Tag: Tony Kanal

Just A Girl

For the past 17 years, she has stood as the punky siren of the band No Doubt. But there is more to Gwen Stefani’s platinum-blonde life than meets the eye. There’s her fashion line, her acting career, and her first solo dance album with a little help from some music-industry heavies. Christopher Bollen meets the girl underneath it all.

When a certain then-unknown pop star landed for the first time in the New York and climbed into the back seat of a cab, she spoke those immortal words that have now become firmly cemented in rock-music legend: “Take me to the center of everything.” The driver dropped her off in Times Square. Whatever your feelings may be about this particular pop icon, the anecdote does offer a profound lesson: It is relatively easy to stand for a few seconds at the heart of the universe (in 1978, according to this cab driver, that would be the corner of 42nd and Broadway). The tough part is being able to stay there. Read the rest of this article »

The Greatest Show on Earth?

Well, No Doubt’s greatest hits, anyway - which is what they’ll be playing on their last tour before Gwen Stefani drops a solo CD. By Chris Willman.

Shooting what little breeze there is on a hot, insufferably still LA day, Gwen Stefani suddenly feels the need to cull a statistic from a bandmate. “How many times do you think you’ve thrown up in your life, Tony?” she asks. Tony Kanal looks like he’s not certain he wants to play this game. “I’m not sure it’s a lot,” the bass player answers with a nervous chuckle. Better to focus on the immediate future. “This time,” he insists, “it’s gonna be much more mellow and healthy.” Fifty points if you’ve already figured out our subject of the day: rock touring. Their little O.C.-teem-ska-band-that-could, No Doubt, is hitting the amphitheater circuit in June, pairing up with blink-182 for one of the summer’s most anticipated tours. (One of the most economical too: Ticket prices top out in the mid-two-figure range, or about $250 cheaper than it’d cost you for a similar seat to see Madonna.) It’s a nationwide victory lap in honor of their recent blockbuster hits collection, The Singles 1992-2003, whose new song, a cover of Talk Talk’s “It’s My Life,” afforded them yet another top 10 smash (their tenth). This could be the optimal point in their history to catch the band: They’ve been together long enough to almost count as seasoned elder statesmen - 17 years, which is about 170 in rock years - but, being still in their 30s, they’re vigorous, scrappy, and in no danger yet of outgrowing their audience. Read the rest of this article »

It’s good to be Gwen Stefani

With a solo album in the works, a new fashion line in stores, and a big movie on the way, Gwen Stefani’s career is on fire. Oh yeah, and did we mention she also has that rock-god husband, Gavin Rossdale? Today she let us in to her fab world. By Jennifer Kasle Furmaniak.

When Gwen Stefani walks into the trendy 60 Thompson hotel in New York City, it’s obvious why she’s touted almost as much for her unique style sense as she is for her amazing singing and songwriting abilities. She’s dressed in an old pair of Levi’s, a Vivienne Westwood belt, a funky Libertine jacket, and sexy-as-hell green Christian Dior snakeskin stilettos. The ensemble is made even more striking by Gwen’s signature platinum-blond hair, porcelain-pale face and saturated red lips. Read the rest of this article »

More than Just a Girl

Gwen Stefani may have the coolest voice, the tightest abs and the best moves since Mick, but she works hard at it - and we love her for that. By Christian Wright

Deep in the tunnels of Madison Square Garden, the members of No Doubt are waiting to take the stage for thier Grammy soundcheck. Ashanti’s run through goes overtime - there are lots of children and a hydraulic mechanism involved - so No Doubt has some time to kill. The band is assembled in an anonymous room with bad lighting, one sofa, a makeup table and some folding chairs. Drummer Adrian Young is engrossed in his iBook; guitarist Tom Dumont, in a knit cap pulled down low, and bassist Tony Kanal, behind dark glasses, lean back on the sofa; Gwen Stefani, in a cashmere halter top and combat trousers, is thinking of baby names that begin with G. The scene isn’t typical rock’n'roll. There is no beer, no cigarettes, no bad words, only a couple imitations of Michael Jackson shopping in Las Vegas. Suddenly Gwen leaps up to greet her parents, Patti and Dennis Stefani. She hugs her tall, burly father around the neck, laughs when her mother says, “You look very California,” then drags some chairs next to her. Read the rest of this article »

Gwen interviewed by Brandon Griggs for the Tragic Kingdom fanzine

With the Super Bowl and then later with the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame was it a dream for you to get to play with Sting?

