We eagerly await Coachella’s return. Think of Rage Against the Machine (2007), Siouxsie and the Banshees (2002), and the Pixies (2004). Band reunions may inspire new ones. After an absence of more than a decade, No Doubt made a triumphant comeback to Coachella’s main stage on Saturday.
Even though Tyler the Creator was the primary attraction of the evening, No Doubt’s one-hour, twenty-minute show could have ended it. Gwen Stefani won Coachella’s Artist of the Year award. Despite being half her age, I wasted the entire afternoon meandering through the campground by 8 p.m. I was in terrible agony on my back. It baffles me as to how she continued to sing, bounce, and skank on stage.
Despite Stefani’s terrible cultural appropriation—of her Japanese identity, her obsession with Harajuku, etc.—I grew up with her. Her bleached white hair, space haircut, and red lipstick all scream “star power.” Despite her fame, Adrian Young, guitarist Tom Dumont, and bassist Tony Kanal kept No Doubt together.
Before Coachella, we saw a band playing in the background, and individuals in their twenties seemed to be having a good time. Given their middle age and excitement for the occasion, it was pretty charming.
Hello, my love, Hella Following a deliberate needle drip, partygoers felt better. Olivia Rodrigo immediately joined Bathwater, sporting a white “I [Heart] No Doubt” tank top. Though Stefani harboured an obsessive love for the theatrical youth Rodrigo, it was fascinating to watch the pop punk legend pass the renowned torch to the up-and-coming entertainer.
Stefani performed Just a Girl solo before making a joke about men who couldn’t stop singing the call-and-repeat. On Stefani’s tour, Rodrigo filled in for her. At twenty, Stefani penned a power ballad for disenchanted feminists. Most musicians only get to witness the 52-year-old woman’s ranting during the song, crowd work, and brazen push-ups.
Three of Stefani’s solo hits, “Holaback Girl,” “Cool,” and “The Sweet Escape,” would make girls chuckle or dance. Stefani murmured something about “dust[ing] off the old shit,” and the girl next to me, dressed in sequins and cutoffs, quickly yelled, “We want your shit!”
I hate it because Stefani’s amazing farewell performance to bassist Kanal would have moved me to tears. Shouting in public was exciting, but they quickly came to a Do Not Speak agreement following their breakup. Even more intense and terrible.
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