Spending a Week on the Open Sea with KISS Fans on KISS Kruise VII
By / www.rockcellarmagazine.com
“Home sweet mother f#$king home!,” bellows a shirtless Larry Guerin, a six-time KISS Kruise attendee as he races onto the Norwegian Pearl ship, docked in the Port of New Orleans, sporting a mile-wide smile on his face and seven KISS tattoos filling prime real estate on his back.
Guerin’s guttural rebel yell catches its share of notice among the hordes of embarking KISS fans, some hollering in unison,” Hell yes!” A native of New Roads, Louisiana, Guerin, 46, a QC supervisor of chemical plants and refineries, is one of 2300 + passengers (1528 returning cruisers and 746 first-timers) from 31 countries booked on the sold-out KISS Kruise VII, a five-day rockin’ and rollin’ excursion on the high seas with stops in Cozumel and Costa Maya, Mexico.
As with all past KISS Kruises, this year’s excursion is hosted by Sixthman, the premier music theme cruise company that has this seafaring adventure down to a sweet science. “Sixthman does more than just plan amazing music festivals at sea,” attests Jess Loud, the KISS Kruise “Warrior” (Community Ambassador). “We create and build communities of like-minded fans, so when someone books one of our cruises, they’re joining a family. You just can’t get that everywhere else!”
I broach the question to Jess, for those sitting on the fence about going on a music cruise, what would Sixthman tell them to change your mind? “This isn’t just your typical music festival and definitely not your typical cruise, for that matter. This is an all-encompassing experience that you get to have with your favorite band or genre of music plus a tribe of people who love the same things you do. You’re participating in activities with bands from the lineup, seeing some of the best music in small, intimate venues, and enjoying all that a cruise vacation has to offer at the same time.”
This year’s theme is “KISS Kruise VII: KISS World At Sea,” appropriately. Taking a gander at the colorful handmade signs hanging over the rafters on the pool deck sporting the flags of countries ranging from France to Brazil, the Netherlands to Germany, Canada to Mexico, Austria to England, it’s the perfect theme for this global convergence of the KISS Army at sea and demonstrates the dazzling multi-cultural collision of fans, proud and defiant in their declaration of fierce devotion for the hottest band in the land.
“The KISS Kruise experience is unique in that you’re interacting with KISS in a way that is not available during any other time of the year while they are touring,” relates Jess Loud. “There are only a handful of bands that can boast such a long and extensive career of 40+ years, a wildly passionate fan-base, and the type of band interaction that you get on a KISS Kruise. From live Q&A’s with KISS manager Doc McGhee to seeing each member participate in activities that relate to their personal interests, to two shows in a theater where virtually every seat feels like the best seat in the house, there is something for everyone!”
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