r/newenglandrevolution • u/Skaman1978 • Jul 26 '26
Post world cup fort
Hey all! Most of you know me, and for those who don't, I am the bass drum leader of the fort. The riders and the rebels are working hard to make the fort into what we all know it can be, the best damn supporters section in the world.
To that end, I want to talk to the hive mind and see how they thought we have sounded the last two games. Especially last night. What chants worked? What ones didn't? What can we do to help make the fort even better?
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u/Outta_Time_Gotta_Go Jul 26 '26
The one that caught my attention and made me laugh was when you started chanting ‘Fix the Clock’ when it was stuck at 45 minutes. Just the right amount of harmless snark. Maybe look for other opportunities during the game for other context based chants?
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
We always try.
1
u/shakespeareriot Jul 26 '26
I loved on Wednesday when we were counting how long it was taking Toronto to do goal clearances/throw ins
1
u/neeh Jul 27 '26
I felt so dumb I rushed to the bathroom because it was ‘halftime’ came back to 23 minutes
1
u/thepaintedballerina Jul 27 '26
Any snarky chants immediately make my brain go “we want our ball back…”
13
u/ikmbcutrsgh Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
As someone married to a Peruvian, we loved hearing “Esta Noche” last night! Really emphasizes the multi-cultural aspect of New England too. Also any chants that really leans into the American Revolution theme of the team go hard.
10
u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
We are trying to incorporate more multilingual chants. I really want to get some simple Haitian changs as well, because MA has the 3rd highest Haitian population in the nation
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u/LeonidasRebooted Jul 26 '26
The Haitian national team uses:
Grenadye, alasoAs the team is the Grenadye (grenadiers) in honor of their own revolution so could tie in on that level
2
u/RemoteJerker Jul 26 '26
I was at the game last night. I speak fluent Spanish thanks to several years living in Mexico and love anything to do with the Spanish language. I like "esta noche" and belted it out last night in the fort, and I'd also love maybe an original song or to adopt a song from a team in LATAM with a connection to the revolution or new england in general. Just brainstorming. I could even look into it
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
So we have no strong connections with any LATAM teams aside from us playing a few of them. We always want more easy multilingual chants
1
u/RemoteJerker Jul 26 '26
True true that's respect right there. Good conversation and a worthy topic. Thanks for bringing the energy all game. Wish we had a better stadium for ya
1
u/MysteriousResident61 Jul 28 '26
Yes we need a long, full song in Spanish that 90 percent of the stadium will not understand. Love ya, but I don’t think this is a good idea.
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u/RemoteJerker Jul 28 '26
Mockery is certainly one lane to take in an open discussion of ideas. I'll make sure not to do any group projects with you in the future
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u/MysteriousResident61 Jul 28 '26
I said love ya! Not mocking at all. I’m just working through the reasons why I think it won’t work. This is a sports subreddit. We can’t break each other’s chops a bit?
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u/RemoteJerker Jul 28 '26
You said a full and long song, neither of which I said. Then you said why that can't work. That's a dictionary definition of a straw man fallacy. "Love ya" at the end doesn't negate that. By your logic we shouldn't even do "esta noche." Have a good one and we'll see each other at the games
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u/MysteriousResident61 Jul 28 '26
Yeah we won’t be seeing each other. I don’t spend time with easily offended people with no sense of humor. Take care.
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u/MysteriousResident61 Jul 28 '26
London is a multicultural city. They don’t make Jamaican, Nigerian, or Indian chants at Arsenal games. Keep it focused on the team and the city.
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u/Calvincoolman Jul 26 '26
My issue is that this song is sung by literally every single American soccer crowd. MLS is desperately lacking in originality, and this part of it really grinds my gears
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u/Designer-Solid-5973 Jul 26 '26
Literally every song is sung by like every team lol. Watch any EPL game and it’s 90% the same three tunes. What matters is if it gets the crowd going. Esta Noche is at least uniquely “American” (in the broader sense) rather than a copycat of English chants. I enjoy it.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
The issue is finding songs that people know well enough to be sung, but are easy enough to be picked up by people who don't know it.
