2007 presentation.

Costume Viewing

Prior to registration, there will be a period of approximately one week, when masqueraders can visit the viewing centre (Cascadia Hotel) to get a close-up look at the costumes. Viewing will begin next week - stay posted for details.

Masquerader Registration

One of Tribe’s main objectives is to continuously improve the level of quality and service presently enjoyed by our valued masqueraders. We can only achieve this by ensuring that the band is kept at a manageable size. After much deliberation the process outlined below was thought to be the most practical and equitable.

To be fair to those who have loyally supported us in the past, we have decided to approach the registration process on a phased basis. Our 2006 masqueraders will be given the opportunity to register first, followed by 2005 masqueraders, then new masqueraders.

Masqueraders can register (via the internet and in-house) only if they have ‘TLC’. ‘TLC’ is your Tribe Loyalty Card which contains a Unique Code assigned to your Name. 2006 masqueraders can collect their TLC and tickets for the launch at Cascadia Hotel, St. Anns from Friday 4th August to Friday 11th August 2006.

Persons collecting TLC's and tickets on behalf of other masqueraders must present a copy of that masquerader's valid picture ID along with their relevant contact information. (e-mail address, phone number etc.)

Please note that the 'TLC' is non-transferable/assignable and the benefits of the TLC will only be extended to the loyal masquerader to whom the card is assigned.

From the Monday 14th August to Monday 21st August, 2006 masqueraders residing overseas need to fax (625-6800) or email a copy of valid picture ID to us, along with a working email address. Your Tribe Loyalty Code will be emailed to you upon verification.
e-mail address: - info@carnivaltribe.com

Registration will begin at the end of August 2006. Dates and times of registration will be posted on the website soon.

So, the end of August registration I am thinking will be between the 28th, 29th and 30th since the 31st is a Holiday. Only one thing they did not address in that update and that's if TLC cards will be issued to 2005 Masqueraders...so I guess I will still have to call them today!

EDITED TO ADD:
I called the mas camp about 2005 Masqueraders and was informed that they will not be issued a TLC card. However if you played in 2005 your name will be on the database (providing the costume was purchased in your name) and an email will be sent to you with information on your (2005) registration date/s. I have to sign up for a friend who played in 2005 but is not in the in the country at this time, so I was told to walk with a photocopy of her photo I.D. on the day.

I am just hoping we all get to play in the same section, but as it stands now I highly doubt it!

Harts update....

So I made my journey to Harts this afternoon and one section is sold out already. The lovely turquoise and orange costume, Aztlan is SOLD OUT. The cost of that one is $2265.00, for those still interested.



There is an alll female section in a myriad of colours called Imagine, it reminds me of another all female section from Harts a few years ago. That section is going for a $3050.00 and is the most expensive.

The brown feathered costume that I like is called Benin and comes in two versions, the small headpiece pictured here for $1875.00 and a larger headpiece for $1895.00. The more expensive version is slightly different in that has more beads instead of feathers and the headpiece is the "showgirl" design with the molded head and feathers shooting out the middle (like Atlantis' headpiece).



From my observation the cheapest female costume is White Mountain, pricing at $1615.00 for the small headpiece and $1880.00 for the larger headpiece.



The only other costume that I found to be outstanding is a blue and silver number called Atlantis, it's a pretty shade of blue with large silver sequins on the bra and belt.That costume is $2140.00



As to be expected there were many people at the mas camp and more showing up as we were leaving. The prices seem reasonable, but the band is not all-inclusive so you are paying for costume ONLY.

*all photos are from www.islandevents.com

Tribe registration 2006

Those photos are ones I took last year on the day that Tribe opened for registration. Now, I had no plans on going to the mas camp that day since I had made many trips prior to the opening of the mas camp for registration to view costumes. Tribe's claim that online registration would make the process quicker and easier had me confident that I could register at my computer without leaving the office.

Imagine my frustration when at the time the website was up for registration it crashed! I guess they did not anticipate that the site would take so many hits in such a short space of time, and as I started at my computer willing the page to load faster I realised I had to get to the mas camp as soon as possible or I could forget registering in my first choice section.

Well, when we got to the mas camp (my husband and best friend in tow) we were greeted with the scene pictured above. A mass of people, some waiting for hours, were lined up patiently waiting for the gates to open. Some were sitting on the pavement with laptops on their knees, most likely hoping that the site would spring to life before the gates opened.

Being the resourceful person that I am, I made my way to the front of the crowd (yeah, I skipped the line!) and positioned myself for when the gates opened, all the time chatting with the guard who was used to seeing my face as I had been to the mas camp all week. The end result was that as the gates open I was able to slip in and went about registering my friend and myself, ignoring the comments from all the angry people who were most likely in disbelief that I was so boldface.