Gwen: Yes, that was a dream. Actually, the Hall of Fame was more like a nightmare because I’m not a public speaker, that’s not what I do. It’s one thing to get up in front of people and sing, it is something else to get in front of Elvis Costello, Elton John, The Clash, The Police, Ric Ocasek and all these other amazing artists and speak. I had to write a speech which is not something I do very well. I literally got a D in speech in college, I nearly failed. So it’s not my thing. I was really nervous about speaking, I didn’t want to but Sting asked me. In my heart, I wanted to do good but I didn’t understand why they choose me. I was really nervous. It turned out ok, but I haven’t watched it and I don’t think I ever will. It was really amazing to be a part of that night. Sting is a really cool person and we had a lot of fun at the Super Bowl. Walking down that catwalk towards him singing “Message In A Bottle” was such a surreal moment in my life, like a dream. The Police were a huge influence on me, they were one of my first concerts. I really respect and really love their music. Read the rest of this article »

Fearless Synth Bass

Diving In: No Doubt’s Tony Kanal

Tony Kanal tried his hand at keyboard bass for the very first time when recording No Doubt’s latest Interscope CD, Rock Steady. He ended up using synth bass for four of the album’s cuts: “Hey Baby,” “Start the Fire,” “Detective,” and “Running.” “I had no idea what I was doing when I started playing keyboard bass lines,” Tony laughs. “And I still wouldn’t consider myself a real keyboard player. But that was the cool thing about the way we recorded Rock Steady: We just let go of everything we had done in the past. It was just about trying something completely new.” On many of the CD’s songs Tony tried playing both “real” bass and keyboard bass; a few of them ended up having both, like “Detective.” Read the rest of this article »

Hella Great

With a new baby, an impending wedding and a breakthrough hit single - “Hella Good” - it’s no wonder the members of No Doubt are feeling fine in the summertime. By: Cara Lynn Shultz

The members of No Doubt are screaming for their lives. They’ve been electrocuted, blasted with fire, and now they’re plummeting off the side of a 10-story building. At the last minute they’re whisked to safety by… Spider-Man? That’s right. Singer Gwen Stefani, 32, bassist Tony Kanal, 31, and guitarist Tom Dumont, 34, are spending a rare free afternoon at Universal’s Islands of Adventure in Orlando, cramming eight rides - including the virtual reality Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man - into a 90-minute field trip. (Drummer Adrian Young, 32, is off playing golf.) After going on one stomach-churning roller coaster twice, Tom asks the operator, “Don’t you have any Snow White rides?” Everyone laughs, but he’s got a point - they could use a break. Read the rest of this article »

Rock Steady

Hip chick and No Doubt’s front woman Gwen Stefani gives us the lowdown on music, marriage and what it takes to get the flattest stomach in pop.

Who didn’t have Hey Baby stuck in their head for, like, weeks? No Doubt’s number two smash (their first biggie since 1997’s Don’t Speak) is so hip-swingingly addictive that it’s still being played like crazy on the radio. And as for Gwen Stefani’s smash collaboration with Eve (Let Me Blow Your Mind), well, it just goes to show she’s one of the hottest divas around. With bags of talent, a shiny, new ghetto fabulous look and fiancé (she’s getting spliced to Bush lead singer Gavin Rossdale), she’s poised to take on the world, despite her protests that she’s just “a normal girl from Orange County.” Read the rest of this article »

“I’ll always be a jealous girl”

It was all smiles for Gwen Stefani when her beau, Gavin Rossdale, asked her to marry him. But Gwen admits her admits her insecurities have meant it wasn’t always so easy.

Gwen Stefani was determined not to look at the handsome guy on the stage. She and her band, No Doubt, had been touring with the Brit group Bush for just three days, and getting a crush on the lead singer, Gavin Rossdale, simply wasn’t on her agenda.

“There [is] no way [I'm] going to start hanging out with some dude who’s in a band that every girl wants to [be with],” she said to herself.

But it was really strange. Wherever her eyes started out, they always ended up looking in his direction. And even stranger still, he kept looking back… Read the rest of this article »

No Doubt

Geared up to Rock Steady. By Jon Weiderhorn

A touring rock band has to evolve and adapt to survive. Fans might embrace a group’s original style and image for a while, but if a look and sound remains constant for too long, a band can become stale, its music bordering on self-parody.

The members of No Doubt are keenly aware of that phenomenon, which is why the band’s live performance over the years has changed as much as its music. In 1987, No Doubt was a high-octane ska/punk band armed with simple staccato songs, delivered by musicians who pogoed as they performed. Not long after, the band added ’80s pop melodies to their music and began playing with a sharper stage focus. In 1993, they downplayed the pop elements and amped up the punk-rock anger, reflecting the alternative angst of the time. The band began turning heads with its powerful concerts and the onstage energy of its front woman, Gwen Stefani. Read the rest of this article »