Daily Bruin × July 16, 2000
Pretty in pink
Gwen Stefani infects the crowd with her upbeat charm and energy, fully charging No Doubt’s stage comeback by Trinh Bui
In the waning minutes of No Doubt’s lively show, a sprightly Gwen Stefani plucked four pink hair girls from the audience and onto the stage for “Excuse Me Mr.”
Stefani instructed the embarrassed pre-teens to lead the hyper crowd through the chorus but after one meek try, the girlish Stefani decided it took a woman to do a girl’s job. So up she went onto a wall of speakers and proceeded to rev the sold-out Universal Amphitheater into a final frenzy of jumping bodies and pumping fists.
It was like that all night.
The charismatic Stefani beguiled the audience, with coy playfulness and swaying hips, through the hits of “Tragic Kingdom” and their newly minted “Return of Saturn” albums. It wasn’t suppose to be a one-woman show but Friday evening’s concert redefined that old adage: behind every strong man (in this case men) there is a stronger fuschia haired woman.
It’s hard not to focus on the svelte 30-year-old Stefani; she is a pillar of infectious self-determined girl power surrounded by a trio of childish Lost Boys. That’s why in a sea of 9,000 strong there was a heavy speckling of young girls with dyed primrose locks adoring their onstage idol.
For Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal and drummer Adrian Young, the Universal outing marks an anxious return from two years of writing and recording and the debut of a new No Doubt. Stefani stressed the importance throughout the night. And who could really blame her? After a year of disappointments from long established rock acts including STP, Beck, Oasis and Smashing Pumpkins, No Doubt is the next prime target of a post-gazillion selling slump.
But they didn’t disappoint. Starting the show with the “Godfather” theme, No Doubt brought an air of vaudeville hi-jinks to the stage. The band was decked out in face make-up, glitter, and kitschy ’80s ska attire and burst onto stage with youthful energy usually reserved for bands half their age.
No Doubt appropriately kicked the night off with “New,” the band’s contribution to the “Go” soundtrack. The single was the first recorded material released by the group since “Kingdom” and offered a taste of No Doubt’s more pop less ska flavor.
Whatever rust the band accumulated during the two year hiatus wasn’t evident. Stefani’s cutesy girlish vocals sounded fresh and vibrant, Dumont’s guitar work was punchy, Kanal provided a grooving rhythm, and Young played a mean set of skins.
No Doubt’s tight and energetic set was a testament to the group’s longtime commitment to relentless touring.
Stefani set the frenetic pace for the night, she is a veteran of getting the crowd to do what she pleases. When the audience swooned during No Doubt’s new song “Staring Problem,” Stefani cajoled the audience into singing along by demurely reminding the crowd that they were at a “fucking concert” and then proceeded to execute less than perfect cartwheels from one end of the stage to the other. It was one of many charming moments provided by Stefani. Her incessant upbeat enthusiasm got the band through the hesitant reactions of their new power pop anthems of “Bathwater” and “Magic’s in the Make-Up.”
No Doubt keenly packed the setlist with the familiar ska-punk fusion of “Kingdom.” Fans got up for favorites like the two-tone “Different People” and “Sunday Morning.”
The band’s big hits “Don’t Speak” and the quintessential girl anthem “Just a Girl” received riotous approval.
There was little let up from the opener to the communal encore closer of “Spiderwebs.” On a night of reintroduction of a band and reunion with the fans, No Doubt left little doubt concerning their staying power.
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