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photos: Moe Horta

What happens when you interview nearly every band playing the third annual Emo’s Not Dead Cruise? You get the world's longest emo interview ever. Seriously. Does someone have a contact at Guinness World Records? We think a few records were broken on that boat (for example: The Used having 291 crowd surfers on the final night out at sea confirmed via frontman Bert McCracken).

Anyway, to see what some of your favorite bands had to say about performing on a boat in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, tanning naked, tips on not getting seasick plus all things emo, be sure to read below! 

If you want to join the Emo's Not Dead party next year, make sure to sign up for the 2026 presale here.

STATE CHAMPS:

Who’s set are you most excited to catch at sea? And who in the band is most likely to get seasick?

Derek DiScanio: I thought we kicked it off great with Boys Like Girls as the first set of the trip. I thought that was a great way to set the tone for the vibe of everything. Everybody who was on the cruise was there watching, so that was really cool.

Evan Ambrosio: Chiodos. I didn't see them yesterday, but I would like to see Chiodos for sure.

Tyler Szalkowski: Yeah, I think it’s Chiodos and The Used for me.

Ryan Scott Graham: I'm stoked for Saosin. I'm stoked for The Spill Canvas and Lydia, because I've never seen Lydia. I feel like I've seen everybody else, which is why I'm so excited specifically for those three.

Derek DiScanio: I heard there might be a special guest that'd be worth seeing as well. So that will be fun.

Tyler Szalkowski: Who is most likely to get seasick? Out of us, my money would be on Derek because recently he's been getting carsick in the car, which is like some real geriatric old man shit.

Derek DiScanio: Maybe I’m getting old, but I'm the youngest in the band, so that means you guys are older.

Tyler Szalkowski: Yeah, well, your brain is old.

Derek DiScanio: But I might be. I do get carsick now, but I haven't felt anything other than being hungover. 

Ryan Scott Graham: I'm chilling. I feel like this is nothing.

Evan Ambrosio: I feel great so I'll say Derek as well.

Ryan Scott Graham: I think if you get seasick, you're a coward.

Derek DiScanio: Alright, well, we'll find out. Stay tuned.

What are you guys most excited for in terms of your three sets? And did you prepare differently knowing that this was for a cruise?

Derek DiScanio: We did. We're excited for all three unique sets that we have to do, but we did have to prepare and try some things that we've never done before. The one that I'm most excited for is Champs karaoke with the fans, where we're going to be able to bring any fan up. They can sign up for a song, pick their song of choice, and we'll hand them a spare mic - or them and a friend, maybe - and, yeah, just let them kind of do my job for me. It's going to be easy for me.

Ryan Scott Graham: Yeah, it must be nice pal.

Tyler Szalkowski: That's probably the one that I'm most excited for, too. 

Ryan Scott Graham: We've talked about doing it for a long time, and we just never have. But all three sets are different. We're doing a headliner, you know, pretty straightforward. We're doing a fan-picked set, which is what we're doing tonight. So the fans submitted the songs that they wanted to hear, then we put it together. And then we're doing the karaoke set. So it was definitely, you know, we had to prepare for a lot. And then we're also going on tour immediately following this. That's a different set list. 

Derek DiScanio: Yeah, we have like four different setlists. 

Ryan Scott Graham: Yeah. We had a lot to brush up on.

Evan Ambrosio: Rehearsals were confusing. I'm not sure what songs are in what set.

Tyler Szalkowski: I have no idea. I'm just kind of going to read the paper.

Derek DiScanio: We will prosper once we see the setlist.

Evan Ambrosio: Yeah, it's gonna be great.

Where do you anticipate spending the most time on the boat when you're not performing?

Derek DiScanio: Probably the casino. I spent a lot of time there last night, and I have some money to win back, so I'll be back there tonight. You guys?

Ryan Scott Graham: Bar and hot tub.

Tyler Szalkowski: Yeah, I like being all the way up on, like, the pool deck. It's nice up there.