So, with the introduction of the TLC card I am very curious to see how registration plays out this year. With the TLC card, we were also assigned a password which we have to use with the number on the TLC card to login to the website for registration. The thing is, when I enquired if we can register at the mas camp I was informed that you will be registering via computer at the mas camp as well. I guess they have even more confidence that the website will not crash this year, maybe that's why they are doing registration in phases.

Since I will be in the first phase of registration be sure I will report on how the process went. I find it very disheartening though that to get the costume you like, all this thought, time and effort has to go into registering. Gone are the days when you could take your time to deliberate over a costume, or wait until you get paid to register or even wait to see what the other bands have to offer. I can only foresee that it will get worse, with Poison gone space in one of the more popular Carnival bands will be at a premium and open the doors for some sort of corruption. Don't be surprised if TLC cards go up for sale!

First Look at HARTS

Islandevents.com has the first photos from Harts Band Launching along with TWO galleries from TRIBE.

As I sit here checking out the Harts photos, it reconfirmed the decision that I made to leave the band a few years ago.

Don't get me wrong, the costumes are beautiful as always, appears to be well made as always but I can't help but get a sense of deja vu when I look at the costumes. I would think that they would move with the times and at least do live models at the launch, but I guess they have made a baby step up from the days when they only showed drawings at the launch, today I see they have actual costumes displayed, in addition to photographs.

The studio photographs with the black background makes the costumes look like the same as last year's though, in fact alot of the costumes fit within the Harts mold/brand/stamp from when I played with them years ago.That cape, though a Harts standard, should be retired by now. Nothing makes the costumes look more like a Las Vegas show girl than that cape!

Maybe if they were photographed differently the costumes would look a little fresher, as I do see some nice designs such as brown/copper feathered costume that reminds me of Tribe's Amazonia. Oh, and for those of you who were wondering if the Indian Mas made a return for 2007, yes, I see two versions of Harts' signature Indian costumes for males.

All in all from what I have seen it's typical Harts; the costumes don't fit any theme that I can readily and easily distinguish , they have the lavish feathered headpiece, heavily beaded costume and some of the same shades of blue, pink, and green that have made up Harts' colour palette throughout the years.

I think, if they are open for vieiwing, I will pop into the mas camp today just to have a look at the costumes in person.I will say though that Harts has it's niche in the Carnival market and that's what makes them a success after all these years. For alot of their masqueraders there is no alternative, Harts is the only band that they would consider playing with. I guess that's why they have not changed their forumula since I was an avid masquerader "if it ain't broke why fix it?"

Tidbits

So someone called me on my way to work this morning to say they saw me on Synergy T.V., apparently on Thursday evening they will be showing a taped broadcast of TRIBE's launch, and they got a shot of me upfront and center!

If you want to see the broadcast of the launch, tune in to Synergy T.V. on Thursday the 17th of August at 9:00 p.m.

Also, Leasel Rovedas' section is Imps (I am liking the frontline wings on that costume) and Bridget/Rachel Pouchet (Tales of Benguela, Achaean Odyssey) will not be bringing a section this year.

The updated website should be up on Monday August 21st and the costumes will be open for viewing first, followed by registration for 2006 Masqueraders,then 2005 Masqueraders and everyone else afterwards (if they still have costumes available!)

Harts website is showing the 2007 banner, but will be available for viewing on Friday 18th August, I can't wait to see their costumes.

And we have pics!

Finally, some "professional" (yuh know without the blue Gatorade bottle like mine!) photos of TRIBE's costumes. Carnivalscene.com is first on the ball with Gallery #1 of 2.

Now it's only a matter of time before TRIBE updates their website, and you know that' s another thing that bugs me about these bands. If you have the launch planned for Saturday night, why can't the website be updated on Sunday morning? Why are we still seeing the frontpage for "What lies Beneath?"steups!

Anyways, enjoy the photos, they have some nice close up shots of the costumes and you can see details much better. Take a close look at Pierot Grenade female and all the ribbon on the bra, I find that costume is really well decorated. But I still find the pink Jab Jab looks like Anemone, the male costumes looking real good and that for all those who say the Bat is a joke with the small wings, the frontline Bat has some BIG wings eh (though I never see a charteuse bat in meh life!).

Hearsay, Mauvais Lange and Mas

I have been checking out some comments about TRIBE's costumes on other forums (apart from IMIX) and I have to say Trinis have their own special brand of badtalking, especially when they get third and fourth hand information. If you were not at the launch why say "yuh hear it fail" or that "yuh hear people were laughing at the costumes". That is just so ignorant!

