We’re not saying we want all rock cruises to end in disaster, we’re just saying sometimes a repeat of the Edmund Fitzgerald wouldn’t be entirely unwelcome.
Cruisin' With Kid Rock
Are floating festivals the new wave of rock and roll?
Web2Carz Senior Writer
Published: May 25th, 2012
F
or the third year in a row, rocker Kid Rock recently set sail with a gaggle of fans on his “Chillin’ The Most” cruise upon a Carnival Destiny cruise ship. The four-night cruise, aboard a 900-foot long, 12-deck oceanliner, attracted 2,650 fans, each of whom paid between $800 and $4,000 to live it up at sea, and is part of a growing trend of rock-themed cruises.
It’s the whole concept of “organized” fun that seems to lack the anarchic spirit of rock ‘n’ roll.
The “Chillin’ The Most” cruise features concerts from not only Kid Rock, but from Yelawolf, Uncle Kracker, and Roger Alan Wade, making it a mini-music festival of sorts, albeit an extremely expensive one, and one you can’t leave early.
Also setting sail this year was the “Monsters of Rock” cruise, featuring a cargo deck’s worth of 80s hair metal bands like Tesla, Stryper, Kix, UFO, Mr. Big, and Faster Pussycat. Tickets are already on sale for next year’s cruise, which features Great White, Loudness, and...wait for it...Enuf Z’ Nuff.
And lest you think alternative rock fans are being left landlocked, this year also saw the Weezer cruise, which featured indie rock old schoolers Dinosaur Jr.
We don’t know about you, but to us, nothing seems less “rock” than a cruise. It’s not just the memories of The Love Boat or the thought of scores of octogenarians playing shuffleboard and gorging themselves on buffet dinners—it’s the whole concept of “organized” fun that seems to lack the anarchic spirit of rock ‘n’ roll.
Then there’s the ridiculous prices (themselves just an extension of the already ridiculous admission prices for Lollapalooza, Pitchfork, Coachella et al.), the seasickness, and in the case of the Kid Rock and Monsters of cruises, the god-awful music that is probably impossible to escape.
These things seem to cry out for the sudden appearance of a giant unexpected iceberg or some kind of Bermuda Triangle phenomenon. It was bad enough when rock stars started playing golf. This appropriation of “uncool” culture is really getting out of hand.
Where’s Davy Jones’ Locker when you need it?
