The Press Democrat (Jan. 19th 1996)
Have No Doubt, They’re Hot
It's an almost ludicrous thought, and Tom Dumont is thinking it.
The guitarist and his ska-infused new wave band No Doubt are enjoying the rising popularity of their first mainstream hit "Just a Girl."
And Dumont is thinking he doesn't want radio and MTV to play it too often -- a confounding notion considering every spin of the hit translates into cash in his pockets.
But having watched great songs by other groups get sapped of their appeal through overexposure (think flavors-of-the-month Silverchair and Everclear), he worries "Just a Girl," which was featured on the "Clueless" and "Showgirls" soundtracks, will earn the same fate.
"It would be better if they wouldn't play the shit out of it," says Dumont from his Huntington Beach home. "The song loses its uniqueness and power. I fear that and I imagine people are going through that (with `Just a Girl')."
Dumont's not angry or resentful. Just a mite concerned. But mostly he's grateful and appreciative that people like the irrepressibly sassy tune in the first place.
Although he can't bring himself to watch MTV (besides, he doesn't have cable), Dumont is pleasantly bemused that their glossy-hued video gets beamed into homes around the globe. "I'm like, `Wow, people in Minnesota are watching this!"' he says.
After eight years of toil and turmoil, the spunky quartet -Dumont, singer Gwen Stefani, bassist Tony Kanal and drummer Adrian Young -- is riding out of the hermetic Orange County punk scene on the success of its bottomlessly bubbly third album "Tragic Kingdom." (The title is a barbed spin on Anaheim's Taj Mahal of caramelized consumption, Disneyland).
Refreshing and energetic in this age of musical mediocrity, the Interscope release is a litany of instant-gratification morsels. Herky-jerky ska jitters beneath a mixture of shiny Cars-esque new wave and snotty suburban punk.
"Our sound is all over the place," says Dumont, who co-wrote "Just a Girl." "We're still pretty unfocused stylistically. It's mostly simple three-chord, pop and a reggae thing. I don't know."
Sunnier than Rancid's recent major label smash -- and without that band's snarling punk posturing- "Tragic Kingdom" has received rapturous reviews.
Within the Orange County underground, No Doubt is regarded as asort of a resident veteran in the same way Rancid and Green Day are at Gilman Street. And, likewise, the band is facing an inevitable backlash from fans who feel betrayed by No Doubt's national success.
"I feel like in some ways we don't quite fit in anymore, having radio play and all," sighs Dumont. "There's an element that reacts negatively to that. Not liking popular bands is a natural reaction. It's hard, but we're really happy what we're doing."
It's been a long and -- thanks to dismal label support for their first two albums -- a sometimes troublesome trajectory to that happy point. Formed in 1987 by Eric Stefani -who plays keyboard on "Tragic Kingdom" but has since quit the band to do animation for "The Simpsons" -- No Doubt was a band without a singer.
Eric cajoled his little sister Gwen, who worked with him at the local Dairy Queen, to pick up a mike and warble. "They were really into ska music, like Madness and The Specials," recalls Dumont, who joined the group six years ago.
"Eric got Gwen, even though she had never sang before. It was a new thing for her. He just said, `I've got a band and you're going to be the singer.' So she did it for fun and she just turned out to be a natural."
Eric penned all the lyrics for their first two records. But on "Tragic," says Dumont, "Gwen stepped up to the songwriting plate and really delved into herself and found her voice. I think she did a really good job."
No Doubt has a striking frontwoman in the impossibly lissome Stefani, a platinum blonde whose smoldering cool looks evoke the hardboiled sexpots of '40s film noir. Her riveting voice reveals shades of other rock chicks -- the phlegmatic vocal slouching of Chrissie Hynde; the ethereal pierce of Debbie Harry; and the giddy exuberance of Cyndi Lauper.
Dumont's stylistic contribution to the band is something altogether different -- namely, heavy metal chords. He was an aspiring guitar god in a flailing metal band called Rising before he joined No Doubt.
"A week after I quit Rising, I was playing in No Doubt," recalls Dumont, who answered the band's ad.
A recovering disciple of Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Metallica, "It took me a year or two to adapt. I still had long hair. I took a backseat just playing those ska upbeats -those little chinka-chinkas -- because we had a horn section and keyboards. I started listening to bands like Steel Pulse and OingoBoingo. I couldn't get into Madness and The Specials. They were too happy for me. I like darker stuff in minor keys.
"I went along with it," he says, "and over time I started using my own influence on the band, which changed the sound. It gave it a harder edge. All my songs are definitely in minor key. And I think on the new album the guitar is more up-front."
Nowadays, sporting a blue Mohawk -- "That's faked, because obviously I wasn't a real punk," he says -- Dumont's other vestige from his metal years is a trusty Flying-V guitar, one of the group's many campy talismans.
"I brought it back because nobody was playing them much in my scene," he explains. "There's kind of a space-age 1950s image to it. It's totally tongue-in-cheek. And sometimes on stage I cop these cliche rock star moves and I wear spiked wristbands. I'm just having fun with it all."
With the absence of Eric Stefani's keyboard playing, the group is touring with horn players and a hired keyboardist, supplying the live sound with extra oomph.
"We've tried to have a lot of energy in our live shows," Dumont says. "Even though some of the songs are lyrically on the sad side, if you have a horn section and keyboards in a ska vibe, everything tends to be upbeat."
High-caliber bands Rage Against the Machine, Ugly Kid Joe and Sublime have opened for No Doubt. But, after the current statewide jaunt with Dance Hall Crashers, the band will be doing its own opening slots. They'll embark on a national tour with hot up-and-comer Everclear, which also boasts an excessively spun single.
"So," muses Dumont with a snicker, "we'll be two bands on tour that get played way too much."