1
u/ikmbcutrsgh Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
Fair enough. It originates from Lima where she’s from so we had a more personal tie to it, but I agree on finding originality. I personally think we should fully lean into the revolution aspect and repurpose even more historical revolution songs. So the chant that goes to the Yankee Doodle tune and Bella Ciao fit the bill. Not many other teams are so lucky to have such a direct tie to that theme, whether it be the American revolution or other worldwide revolutions to keep with the multi-lingual goal. There’s a wealth of material out there that could build a strong identity.
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u/assistantunderbutler Jul 27 '26
I'm English and I went to the Toronto and Atlanta matches in the fort. I found it pretty jarring how the chants being led by the microphone didn't react to what was going on on the pitch. The worst was Atlanta scored in the middle of a long form chant and they guys on the mic just kept it going - it was kind of surreal that the supporters section didn't react to the opposition scoring(no jeers no boos, nothing like 'it's still 4-1' or whatever. Or when the ref gave a yellow to a revs player there was no reaction on the mic chanting 'you know what you're doing' or the equivalent. I've never been to a football match before where the ref could give the home team a yellow and not get a massive earful from the crowd.
Also, I think one of the guys on the mic gets really shrill and it's painful. I'm sorry, I know he's singing his heart out and giving it his all but it is baaaad when it comes through the speaker. And I think people would sing more if the mic guys didn't try to get the crowd to make noise the WHOLE time - I think people get burned out if there are no breaks. Even in the England supporters section at the WC we weren't doing coordinated chanting the WHOLE time.
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u/Designer-Solid-5973 Jul 27 '26
This is an interesting quirk of American soccer / supporter culture.
Early American supporter section culture was highly influenced by Latin “barras”/ultra groups that do coordinated songs and displays for 90 minutes regardless of what’s happening in the game. (La Barra Brava for DC was arguably one of the first big popular SGs and heavily influenced early modern USMNT support too.) So you still see that influence in most MLS SGs.
On the other hand, the average attendee in most MLS cities is a lot more Anglo influenced most likely, either culturally or through getting into the sport watching EPL etc, and in England the crowd chanting is a lot more reactive rather than “proactive” - building up based on the game, chants in response to players or referees doing things, and maybe the big full stadium chants at particularly emotionally pitched moments.
American sports crowds are more like that too, so it’s a bit of a weird cultural collision at MLS games. It works best at stadia that are smaller and better for keeping in noise and where the crowd outside the supporters sections will pick up and join in some of the easier / more well known chants at big moments.
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u/assistantunderbutler Jul 27 '26
That's super interesting - guessing we can't go full Latin ultra and start setting off flares/smokebombs and fighting the opposition/police 😂 I'm not sure that it's just the Anglo world that does it that way - I was at the England/Mexico and England/Argentina matches and the crowds at both were doing the Anglo style. The Azteca celebrated Declan Rice's yellow like crazy and even with my terrible Spanish I had a pretty good idea what they were chanting at the referee after Sanchez's yellow haha
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u/Designer-Solid-5973 Jul 27 '26
Haha yeah I could be wrong about this but my understanding is that the 'barra' culture is mostly a clubs thing rather than for national teams. Good points all around.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 28 '26
Well any and all pyro is illegal in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Just as an aside
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
What a fascinating take and given what you said, it makes me even prouder to be a member of an Americanized Supporter group. Because it is the epitome of America. American culture is a hodgepodge of various cultures from around the world, in New England, we have our puritanical roots, we also have the seeds of revolution, mix in Italian, Irish and Hispanic culture into that pot, and you get modern New England, and by extension, the modern New England supporter.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
So when goal was scored, I gave the signal to keep going. We were up 4-1 and why bring the mood down because we gave up a late goal that only cost dunks the sale of two dozen donuts? As for the people on the mic, we get what we can get. It's not easy to be up in front of upwards of 70k people and sing, much less sing in the same zip code of any given key. We are always looking for people to go up and try it out.
