Rocks Off Concert Cruise series kicks off their 10th season!
Music News | Mar 18th, 2010
New York City’s most unique concert venue, ROCKS OFF CONCERT CRUISE series will be launching its tenth anniversary afloat when it kicks off its season on the East and Hudson Rivers in April. Proving time and time again to be the best way to experience the NY Harbor, the Rocks Off Concert Cruise has been the home for some of the biggest and most memorable performances from some of the best bands over the last decade. “This was the most extraordinary concert we’ve done in New York since our first CBGB’s show,” commented Bad Brains’ guitarist Dr. Know about their June 2007 concert. Adds Rocks Off founder/bossman Jake Szufnarowski, “It truly is like no other venue in the world!”
Founded in 2001 and starting off with only one boat and six cruises that year, Rocks Off Concert Cruise has grown into a fleet of five boats and entertaining thousands annually with over a hundred concert and events cruises. Among the diverse group of bands who have played on the cruise have been Fishbone, RJD2, Ivan Neville, Clutch, Amon Tobin, Umphrey’s McGhee, Slick Rick, and Eyehategod. “I wanted to do the cruise because I wanted to provide an alternative venue for bands who wanted to do something different rather than play the same clubs over and over again,” explains Szufnarowski. “And it worked! The reason we’ve grown so steadily is that most of the bands who play the Rocks Off Concert Cruise have such a blast that they come back year after year.” A veteran of a few cruises, Anna Swank of EMI Music Group says, “The fact that these shows are on a boat adds a certain kind of great energy that wouldn’t have happened in a club. It’s fun to be out on a cruise the whole time!”
“This summer will mark our fourth consecutive summer that we have sailed up and down the Hudson River with a captive audience that is usually 90% male,” says Electric Six vocalist Dick Valentine. “This year we will commemorate the bravery of US Airways pilot Sully Sullenberger by weighing anchor at the very spot the plane water-landed and the band will go out on the wing and perform our hit ‘Gay Bar’ and dedicate it to Captain Sullenberger. Then we’ll come back aboard and continue doing tequila shooters until the the captain of the boat has no choice but to call in the Coast Guard to taze us. I can’t wait!” Leslie de Jesus, editor of SinisterGirlz Magazine, remembers from the Electric Six show of 2009, “There’s something to be said about live music playing against the currents of the Hudson, last year’s Rocks Off Concert Cruise brought together the energetic stylings of Electric Six on board the Temptress and proved to be a much needed change of pace from the typical crowded, poorly air-conditioned venues.”
Cracker frontman David Lowery adds, “I’ve never liked playing in New York until we discovered the Rocks Off Concert Cruise.” Fans from that memorable concert in July 2005 rank that show as some of their favorite concerts ever. “Cracker always puts on a good show, but there’s just something about being on a boat with salty air whipping around that makes the beer taste better and the band rock harder,” says Jean Sagendorph of Queens, NY. Uber-fan Sam P. adds, “Having seen around 40 times, it was certainly one of the most unique venues I’ve seen them play, and that’s saying a lot!”
The 2010 season kicks off on Thursday, April 8th with the Nashville Pussy / Green Jelly / Psychostick cruise aboard the Jewel. “I’m really looking forward to this show,” says Szufnarowski. “Not only does it kick off our season, but it’s sure to be our most robust and musically divergent yet!”
In addition to adding waves to the concert experience, Rocks Off Concert Cruise also puts “tailgating” to METS games into the water. Offering a great alternative to the oftentimes frustrating and traffic-ridden ride to Citi Field (Flushing, NY), the Mets cruises depart NYC and drop off passengers within walking distance to the stadium. “I decided to do the Mets cruise when I realized that the World’s Fair Marina was a mere few hundred yards from the entrance to the stadium,” he says. “It’s a very popular, and more importantly, a SAFE way to get to the game.”
Rocks Off Concert Cruise’s first cruise of the season is April 8th and continues straight through until the Fall. For the most up-to-date schedule of newly added shows, frequently visit www.rocksoff.com.
