No Doubt ready to go out on top
By ADRIENNE FRANK
Get Out
June 23, 2004

Rumors have been swirling of late that after “The Singles” tour wraps up in July, SoCal foursome No
Doubt is done. Gwen Stefani & Co. have stated publicly that they can’t guarantee a sixth album or another tour. Not because of some “Behind the Music”-worthy drama, but simply because they’ve been together 17 years — and 17 years, in the music business especially, is a very long time.

If that’s the case, then the Anaheim-based quartet — vocalist Stefani, drummer Adrian Young, guitarist Tom Dumont and bassist Tony Kanal — went out with a bang Wednesday night at Cricket Pavilion.

The group kicked off their 80-minute set with “Just A Girl,” the female empowerment anthem that first garnered them radio airplay in the mid-’90s, then broke into “Excuse Me Mr.,” another hit from 1995’s “Tragic Kingdom.”

From there, the group treated the packed house to “Ex-Girlfriend” from 2000’s “Return of Saturn” and “Underneath it All” and “Hey Baby” off the reggae-infused 2001 album, “Rock Steady.”

Clad in plaid, low-slung pants and a hooded top — which she quickly slipped off to reveal a sparkly
black bra — Stefani was absolutely mesmerizing. With her platinum blond ponytail whipping around as she strutted across the stage — turning the occasional cartwheel — it was hard to believe Stefani has been doing this for nearly two decades. (And even more difficult to believe that, at 34, her abs are so
incredibly ripped.)

“I don’t care if you're a guy or a girl, you just can’t take your eyes off Gwen,” said Tammy Hagen of
Scottsdale. “She’s one of those rare people who just gets more amazing with age.”
In between songs — each one No Doubt played is featured on their greatest hits album, “The Singles,” which was released last December — Stefani seemed to drop hints that this might be the group’s last hurrah. On more than one occasion the glamourous frontwoman, who’s currently working on her solo debut, thanked the fans for their years of support and recalled how when No Doubt first played in the Valley, they traveled from Anaheim in a van.

Fellow SoCal bands, popsters Phantom Planet and punkers Blink-182 preceded No Doubt onstage.

Blink, known for their crude antics and potty talk, were unusually mum and instead let their 60-minute set of music — including such hits as “What’s My Age Again?,” “All the Small Things,” “Adam’s Song” and “Dammit” — do the talking.

In addition to a surprise drum solo — which Travis Barker performed on the sidewalk in front of the lawn area — the highlight of Blink’s set came when bassist Mark Hoppus asked the audience to hold up their cell phones, in lieu of lighters, during a slower tune. The pavilion was hilariously transformed into a sea of blue from the telephone keypads.

“All you needed was the ‘Can you hear me now?’ guy and it would’ve been the perfect commercial,” said Troy Allen of Scottsdale.

Set list:
Just A Girl
Excuse Me Mr.
Ex-Girlfriend
Underneath it All
Hey Baby
Bathwater
Running
Simple Kind of Life
Hella Good
New
Don't Speak
It's My Life
Spiderwebs

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