The Ottawa Citizen (July 10th 1997)
No doubt about it, band earned its success
If you had any skepticism about the musical validity of No Doubt, bassist Tony Kanal will help set you straight.
No Doubt is a band.
They're not some industry-created marking tool spawned by the record label. They're not a cutesy contrived contraption featuring a pretty female singer with made-for-MTV looks and a few young, hip backing musicians.
They've been together for more than a decade. They write their own catchy, ska-influenced songs. And, unlike many successful acts of the '90s, they appear to be enjoying their commercial appeal and fame.
"We've been working (hard) to get to this point," Kanal says in a phone interview. "This is something a lot of people don't get to experience. For us, it's good."
Good indeed.
The band's third LP, Tragic Kingdom, recently occupied the No. 1 spot on the Billboard album chart for nine weeks. Singles Just A Girl, Spiderwebs and Don't Speak were all radio hits, and Grammy nominations for Best New Artists and Best Rock Album followed.
The band's slow climb to success has helped them take it all in stride, Kanal says. The band also includes poster-girl vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont and drummer Adrian Young.
"Everything has to be looked at in perspective," he says. "Since we've been together for so long ... I think we've experienced every level of ascension of this whole game. To be at this level, where you're touring comfortably and you're kind of calling the shots -- it's a good place to be. We can deal with all the (bull) that comes along ... it's far (surpassed) by the fact that we get to play for so many people every night."
Kanal says bands today should know what to expect should they find national success. Still, he won't pass judgment on those acts that can't handle the price of fame. (Kurt Cobain is mentioned as an example.)
"I can totally understand it," he says. "For everybody, it's a different trip. We have a pretty decent support group around us that (some bands) might not have. The chemistry between the four of us is strong enough that we can look out for each other during tough times.
"We've been through times when nothing was happening ... we were writing tons of songs and couldn't release them ... I think it makes you sympathize with other bands .... (but) some (later realize) they just don't want all the stuff that goes along with it."
Some of that "stuff" includes having your personal life placed under the microscope. Kanal, who was once romantically involved with Stefani, says continuing to work with the band and the vocalist is no problem -- despite the fact that some of the group's songs are numbers she's written about him.
"It's something that we really don't talk about too much because it's such an old subject," he says. "We didn't want to break up the band. It was too important to us, and we worked through it. We're still really good friends and we're just proceeding ahead.
"I don't spend too much time thinking about the subject matter of the songs. I'd rather just concentrate on the songs themselves ... playing them as tight as possible on stage and having a good time."
First influenced by British ska acts such as Madness, the Specials and the English Beat, the distinctive music style peppers much of Tragic Kingdom. Still, Kanal says the band made a conscious decision years ago to expand its sound, incorporating elements of rock, soul and reggae. He admits video has been an important element to the success of No Doubt and gives credit to Sophie Muller, who directed several of the band's clips.
"She's the most brilliant video director.... Visually, our live shows are really important to us, and to capture the energy that we try to put out at our live shows on a video is tough.... I think they just capture the spirit of No Doubt -- which is to have a good time."