These designers, from all the bands, have put alot of time and effort into their costumes and I think that we have to remember that when we make criticisms. I appreciate constructive criticsim especially when it comes to costume design since the masquerader is the customer and some of these designers try to get away with a shoddy product. I also value comments about the relevance of the theme to the costume portrayal, queries about the value of the product for the price and of course the fact that some bands may be using discriminatory practices to keep certain masqueraders out of the band. Again, not going on hearsay but facts. All the alleged rumors and inside talk about race, politics and backstabbing I take with a grain of salt until I have proof that it's true.

Listen, TRIBE, Island People, Pulse 8, actually none of the Carnival bands putting money in my pockets, I am not affiliated to any of them and they not giving me a free costume. I will play with any band that meets MY criteria, and trust me I have my standards set pretty high. So, why do other people find it constructive to try and bring down a band because of some pre-conceived bias?

If you don't like a band, watch their costumes, screw up your face, say what you like or don't like but don't get caught up in the band vs band battle. You not getting anything from TRYING to bring down a band, especially one that will still sell out in two days no matter how much people badtalk them (in fact I think the badtalk does only make them stronger).You have your favourites, good for you,life is about variety, play with whichever band you like, but at the end of the day don't forget it is all about the money.I am sure that the band leaders laughing all the way to the bank come the end of Carnival. And while some people getting caught up in throwing stones at other bands the same bandleaders are friends with one another!

So, get over all this nonsense and enjoy the mas,enjoy the Carnival, enjoy the fact that you have so many choices now and that competition is healthy. I expect all bands to come good with their presentations for 2k7, bring on the mas!

Recap of the Launch Party

For those of you who have come to this blog looking for photos since TRIBE's website has not updated nor are there any other photos from the launch on the regular photosites, you can also view more photos in Island Mix's TRIBE Gallery (including some of mine).

Now that I have had my rest over the weekend I just wanted to make some comments about the launch itself. Last year's launch was better, and I am not just saying that because it was FREE drinks, but this year's launch was lacking in some aspects.

The free drinks last year was great, the 2-4-1 specials this year would have been great if ALL drinks were 2-4-1 and the bars were in such a mess! I don't know how you could have offered free drinks last year and the bars were running smoothly and this year to get a drink at the bar you had to wait for at least 5 minutes!

Another thing that bugs me is the chit system, I know there is probably some accounting or safety reasons for using chits, but I personally find you always end up with a few unused chits after the party is over. And, the difference is that at other parties you can take in the chits before you leave and get back cash, but not at TRIBE's launch..I ended up with a $1.00 left over, and only because I tried my best to get a drink for the $8.00 chits I still had left.

Even though the launch was not drinks inclusive we still had a fair share of "complimentary" drinks from Malibu, Baileys and Hennessy who had their "girls" dishing out samples for the patrons who got there before the show started. If you missed it, tough luck, the girls were quite generous, giving you two drinks at a time so that took care of the drinks for me, I only spent $20.00 in chits for the whole night! Also, TRIBE gave you a chit for a free drink at the door. At first I was misinformed from other patrons that the free chit only entitled you to juice, and they gave me their chits. Imagine my surprise when I went to get a cranberry juice and the bartender asked if I wanted vodka with it! Thanks to all the people who gave me their chits, but I thought you should know that you could have gotten both rum and vodka with your juice!

I liked the position of the stage this year, but the decor to me could have been more elaborate. I was really digging the aquarium vibe at last year's launch and all the glitter on the floor (which was copied promptly by another band at their launch). The fabric with lights was pretty lame and I found that they could have done some huge cut outs of the ole time characters and place them all over the venue, or have the costumed ole time characters walking through the crowd. I give them kudos for the Moko Jumbies, but that has been done before.

The give aways are always a nice touch since people seem to like freebies, it is also good marketing for their sponsors since I have about half a dozen digicel blinking necklaces, two cups, a drawstring bag, a blinking digicel whistle and some perfit panty liners..oh, and just to add the full length mirrors at the ladies toilets/washroom area ..BRILLIANT!

Finally I have to say Kees the Band sucked, don't get me wrong they put out a good effort and a somewhat decent show BUT Destra and Atlantik last year was 100% better. I mean, Kees the Band has ONE original song and the rest are covers of other people's hits. I think they did nothing to up the energy of the crowd, that's where Island People excelled at their launch last year..they had Machel Monanto!

All in all I was really there for the show and in that aspect I was not disappointed. I hope to make it to Island People's launch on the 27th of August, they better had come good with the party AND the costumes (though I expect the costumes will be on FIRE!!).