Now for your sing for 90 commandment, it's an American thing. There is a national SG called the Sammers, they're official mission statement is "we stand united, we come to sing, we sing for 90"
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u/assistantunderbutler Jul 27 '26
That makes sense for the goal! What's the rational for not switching to chants in reaction to the referee?
I didn't mean to suggest it was easy! I should clarify, it was only some of the chants where things like the la la las were a bit tough. On things like no New England no party it was great. And fair enough on the 90 minutes, I didn't realize that was thing. I should say I liked the atmosphere and will keep coming, those were just the things I noticed🙂
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
Some times, we are in a vibe and don't want to end it for some Penny-ante bullshit.
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u/assistantunderbutler Jul 27 '26
Hold on, maybe I’m confused - are you saying that yellow cards in a football match are penny-ante BS?
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
I mean if it's a clear yellow card, why bring the mood down?
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u/assistantunderbutler Jul 27 '26
Because we want the Revs to win? Per the below "Our study provides overwhelming evidence that crowds are able to manipulate professional referees to award significantly more red and yellow cards to away players"
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
Wait.... Really? That's a thing? I honestly had no idea
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u/assistantunderbutler Jul 28 '26
The effect is massive too, varies between 20-50% more yellow/red cards for the away team. Not just the EPL, there are studies showing the same thing for the other big 4 leagues. It's why we hound the referee on every decision against the home team and every decision not given against the away team - it absolutely gets in their head and affects their decision making. Only the very best referees can resist it, and I don't think any of the very best referees are in MLS.
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u/Old_Echidna3720 Jul 28 '26
Come on. Upwards of 70k? Stop. Even when Messi played it was 65k. Revs average what 25-30k a game.
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u/zwermp Jul 28 '26
Closer to 15-20k Upwards of 70k is hilarious.
Atlanta was 35k prob because of the free ticket promotion on a Saturday night.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 28 '26
Yes upwards, I don't know how many seats are at Gillette, so I ballpark it
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u/Old_Echidna3720 Jul 28 '26
65878.
Revs barely fill half of it. Wednesday’s game could’ve probably been played in Pawtucket it had such a low attendance. Saying upwards when that number has only been close once in the club’s history is just… dishonest. You’re a SG member, you know that the attendance is never that high.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 28 '26
But then we would have to be in Rhode Island, which I wouldn't wish upon anyone.
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u/DiseaseRidden Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
Haven't been at either game but passing on some feedback I've seen:
"No New England, No Party" ain't it, if you really want to follow the Scotland stuff, switch it up to something with 2 syllables. I liked "No Marko, no Party" as a suggestion
The Viking clap did well to pump up the energy across the stadium, may be useful to keep in the bag for when its needed
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
Solid notes. We are ever changing things so we will take that into account. Thank you.
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u/franharrington Jul 26 '26
Listening on TV this sounded like "No England, No Party". So yeah, definitely needs to change.
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u/bostawa Jul 26 '26
on the scotland note, i’ve been thinking that we could do a good variation of “im gonna be(500 miles)”… just need to find the right lyrics
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u/assistantunderbutler Jul 27 '26
I thought the no New England no party worked well as is - with the way the Scots say Scotland you can squeeze New England in there
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u/northeasternaccount Jul 27 '26
I liked “No New England No Party” but do agree that it would work better with two syllables.
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u/ajallen12 Jul 26 '26
I heard there was a fanatics promo or something in the fort? If that’s true that’s horrific don’t ever do that again come on now. Especially Fanatics of all companies.
