Herald rating: ***
(Interscope)
Review: Russell Baillie
It's been five years since Californian outfit No Doubt caused a collision between the West Coast punk/ska revival and the girlpop boom. Their breakthrough album Tragic Kingdom became a 15 million seller and made a star of pouty singer Gwen Stefani in the process.
That lengthy gap, as well as bringing in Alanis Morissette studio coach Glen Ballard as producer here, might suggest some nervousness in realising a follow-up.
The hour-plus 15 track Return of Saturn does show signs of being too long in the oven, especially among its dreary B-sides-only last third.
And just like last time, Stefani - a bondage trousered Betty Boop - remains a sticking point. Her breathlessly coquettish delivery over a recurring lyrics about all those bad boys with whom she keeps starting doomed relationships (ex-beau, Bush singer Gavin Rossdale is probably in here somewhere) can make this rather cloying.
Likewise, the rest of the band's Californian dayglo take on the days of 2-Tone ska still smells distinctly cod-like.
However, there's no, er, doubting the exuberance or sheer hookpower of its best songs, a run of New Wave-ish rocky pop of robust choruses which burst forth with lead track and first single Ex-Girlfriend and run through the likes of Six Feet Under, Artificial Sweeter, New (which brings back worrying memories of 80s synthpopsters Berlin) and Comforting Lie.
While the midtempo Simple Kind of Life, and bittersweet ballad Too Late (the Don't Speak of the piece) suggests that five year gap has brought on just a little musical maturity. Though the risible cabaret vamp of Bathwater or the ditzy eyelashes-a-flutter Marry Me quickly dims that particular notion.
So as an album, the one good half The Return of Saturn runs very big rings around the other. As patchy as it is perky, it's also, we suspect, the start of another No Doubt five year plan.
No Doubt - <i>Return of Saturn</i>
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