Derek DiScanio: It is nice up there. It's a great place to watch bands from the balcony of the pool deck.

Evan Ambrosio: Yeah, you can find me on the jogging track.

Tyler Szalkowski: For how long? 

Evan Ambrosio: Well, I didn't want to say the pool, which is obviously where I've been. I’ve been spending more time on the pool deck than I thought I would. So I wanted to change it up and not say the room because it's boring, you know?

Since this is the Emo’s Not Dead Cruise - when did you discover emo music and when did you realize this is something you wanted to pursue yourself?

Tyler Szalkowski: Well, you see, I was on Myspace. And I got into heavier music by way of, like, Linkin Park, Slipknot and Disturbed through, like, Columbia House Records mailing CDs to your house back in, like, the mid 2000’s. And then I got on Myspace and I started discovering, I think From First To Last [which] was the first ever, like emo band. I mean, I don't want to do the discussion about like, what is emo and what isn't, but like..

Derek DiScanio: Because then it depends how old school emo, you know, like...Taking Back Sunday and New Found Glory then brought in the Victory Records era of Hawthorne Heights and Bayside for me. Hawthorne Heights is a big reason I think.

Tyler Szalkowski: They're definitely another one too. Yeah.

Derek DiScanio: And then the Myspace era of anything and everything in between.

Evan Ambrosio: I had my older brother, who's six years older than me, he introduced me to a lot of these bands back in the early 2000’s when he was, you know, in high school. So it's kind of cool. My first show was Thursday and it was kind of cool to be introduced to those bands at an early age. So it's kind of cool to see bands on this cruise that I kind of grew up with, and now we get to play alongside them. It's really special. It's very cool.

Ryan Scott Graham: For me, it was eighth grade. I got invited to a local show and before that I didn't really listen to a ton of alternative music. Just what was on the radio maybe. So I got invited to a local show and seeing people kind of my age and a little bit older, kind of gave me the confidence to be like, “Oh, these people are not any different than me.” You know, like they're cool and I want to try it. I want to buy a guitar. I want to do this. So that's all it took was just like seeing somebody that looked like me doing it. And that was cool. So from then on, I found Pure Volume, found, I don't know, Fall Out Boy and Daphne Loves Derby and like some of those early Pure Volume bands. I was emo from the start. Straight up. Like as soon as I found Pure Volume, that was the music that I liked.

Tyler Szalkowski: I don't think I ever had a moment where I decided I wanted to commit my life to emo, because I don't really think we're an emo band. But I definitely used to want to be in a band and wear makeup like From First To Last. I wanted to wear eyeliner and eyeshadow.

Ryan Scott Graham: It’s not too late. 

Derek DiScanio: We have emotion, but most of our stuff is happy.

Ryan Scott Graham: We’re emo adjacent.

Why is emo music important and what can we do to continue pushing the genre forward?

Derek DiScanio: I think it's important because it lets anybody be any kind of person they want to be. All the time. There's no judgment with it. You can kind of find people that feel the same way as you do, and then, you know, find their outlet through this music in this world. Like I've run into so many people that are like, “I used to come to this cruise alone, and now I have a group of 50 [friends] now that we all go every single year,” and I think that's what's most important about this community in this world. It brings people together. So that's a big part.

Tyler Szalkowski: Yeah, I mean, to pretty much repackage what Derek said - just the idea that you might have all these intense strong feelings and emotions, especially when you're like in your formative years, and then you see kind of like what Ryan said earlier – people who are just like you, dealing with the same thing, and finding that sense of solace that you're not alone in those feelings and stuff. Like, it's no secret that the emo scene is a little odd, right? Like everyone's very unique and, you know, they don't necessarily fit in other places. And I know a lot of people are going to return home to a desk job that they probably hate. They probably hate their coworkers. So they get to come here and they get to let loose and be around people that they see themselves in. I think that community aspect is really important. 

And what can we do to push it further? I mean, we are on a boat in the middle of the fucking ocean, and this thing sold out before we were even announced. So I don't really know how much further it needs to go.