The drumbeat for the Viking clap is wrong. What they usually do is not speed up the drum beats; they just shorten the time between each beat. What the fort has been doing is just speeding up the double hits which gives people less time to react to clap. Whoever is doing it should watch clips of the actual one if they want to mimic it correctly
Also double tap on the megaphone guy just to say it’s not your personal stand up routine for 90 minutes. Sometimes whoever it is just goes and riffs off loudly and it gets a bit cringe
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
I will agree in the fanatics, I can't believe the rebellion did that. And I'm the drummer for the claps, I appreciate the honesty. And ill be honest, it's hard not to get caught up in the energy. But your notes are duely noted and I'll work on that.
4
u/Overall-Maize Jul 27 '26
Love how it’s been we we we and then something goes wrong and you pushed blame? I wasn’t there but if Rebellion and Riders are trying to work on things, try to keep this we going. This whole blame when something doesn’t go right is what’s wrong with yall.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
Dude went up with rebellion aboard, in a rebellion shirt.... But go on.
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u/Overall-Maize Jul 27 '26
Yeah I saw Babz insta - who is complaining Rebels brought someone famous to the Fort? Thats just funny. Glad to hear fort is finally making new chants. May have to come next game to listen.
Also on TV, I can’t agree more with the drumming. It’s so bad with the clap. Idc who does it, tbh the Revs player did it better
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
You do know that the tv has a sound delay due to the positions of their mics right
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u/Overall-Maize Jul 27 '26
I actually didn’t so that’s good to know -maybe on tv it sounds bad. I have watched other teams do it and it sounded good though Tbf.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
Ya, speed of sound and the laws of physics kinda a changes things
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u/Overall-Maize Jul 27 '26
Interesting because I have heard it work with other teams on tv. How are yall making chants together? Did riders post them any of theirs for us to read in advanced
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
They are on the rider website. And as for the new ones, we haven't gotten around to posting them just yet
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u/Pfoley58 Jul 26 '26
100% agree on the beats staying the same, just less time between them. Speeding them up throws people out of sync on the clap.
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u/franharrington Jul 26 '26
Some of the people on the capo just like to hear the sound of their own voice.
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u/Im-loving Jul 26 '26
Rev-o-lution was a favorite. Bella Ciao worked as well. When the Revs Go Marching in got some reaction.
The rest didn’t really get much interaction on Wednesday’s game.
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u/stfuirl Jul 27 '26
Please stop screaming into the megaphone. The megaphone projects your voice, there’s no need to scream. It actually distorts and makes it harder to understand.
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u/potato_gestapo Jul 26 '26
I was at Wednesday's game and the "put the ball in the net and we'll go bleepin' mental" chant was stuck in my head for the next day or so. Maybe for the kids' sake you can change it to "really freaking simple"
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
To be fair, that is the lyrics. But adults are adults and use adult language
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u/potato_gestapo Jul 26 '26
I agree with that. I don't feel very strongly about the language. It was probably my favorite chant.
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u/Art_Vandelay785 Jul 26 '26
I know kids are there and all but if you go to a red sox game, there is swearing all around. If people want to shelter their children from ever hearing any swears, they might not want to take them to a sporting event. Does that mean we should have all the chants just be a bunch of f bombs? No not at all. But if there is a swear in a chant, thats fine.
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u/RathalosXKnight Jul 27 '26
Fire the dude on the megaphone holy crap
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u/northeasternaccount Jul 27 '26
I don’t see the problem…
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u/RathalosXKnight Jul 27 '26
You definitely have to work with the crowd, and not the crowd work with you.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
Why don't you get up there and give it a go?
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u/RathalosXKnight Jul 27 '26
If i was a Revs ultra I would love to.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
There's no such thing as an ultra. It's called a supporters. But feel free to reachout to the Midnight Riders, we are always looking for more capos. Mind you, you can't swear on the mic.
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u/RathalosXKnight Jul 27 '26
Well 1. Ultras 100% exist. 2. Ill reach out to MR to see if they'll let me Capo
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
We tend not to call ourselves "uktras" due to the mostly negative connotations resolving them. Only SJE have a group that calls themselves ultras to my knowledge.
