Metalheads woke up on the Independence of the Seas for a windy last day of this year’s 70,000 Tons of Metal Cruise.  Greek metal act Rotting Christ got things started early on the Pool Deck Stage but were one of the few bands to play the outside stage on this last day due to high winds.

It was a rough trip for Dragonforce as their first show was canceled due to technical issues only to be rescheduled at 3 a.m on the last day. Their second show was also supposed to be on the last day on the Pool deck but was rescheduled to much later in the wee hours of the morning. Iced Earth and Moonspell who were also supposed to play the outside stage were moved to the Alhambra theater, which pushed some of the artists set times who were originally set to perform in the theater, Insomnium and Turisas back into 3 and 4 a.m. in the morning.

Earlier in the Alhambra Theater, Fallujah, atmospheric metallers hailing from the Bay Area, took the stage as did the very moody and gloomy doom band My Dying Bride. Cradle of Filth also took the stage for a blistering performance. Heads banged to chilling tracks, "Cruelty Brought Thee Orchids," "Her Ghost in the Fog" and "Nymphetamine." The British metalers gave an unrelenting performance that brought a lot of filthy darkness to the crowd and fans loved every minute of it!

The highlight of the day in the Alhambra Theater was Annhilator founder Jeff Waters' all-star jam which featured Diamond Head's “Am I Evil” and Metallica's “For Whom the Bell Tolls” with the members of Diamond Head, Holy Moses, Vader, Turisas, Firewind and Vision of Atlantis members.  Delain vocalist Charlotte Wessels teamed up with former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist and Firewind’s own Gus G. for an incredible rendition of Ozzy’s “Over the Mountain." Another siren who completely crushed it was Lacuna Coil frontwoman Cristina Scabbia who did a powerful tribute to Lemmy Kilmister by performing Motorhead’s “Killed By Death.”

Jag Panzer singer Harry Conklin may be one of the most talented performers and vocalists out there today as he soared and surpassed the high notes during Scorpions’ “Blackout” and took it down a notch for an awesome version of Pantera’s “Cemetery Gates.” Children of Bodom’s Alexi Laiho teamed up with Raven vocalist John Gallagher for the Motorhead anthem “Ace of Spades.” Dave Lombardo hopped behind the kit for the last couple of songs and the all-star extravaganza ended with a performance of Judas Priest’s “Rapid Fire” with elevating vocals provided by Stu Block of Iced Earth.

Over in the Ice Rink the visually stimulating Tsjuder and Koyi K Utho as well as Delain and Samael all performed vigorous sets. While in the tiny Pyramid Lounge, Painful, Aura Noir, Nervosa, Thyrfing and Ancient Rites were just some of the talented acts that unleashed some explosive performances.

How did we survive non-stop shows for four days? Lots of coffee, little sleep and the awesome bands and fans kept things moving along. As we woke up in Fort Lauderdale with ringing ears we cannot help but think about what 70,000 Tons of Metal has in store for next year!

Check out our gallery above of some of the performances from the last day of 70,000 Tons of Metal Cruise 2016!

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