Shiprockers woke up to a day at sea aboard the Carnival Victory, which means a whole lot of concerts, booze and varied onboard activities…like our favorite beer pong. With their ears still ringing from the night before, some early risers took part in ShipRocked's “Rock My Yoga” while others grabbed coffee and waited on line for the first batch of meet and greets of the cruise.

Papa Roach, Sevendust and Wilson had a whole lot of fun with fans for an early morning meet and greet. Fans shook hands, gave hugs, shed tears and actually got to chat with some of their favorite musicians. A few cruisers took a different approach dressing up in costumes. One duo of guys had full on cheerleader outfits and straddled a member of Wilson in their photo-op, while another dude was dressed as a used tampon (yes the costume exists) although most people just thought it was a strip of bacon or a hot dog.

The second round of meet and greets included Breaking Benjamin, Pop Evil and Crobot in the afternoon. Fans can certainly count on funny faces from the Crobot members in their photos, while Pop Evil greeted their fans warmly with hugs and high fives.  Other artist meet and greets for the day happened at the Merch Store with Letters from the Fire and Monster Truck, both who had previously played energetic sets on the Deck Stage. Lacey Sturm, The Dead Deads and Another Lost Year rounded out the day's meet and greets.

Another Lost Year performed in the Adriatic Lounge along with U.K. rock act Raveneye, the talented Texan trio Mothership and one of the most captivating rock acts on the boat Crobot. The Adriatic Lounge was much too small for the vitality that many of these bands have both within their music and live performance.

Over in the main theater Stitched up Heart delivered a lively set to an intimate crowd. Vocalist Mixie Demner has a balance of melodic and screaming vocals and can headbang with the best of them. Breaking Benjamin also played the theater later in the evening and heated things up as they began their set with the well-known tune “So Cold.”  Fans sang out to other Breaking Benjamin anthems like “Blow Me Away,” “Polyamorous” and “The Diary of Jane.”

The Deck Stage saw a lot of action as metal band Living Sacrifice took hold of it earlier in the day. With 27 years of music under their belt, Living Sacrifice, like many bands on the boat, have been and still are the epitome of a hard working band. There are no gimmicks, no rock star attitudes -- just sweat and music.

Another impressive performance on the Deck Stage came from The Stowaways, a group filled with talented musicians from both new and veteran acts that came together on one stage for the ShipRocked audience. The set began with Wilson frontman Chad Nicefield who got the party started with the Thin Lizzy classic “The Boys Are Back in Town” with Stevie D. of Buckcherry on guitar. Metallica’s “Creeping Death” and Judas Priest’s “Living After Midnight” also echoed throughout the open sky. Geoff Tate unleashed some serious vocals and showed everyone how it’s done as he belted out Queensryche’s “Jet City Woman.”

Vocalist Gabe Aranda blew the crowd away as he sang “Welcome to the Jungle” with former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Ron “Bumblefoot" Thal. All That Remains guitarist Oli Herbert and The Cult drummer John Tempesta provided riffs and drum patterns throughout the set. A cool collaboration to see onstage was Sonny Sandoval of P.O.D. and Lacey Sturm singing U2’s “Bullet the Blue Sky.” The set ended with Pantera’s “Cowboys From Hell.” Any rock and metal fan couldn’t ask for much more than that.

That was only the beginning. Wilson kept the party going well into midnight with a fun-filled set of their own out on the Deck Stage. If there ever was a “face” of ShipRocked, Wilson (and Sevendust) would be it. They encompass the carefree, enjoyable, hilarious vibe that surrounds the cruise both onstage and off.

Check out our photo gallery of Day 2 ShipRocked 2017 above and stay tuned for coverage of Day 3!

ShipRocked 2017 Day 1 Photo Gallery

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