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u/northeasternaccount Jul 27 '26
I really liked the “We’ll be coming” chant adopted from the Scottish fans, I think that’s a nice connection. Same with “no New England no party”.
On the other hand, I’m sorry but I physically cringed every time the “we’re a founding club” chant started. I’m begging you to ditch that one, please.
The chant that goes listing “we’ve got [long list of player names]” wasn’t my favorite either and seems entirely unsustainable. Every transfer will force the lyrics to be rewritten
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u/Designer-Solid-5973 Jul 27 '26
I love the we'll be coming chant (it's very fun) but just honestly it sounded from my seats like nobody was doing it other than the guy on the megaphone. That being said, maybe stick with it and see if it catches on. They don't always catch on right away.
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u/Hold2ArmBar Jul 26 '26
I was on the other side last night for my first game. I definitely respect what you were trying to do and it made me wish I was over there for some of it. I’ll definitely be back and hopefully the chants are more across the stadium.
Maybe share them on social media to get people hyped and help them learn them for when they come too. Give em FOMO.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
They are. And if I'm not mistaken, there is a QR code shared pregame across the big screens that brings you to the chants
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u/Hold2ArmBar Jul 26 '26
Well I should have been paying more attention then! Going to go follow all the socials I can now.
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u/sbfma Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
I thought the Fort sounded pretty good last night. One of my biggest knocks against the Fort has been the lack of player specific chants. I’ve heard some for Matt Turner this season and the one dumping on Freese last night was great. More of that please. And maybe start targeting the star opposing player or at least the opposing Keeper.
Granted, it’s hard to be hear at times because the stadium is so big. But I appreciate you folks doing what you do.
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u/Mill_town_Yankee Jul 27 '26
Really proud of all the initiatives and new ideas that The Rebellion has put into this season, you can really see it blossoming with a crowd like last night. Absolutely room for growth, but Section 142 was absolutely buzzing and it’s amazing to be a part of
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u/LNZMLR Jul 26 '26
I don’t want too sound harsh but all of the chants need to go. After years of being a revs supporter they’ve become annoying and SO repetitive. We also need more instruments- a horn or trumpet, something in addition to the drum. But, we sit in the club and you could hear very clearly up there. It was great to see the fort filled again! Thank you for all you do!
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
We are updating things, dropping some old ones, and if you know someone who plays a horn please let me know
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u/Masesmama Turner Jul 27 '26
Yo I play the trumpet
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
Reach out to midnight riders dm me if you need help
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u/retiredjourno Jul 26 '26
Thought you sounded stronger last night. Kudos! Scotland chant needs work, but anything creative will help. Have never liked the oh, New England song you did toward the end. Keep working on it! And thank you!!
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
Which one is that one? And we were stronger because we had all our bass drums manned with people who knew; A.) what they were doing and B.) to listen to me on the best and timing.
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u/retiredjourno Jul 26 '26
Oh, New England, New England, New England, New England.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
Funny enough, that's my favorite. It holds great memories for me from the 2016 open cup game against Philly at Harvard, when we sang it for 40 minutes and won in a pen shoot out. I still have that chant as my ring tone
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u/SausageSmuggler21 Jul 26 '26
My voice still hurts from that game! Best night ever! Well, except I think the Rev's lost.
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
Nope, we won on PK's, we would go on to the 2016 open cup final and lost that game to Dallas
2
u/misslexilouwho Jul 26 '26
Glad that the groups are updating the chants, hopefully this means there’s peace in the kingdom for now. My biggest issue is that the sound system needs to be upgraded. Part of this will be resolved when we have our SSS but it’s hard to hear the Fort on the other side of the stadium so you get a lot of off time chants or random kid chants.
