• Why The Doors? What drew your fascination towards this particular band?

 Thomas: I’ve always enjoyed The Doors. I’ve been exposed to them millions of times on the radio, and I’ve always found that they have plenty of great songs. They’re one of the most unique bands out there, blending jazz elements, blending interesting chord progression, improvisation, etc. 

 Wickert: “In the mid ‘60s in Laurel Canyon there were a lot of bands coming together-        

  The Beach Boys, The Monkees, The Byrds, Frank Zappa, etc. But there was one band set out to make strange music that they weren’t trying to make people smile or laugh. They were putting out music that was emotionally moving people and incited emotion. The Doors were one of the most unique, dark, trippy, psychedelic bands of the ‘60s.” 

Borkstrom: “The Doors were the first group I was interested in learning a lot of their catalogue. So I did a lot of transcribing and learning their music through memory. Initially, I just happened upon a Craigslist post that stated, “Doors Tribute looking for a keyboardist.” I already knew a dozen songs, and it just grew from there.”

 Tabor: “A friend of mine used to dress like Morrison in leather pants in high school and take acid. That was my introduction because the dude was obsessed with them. I was more of a “(Led)” Zeppelin fan but got pulled in when the movie came out as the band grew in popularity.” 

Antone: “I always just been interested in analyzing humans in terms of reactions and how people grow. The Doors definitely show a lot of that from the beginning to how they ended and kept on growing. How the world has affected them and how they affected the world.” 

• How does it feel to be back up on that stage and share your love for The Doors?

   Thomas: “It’s a great band to play in, and hopefully we have a great show tonight.” 

  Wickert: “I love being in a tribute band. It’s a lifelong dream”

  Borkstrom:  “Not playing shows for months you can just do your homework and practice extensively. We try to stick to theater shows and try to do bigger venues. We don’t like to overplay.” 

Tabor: “We kept busy. We did some promo stuff. We recorded some footage. We did a live stream show. We redid our promo video, learned “L.A. Woman” down all the way so we could play the 15th Anniversary show at the Hobart Theater on April 10 and revamped our sound. We also added Rachel to the mix as well. We wanted to keep live music in our lives, but we wanted to be safe. We couldn’t do it while staying true to our booking agent. So we waited out of respect for the virus. “Now it’s time, and we’re ready.”

3) What was it like for you guys as fellow music fans to live in a time period without live music?

Wickert: “One of the worst times of my life. It brings a lot of happiness in people, and I really think they need that, especially at a time such as this.”

Tabor: Isolating. We had to adapt and make the best of it. We have a practice spot at House of Music, so we spent a lot of time there. For a while it did feel like time stood still, and we did lose contact for a couple of months.”

Antone: You have to learn from it. How do you expect to get better if you don’t practice? You have to do what you have to do, and I just spent hours practicing. You gotta keep on moving.” 

4) What does music mean to each of you here in this very room? 

Borkstrom: “ It’s something we do constantly. You never really get sick of it. Upon all the work you do leading up to it, for me, there’s nothing better than that moment. If people experience that, no matter the size, there’s always that feeling that you get that you can’t compare to anything else. The Doors have a lot of self expression and improvisation, and through this tribute band I feel as though I am not somebody else but rather a unit that brings unique personalities to this. You have to be yourself. You can’t just be some other guy. I am me as much as I am my role.” 

 Tabor: “It literally is what I do for a living. Everything about me and all these guys around me is pretty much what we do all day. You have to go and serve the music and play well through diet, exercise, practice, clothes, gear, etc.”

Antone: “I’ve been playing since the fourth grade and have been gigging for three years, and it’s definitely one of my better choices. It consists of one of my main focuses where I put a lot of time, money, and effort into it while also learning the business itself. I wanna sound good. I wanna be the best. To meet that level of status I need to put in the practice, time, money, and effort into it.” 

Below is the Audio Recording of the interviews

Of Perception Interview Audio By_ Cody Wagner-20210322T211518Z-001