The Doors of the 21st Century
"The soul of Jim Morrison escaped untarnished after the band ran through a two hour-plus set of psychedelic favorites ranging from the growling ´Five to One´ to the organ-ladled ´Light My Fire´...When singing, Astbury smartly remained himself offering ´When the Music´s Over´ and ´Riders on the Storm´ with the same scratchy, nicotine-soaked wail he used with the Cult...for one night it was possible to get caught up in the soul of The Doors."
-- Michael Clark, Houston Chronicle (March 31, 2003)
The Doors of the 21st Century - led by founding members RAY MANZAREK and ROBBY KRIEGER plus singer IAN ASTBURY, known for his rich baritone voice in the Cult. The group is rounded out by Angelo Barbera on bass and Ty Dennis on drums.
What is happening now, is that a new millennium Doors of the 21st Century has been born, giving Manzarek and Krieger a joyous sense of re-birth. The whispers of a possible Doors reunion were first heard when the surviving band members performed on the popular VH-1: Storytellers series. Performing classic Doors music with a variety of worshipful singers like Stone Temple Pilot´s Scott Weiland, Creed´s Scott Stapp and The Cult´s Ian Astbury gave the band a feel as to what it would be like to perform together again. It was almost 18 months later, when that feeling became a reality.
Manzarek recalls, "Out of the blue, we received a call this summer from the Harley-Davidson motorcycle company. They wanted us to headline a couple of their 100-Year anniversary gigs. It sounded like it would be fun, and it would give us the chance to perform before huge numbers of fans again. That was all the impetus we needed to form The Doors of the 21st Century."
The search for a new singer took a bit of time, but in the end, Manzarek and Krieger felt that Ian Astbury was the man. Recalls Manzarek, "We knew that Ian of the English band, The Cult, had always expressed a desire to perform with The Doors, saying that if we ever decided to go back out on the road, he wanted to be a part of it. What I like about Ian, is that he´s coming from the same place as Jim, but he has a touch of the shaman about him. Ian is his own man. He´s got that sense of danger about him that is so Morrison-esque, without being an imitation of Jim Morrison. We just couldn´t resist him."
Krieger echoes those thoughts: "Ian was a little apprehensive at first because he didn´t want anyone to think he was going to copy Jim Morrison. He´s being himself onstage, and it has worked really well. We´ll never replace Jim, but that´s not the point. Ian brings his own interpretations of our music to the stage while, at the same time, giving off a vibe that is very similar to Jim´s. Ian is very confident that he can pull this off, and so are we."
September 2002 performances at the Harley-Davidson 100th Year Anniversary festivals in California and Ontario proved that this new version - The Doors of the 21st Century - retains the same power and majesty that the original band possessed in the halcyon days of their earliest beginnings. The band´s two-hour sets were powerful statements as to not only the viability of this most anticipated reunion, but that Doors music is timeless - with the ability to not only touch the hearts and minds of the generation that grew up with the band´s music, but also new generations of younger fans that only had read or heard of the Doors. "We´re pleased that we´re able to play to crowds that include not only our original fans, but younger fans that weren´t around for the first go-round," enthuses Manzarek. Krieger chimes in, "It was incredible to perform live with Ray again. The last 30 years have gone by in a flash, and to be onstage with Ray again was fantastic. We´re doing this to have fun; that´s what this is all about."Quelle: http://www.thedoors.com/ www
