‘No Doubt’ wild, energetic performance satisfies

by Liz Rinaldo
Copy Editor The Stylus

The line began sometime around 4:30 p.m., with the doors expected to open at 7. By 6:00, the line wrapped around the Alumni Arena. Scores of people, from kids to college students, were anticipating the No Doubt concert at the University of Buffalo. People came from Syracuse and Massachusetts for this concert, one of the few on the Rock Steady tour that wasn’t sold out. And at $15, the price couldn’t be beat. And it was well worth it.

The Alumni Arena is a huge gymnasium. If you were adventurous, you ventured down to the floor, where the never ending escapades of the mosh pit and crowd surfing began very early. Those who were not so brave chose to sit in the bleachers. If you got in line early enough, you were rewarded with amazing seats.

After a much anticipated intermission, the lights lowered and the crowd held its breath. The stage was set -- the now familiar Rock Steady design covered the back wall. The stage was a checkerboard of black and white squares. The drum set sat in the middle with the band’s logo. It wasn’t too long ago these guys were playing dinky little bars across the country, and now they’re on a nearly sold out worldwide tour.
Most everyone knows the band’s story by now. They began as a bunch of kids in Anaheim, Fla. Eric Stefani used to tinker around writing songs, forcing his little sister Gwen to sing along. Soon they were joined by John Spence, and they formed the band No Doubt. The name came from one of Spence’s favorite sayings.

A year later they were joined by high school junior Tony Kanal. He and Gwen hit it off, and began to date in secret. The band hit the road in 1987, but it all came to a halt when John Spence committed suicide. The band was devastated, and wasn’t sure if they should go on. But they did. And guitarist Tom Dumont entered the scene, deciding to join the band after hearing a rehearsal.
They did OK, playing small gigs here and there and attracting a following of fans; they even sold three- and five- song demo tapes. Drummer Adrian Young called a phone number on the back of one of these tapes and said he had years of experience. Later he admitted he only had one year of experience. But it didn’t matter, the stage was set.

In 1989, No Doubt played in Arizona, their first out-of-state concert. They scored a record deal with Interscope, but didn’t let it go to their heads. They still went to school (Gwen studied art, Tony, music, Tom and Adrian, psychology) and worked. In their free time, they made trips to Los Angelos to record their debut album. The album and the tour both flopped -- it was the age of Nirvana and grunge rock, and No Doubt just didn’t fit in. They decided to have one more go and finish their contract with Interscope and go back to their lives.

In 1993, they started recording what would be Tragic Kingdom. Eric left to pursue other interests. Tony and Gwen ended their seven-year relationship, giving Gwen a plethora of material to write about. Tragic Kingdom took two years to complete, and in September of 1995, No Doubt played at the Warped Tour. The next month, the album was released. The first single, “Just a Girl,” took a bit to catch on, but when it did, it took off. And it never slowed down from there.
“Spiderwebs” was the next single, and it was bigger than the first. The band began their European tour, this time with a real bus instead of a van. Its great success laid the groundwork for the success of the next two albums, Return to Saturn and Rock Steady.

And so here we are, the Rock Steady tour. The red and purple lights come up, and the band runs out onto the stage. Everyone is wondering what Gwen will be wearing, and here is the answer: Black and white sneakers, black and white striped cargo pants, a ‘Rock Steady’ sports bra with a black jacket and red plaid tie. (The jacket didn’t last very long.) Tony wore red plaid pants and a white muscle shirt. Tom had a hobo theme going on, with patched pants and a greenish shirt. And of course, there’s Adrian, who never has been too fond of clothes when he performs. He had on a kilt with the Rock Steady design on it.
The band opened with their latest single, “Hella Good,” and immediately followed with a previous hit off Return to Saturn, “Bathwater.” The band didn’t talk much during the concert, but it didn’t matter. They danced, they played and they sang their hearts out. From the minute they stepped on the stage, the crowd was on their feet and never sat down again. The energy was electric. Stefani, especially, was all over the stage, doing her signature dance moves. As an introduction to “Just a Girl,” she impressed the audience by doing ten push-ups to prove that she wasn’t just a girl. During the song, she climbed the scaffolding, sang hanging there, and then deliberately dropped her microphone.

At another point during the show, she did some improv dancing to the crowd chanting “USA.” Stefani held the microphone out to the crowd, letting them sing the opening lines to the classic “Don’t Speak” -- there also was a great moment during that classic break up song, where Kanal and Stefani danced together. That sent the crowd wild. The majority of the songs performed were from Rock Steady, including “Underneath it All,” “Hey Baby,” and “Detective,” but there also were old favorites like “Ex-Girlfriend” and “Sunday Morning.” After performing “Sunday Morning,” the band waved good-bye and left the stage. The crowd stood, cheered, screamed and stomped until the band returned for the encore, singing “Spiderwebs” and finishing it all out with “Rock Steady.”

Few bands perform with the energy and spunk that No Doubt does. From the minute they stepped on to the stage, they were on fire and the audience loved it. Everyone was jumping up and down (as the music and the band seem to inspire you to), and did not want the concert to end. It was exhausting enough for the audience; yet the band seemed to never run out of energy. Even if you were not a huge No Doubt fan, you thoroughly enjoyed this concert. You didn’t have a choice -- the band forced you to have an amazing time. Hopefully, they will come back soon.