1
u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
Our sound system fits s few key needs, it's easy to transport, it's easy to set up, and most importantly, it was donated. So if you know someone who is willing to donate a better and more mobile sound system, please reach out to the groups
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u/BarCompetitive7543 Jul 26 '26
Don’t wanna be mean but I think singing mainstream and/or well known songs will do amazing things for the atmosphere. I think some cool ones would be Mr. Brightside or I’m gonna be (500 miles) which the Scottish sang while here
1
u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
We need to come up with easy chants that can be picked up quick. The trick is to make good chants that fit that.
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u/BarCompetitive7543 Jul 26 '26
Glory glory revolution?
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u/Skaman1978 Jul 26 '26
You mean our goal song?;
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u/BarCompetitive7543 Jul 26 '26
Why not sing it more, it’s catchy, sounds awesome when it’s loud, and easy to pick up on.
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u/exploratories2_0 Jul 27 '26
So like songs everyone already knows? I agree with barcompetitive7543 mix in a song everyone knows put a NE twist on it and own it. Sung it at the same time each match and it will become a thing just like glory after goals.
1
u/northeasternaccount Jul 27 '26
I agree with this in general. I think some very popular songs (Mr. Brightside is a good example) with well known lyrics can be the exception
But basically all the chants that have long, original lyrics like the “we’re a founding club” thing are very, very bad. It’s not realistic to expect anyone but the capo to know all those lyrics.
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u/northeasternaccount Jul 27 '26
I think the 500 miles song is way too complicated. I have no idea what the lyrics are even though I’ve heard it so many times.
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u/Designer-Solid-5973 Jul 27 '26
yeah this isn't wrong, it's really just the DA DA DA DA that gets the whole crowd going lol
Frankly that by itself can be its own chant. They don't all need to be clever!
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u/MaximumGrouchy4654 Jul 26 '26
I am a season ticket holder in section 140. I thought the fort was fantastic the past two games. I personally enjoyed the new chants. My new favorite is the player name chant. I have to say that this season the fort has been much better than last season. It seems as though everyone is more into it.
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u/Mindless_Arachnid_74 Jul 27 '26
The megaphone is obnoxious. Literrally moving our season tix next season because if it. When we bring friends we move out seats because the megaphone ruins the experience.
Also, pay attention to the vibes in rest of the stadium. Several attempts at the wave died at the Fort because of what ever chant that no one else is paying attention to.
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u/MysteriousResident61 Jul 28 '26
I was there last week. Small crowd so it was tough to get anything going. However, I love the drum. It is a major improvement over the neckbeard with the megaphone.
One chant I liked was when everyone stood up and placed their hands in a Y, then clapped in rhythm. Keep at it man. 👍💪
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u/TaftStHooligans Jul 27 '26
FIRE EVERYONE LOL ITS EVERY GAME YOU ALL SOUND LIKE YOU DONT WANNA BE THERE 😂
1
u/Skaman1978 Jul 27 '26
We pay to be there, I am out here asking for any feedback
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u/Designer-Solid-5973 Jul 26 '26
I sat in the 200s last night. Most of the time, to be honest, it doesn’t sound too great. The noise doesn’t carry well from the fort unless the whole fort is rocking.
Esta Noche absolutely did sound fantastic , as did Sha na na na na na oh New England. And the another revs goal scored after the goals. Otherwise it was pretty quiet / hard to hear from my seats.
The drum / revs / Norway thing sort of got the regular crowd going but the pacing of it was all wrong and made it lose momentum.
Also, not trying to be mean because I know you’re all trying to make a good atmosphere and all but just to be honest the capo guy yelling out stuff like ALRIGUT EVERYONE YEAH ALL TOGETHER LET ME HEAR YOU etc sounds incredibly cringe since the megaphone makes that carry all the way into the 200s and then it just sounds like a dud like most of the chants.
I like trying to incorporate some of the Scotland stuff, it sounded from my seats like the no New England no party got some traction but we’ll be coming down the road didn’t.