Day two came with a huge hangover (see day one recap), but there was too much metal going on, so I got out of bed and started the day to the best of my ability. It was said that the alcohol sales from Monday were what a normal cruise does in a week. I helped out A LOT. After a quick breakfast, we headed to the pool deck and caught a few songs by Cripper. I was not a fan of this band before the trip, but their live show is incredible and they are fun to drink with, so I got all the respect in the world for them now. After Cripper I stumbled around the ship, running into Burton C. Bell three times in an hour, Chuck Billy on the elevator, and James from Arsis just to name a few. There were metal legends everywhere walking around and it was amazing for a metal nerd like me.

The next show I went to was The Absence and they destroyed the Spectrum Lounge. With Johan from Amon Amarth looking on, these guys played a great set, and the crowd was going apeshit the whole time. After The Absence I had my first interviews of the trip and look at who I interviewed. Within about two hours, I talked to Chuck Billy from Testament, Burton from Fear Factory, Obituary, Death Angel, and Johan from Amon Amarth. Every one was super cool and seemed to be loving the metal festival on a cruise. How could anyone not love this idea?




After my first set of interviews we ran to the pool deck to catch Forbidden. My favorite part about watching Forbidden was looking around at all the thrash Gods banging their heads to these guys like they were kids again. As I scanned the crowd I found members of Exodus, Testament, Death Angel, and Obituary just losing their minds. These are legends in metal, but at that time they were just fans like everyone else on the ship. Forbidden played a monster set to a packed boat deck, and nobody left that show without a smile.

After Forbidden's set we went and grabbed a quick bite to eat, and then it was time for not only my first beer bucket of the day, but Obituary! These guys are one of my favorite bands of all time and they annihilated the pool deck. They played a diverse set of old classic and newer hits and the fans, including myself, loved every moment. I've never seen a bad show from these guys, and here I was watching them on a fucking pool deck! Insanity!

After Obituary we caught parts of Iced Earth's set, a little bit of Epica, and then Sanctuary at the Spectrum Lounge. I wanted to stay for all of Sanctuary's set, but Amon Amarth's time was coming, so I grabbed a beer bucket and some whiskey and made my way to the main inside venue. The line outside the door was long, but I wanted a good seat and pushed my way to the front. Amon Amarth came on with a power that they only have, and the fans absolutely lost it from the first notes of "Guardians Of Asgaard". They played a little over an hour, and my neck almost fell off during each song. These guys are just in a league of their own. Ok, then we ran to Death Angel two floors down.

I caught the first song or two of Death Angel and then somehow found my way in a cabin with members of several bands- including Fear Factory, Nevermore, and Voivod. I don't know exactly how I found my way to this spot, but when I left there I could barely stand up haha. So I ran back to catch the end of Death Angel, and from what I saw, everyone really loved this band. I was sure not to miss them on the boat deck in two days. That was another great part about the cruise. If you missed one set, then you had another chance to catch them live in two days. So badass!


After the chaos in that one cabin, I switched to liquor for the night, and made my way to the pool deck for the legendary Testament. The rails were packed from left to right, the floor was just full of Testament addicts and these legends put on a show. The band played their classic album, "The Legacy", and the crowd loved every moment. This was the loudest I've heard the crowd yet, and just looking around at the smiles on each fan was amazing. Oh and we were on a fucking boat deck watching Testament. I still can't get over that!

After Testament I met up with some new friends and we drank and drank and drank at the bar with our infamous bartender. He loved every moment of us metal freaks and it cracked me up. Every time he threw up the horns and screamed, I couldn't help but laugh and shake his hand. He was trying real hard, but was the nicest dude ever. So let's see, it was about 3pm, and oh Sodom is on the boat deck. I don't know how I made this show in the state I was in, but I was there and Sodom ruled the world. It was great to see a good crowd for these guys, especially at 3AM. After the Sodom show, we stumbled blindly around the boat, running into metal legends left and right, and then I knew it was time for bed. One more drink would send me over the top, and that's the last thing I needed. So somehow I found my room, found my bed, and passed out. I saw around eleven shows in one day, interviewed legends, and I couldn't have been happier. Check out the video recap below!