Ryan Scott Graham: I think it’s done a good job of forwarding itself. 

Evan Ambrosio: I think people should start more bands and play more music and pick up instruments to keep it going. Really. I mean, it's a perfect way to express yourself and like they said, it's an incredible community. I think the best way to keep it moving forward is for younger people to start playing music and playing in bands and expressing themselves. I don't know, that's kind of what helped us grow into what we are. And it's been the best thing ever. So more bands equals the better the scene will be.

Any final words?

Evan Ambrosio: Please listen to State Champs by State Champs.

Ryan Scott Graham: Yeah, we put out a record a few months ago, and it feels like a year already, but it's only been three months. So if you haven't listened to it, go check it out. It's great. And if you have. Thank you. Thanks for having us on the fucking boat.

THE USED:

Who’s set are you most excited to catch at sea and who in the band is most likely to get seasick?

Bert McCracken: We like the secret band. Locus Ultra. 

Dan Whitesides: I thought you were talking about the other secret band. 

Joey Bradford: No, that is the secret band. That’s what they’re called.

Dan Whitesides: Oh, well their real name is ***CENSORED***

Jepha: Dude, it's a secret!

Bert McCracken: There he is! 

Dan Whitesides: You got that, motherfucker?

Who in your band is most likely to get seasick?

Dan Whitesides: I'm going to just go with you, Bert. 

Bert McCracken: Yeah I get a sick tummy sometimes. 

Dan Whitesides: He usually diarrheas and throws up every other flight.

Bert McCracken: The flights get me, man, I can't help it.

What are you most excited for in terms of your three sets and did you prepare differently knowing this was for a cruise?

Jepha: We prepared three setlists, but we kind of had them already prepared. We have a list of about one thousand songs that we know and are rehearsing constantly.

Joey Bradford: At least a thousand.

Dan Whitesides: It'll be fun. We're playing In Love and Death in full tomorrow, and that'll be fun.

Jepha: Don’t tell anybody because that's also a secret. We thought it'd be fun to prep all of In Love and Death to play for this since we're doing it all this year too. It'll be fun. 

Where do you anticipate spending the most time on the boat when you're not performing?

Jepha: Right inside of my hotel room playing games all day. 

Bert McCracken: The rooms are very nice, that's for sure. Yeah, but we've been hanging out here at [the artist pool deck], we've been hanging upstairs. 

Joey Bradford: The top deck. 

Bert McCracken: Yeah, we're going to hang out in the cigar bar.

Dan Whitesides: I hung out on my balcony naked. I'm not fucking lying. I just pulled down my pants and just got a suntan.

Bert McCracken: Nice.

Jepha: I don't intend on leaving my room unless I need to. I'm enjoying it too much.

Bert McCracken: Always got games to play.

Jepha: I’m always like, “I gotta beat this game.” You don't understand.

Since this is the Emo’s Not Dead Cruise, when did you discover emo music and when did you realize this is something you wanted to pursue yourself?

Bert McCracken: It was like 1997 when I heard Sunny Day Real Estate. And I fell in love immediately. It spawned a whole new kind of collection of bands that I'd never heard of. Like Texas Is The Reason, Rage Against The Machine, Jets To Brazil. 

Dan Whitesides: All those kind of [heavy music] bands kind of disbanded or broke up and started these emo bands. It was so different. Texas Is The Reason, Promise Ring, Jimmy Eat World was even...

Jepha: What was Grade considered?

Bert McCracken: Like emo / hardcore.

Jepha: Was Grade kind of emo?

Bert McCracken: Yeah.

Dan Whitesides: And Braid.

Joey Bradford & Bert McCracken: And Braid.

Dan Whitesides: There's so many fucking bands back then...

Bert McCracken: Great emo bands from like the late 90s. 

Jepha: Like Nirvana. Faith No More

Dan Whitesides: Definitely inspiring. It made you want to start a band.

Bert McCracken: Yeah. When I first heard Sunny Day Real Estate, I knew I had to make music like that.