The return of No Doubt

I do not think it was wrong of anyone to have thought that No Doubt was finished as a band. I did. After all, it had been 11 years since the last album Rock Steady, was released and then its girl singer Gwen Stefani has been doing so well as a solo act and as a fashion designer. Good musicians, that they are, there are surely lots of things that guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal and drummer Adrian Young could do. They will never want for jobs.

It was, therefore, no surprise that No Doubt had been very quiet all these years. Perhaps, the times have really made the band’s presence redundant. Truth to tell, the surprise happened when its new album Push And Shove, came out. And suddenly, there was No Doubt again and it sounded good. Now, I do not think the band will ever be able to duplicate the kick that listeners got out of its early hits, Don’t Speak, Just A Girl, Hey Baby, It’s My Life and others or even Stefani’s efforts on her own like, Hollaback Girl and Sweet Escape. But Push And Shove has a happy, refreshing sound that is uniquely No Doubt’s and which lots of people will enjoy.

Most obvious improvement here is Stefani’s vocals. Somewhat thin and a bit shrill before, it is now mostly all clear and confident. She is at her best in One More Summer and Undone. Next is the beat. Catchy and commercial, the songs flow smoothly from one to the next and I like how the band’s California ska of the old days now blends with a new stylish club sound. Settle Down and Looking Hot are great examples.

And there is the high quality of musicianship in the band. If you will listen carefully to Push And Shove and Dreaming The Same Dream, you will notice how much thought and effort went into putting these songs together. Those drums alone, there seems to be so many of them, impressively fill up the surroundings as these tunes play. My favorite cuts though are the slower pop tunes Easy and Gravity, where No Doubt songwriting is at a higher, more mature level and the production leans towards a different direction. Fans may not like that but then the Tragic Kingdom belongs to the ages of long ago. In Push And Shove, No Doubt is in the making of something new and that feels exciting.

The local release of Push And Shove comes in a two-disc edition. Disc one has the entire album, Push And Shove,  Settle Down, Looking Hot, One More Summer, Push And Shove featuring Busy Signal and Major Lazer, Easy, Gravity, Undercover, Undone, Sparkle, Heaven and Dreaming The Same Dream. Disc two has the bonus tracks like Stand And Deliver, acoustic versions of Settle Down Looking Hot, One More Summer and Easy from the Santa Monica sessions, the Jonas Quant Remix of Looking Hot and One More Summer and the Anthony Gorry remix of Push And Shove.

No Doubt was one of the most screamed for performers at the recently-held MTV Europe Music Awards 2012 in Frankfurt, Germany. Others who performed were PSY, whom I saw in the news being welcomed to Oxford University a few days ago, Pitbull, The Killers and Taylor Swift. The pop country music star was one of the big winners of the evening. She bagged trophies for Best Female, Best Look and Best Live. The other one was Justin Bieber for Best Male, Best World Stage and Best Pop. Bieber did not attend but he was certainly the most-talked about celebrity at the event because of his rumored break-up with the teen pop star Selena Gomez.

Also among the winners were the British boy group One Direction, which won awards for Best New Act and Biggest Fans. New star Carly Rae Jepsen also went home with two trophies, Best Song for Call Me Maybe and Biggest Push. Gangnam Style by PSY, won for Best Video; Linkin Park was Best Rock; Lana Del Rey, Best Alternative; Nicki Minaj, Best Hip Hop; and the late pop diva Whitney Houston was named  Global Icon. Previous winners of this honor were Bon Jovi and Queen.

mostly all clear and confident. She is at her best in One More Summer and Undone. Next is the beat. Catchy and commercial, the songs flow smoothly from one to the next and I like how the band’s California ska of the old days now blends with a new stylish club sound. Settle Down and Looking Hot are great examples.

And there is the high quality of musicianship in the band. If you will listen carefully to Push And Shove and Dreaming The Same Dream, you will notice how much thought and effort went into putting these songs together. Those drums alone, there seems to be so many of them, impressively fill up the surroundings as these tunes play. My favorite cuts though are the slower pop tunes Easy and Gravity, where No Doubt songwriting is at a higher, more mature level and the production leans towards a different direction. Fans may not like that but then the Tragic Kingdom belongs to the ages of long ago. In Push And Shove, No Doubt is in the making of something new and that feels exciting.

The local release of Push And Shove comes in a two-disc edition. Disc one has the entire album, Push And Shove,  Settle Down, Looking Hot, One More Summer, Push And Shove featuring Busy Signal and Major Lazer, Easy, Gravity, Undercover, Undone, Sparkle, Heaven and Dreaming The Same Dream. Disc two has the bonus tracks like Stand And Deliver, acoustic versions of Settle Down Looking Hot, One More Summer and Easy from the Santa Monica sessions, the Jonas Quant Remix of Looking Hot and One More Summer and the Anthony Gorry remix of Push And Shove.

No Doubt was one of the most screamed for performers at the recently-held MTV Europe Music Awards 2012 in Frankfurt, Germany. Others who performed were PSY, whom I saw in the news being welcomed to Oxford University a few days ago, Pitbull, The Killers and Taylor Swift. The pop country music star was one of the big winners of the evening. She bagged trophies for Best Female, Best Look and Best Live. The other one was Justin Bieber for Best Male, Best World Stage and Best Pop. Bieber did not attend but he was certainly the most-talked about celebrity at the event because of his rumored break-up with the teen pop star Selena Gomez.

Also among the winners were the British boy group One Direction, which won awards for Best New Act and Biggest Fans. New star Carly Rae Jepsen also went home with two trophies, Best Song for Call Me Maybe and Biggest Push. Gangnam Style by PSY, won for Best Video; Linkin Park was Best Rock; Lana Del Rey, Best Alternative; Nicki Minaj, Best Hip Hop; and the late pop diva Whitney Houston was named  Global Icon. Previous winners of this honor were Bon Jovi and Queen.