Now into their third year of the M72 World Tour, Metallica has continually wowed their devoted fans and converted many to the metal faith. Over the weekend, the band brought dual “No Repeat Weekend” shows in which nothing is repeated…not the opening acts, nor the set list, to Raymond James Stadium. Normally, those shows are set for Friday and Sunday nights – so what do you do in the middle? How about stage a Metallica Takeover of the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Tampa for the thousands of fans who have come to the city!
The Art of Squindo Behind the Band
First up on the Saturday schedule was a Q&A session with Tony Squindo, the artist behind the creation of many of Metallica’s most popular T-shirts, posters, and album art. It was a heavy mixture of young and old Metallica fans, as identified by their “Masters of Puppets” attire or the “M72 World Tour” tees that had been purchased on Friday night. Whatever age the fans were, they packed into the Event Center at the Seminole Hard Rock, eager to hear what Squindo had to say.
Disc jockey AJ from 98Rock ably managed the Q&A and helped to reassure Squindo after he sat down and said, “If I don’t look out there (at the audience), I’m fine.” Artists are, by nature, a solitary lot, doing their work in their artist’s den, so it was natural that Squindo might be a bit uncomfortable in front of over 1200 Metallicans. Once he did, however, the stories started to flow.
“I went to a Catholic school growing up, but I found my crowd in the metalheads,” Squindo admitted. “When I was younger, I wanted to be Walt Disney…as I got older, that faded away. By the end of high school, I knew what direction I wanted to go.”…