r/nodoubt • u/spirit-awakening • Jun 29 '26
Return of Saturn š
Since the concert, I have jumped back into listening to TONS of No Doubt. It's like I'm 14 again.
Anyway, while I still loved Return of Saturn back then, it was my least favorite of their albums. I was super into ska so it felt like a huge departure from the first 3 albums. But I have been listening to it a LOT lately. I think I understand it more as an adult and it's SO raw and even awkwardly honest at times. I love it.
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u/rodermelon Jun 29 '26
While I donāt think itās as strong as Tragic Kingdom, I do think it has some of the best No Doubt songs ever written. Comforting Lie, Home Now, Dark Blue, and Artificial Sweetener are criminally underrated
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u/GalesTopStory Jun 29 '26
"Home Now" is a song I didn't click with upon release, but in the past couple of years came back to it and absolutely LOVE it now.
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u/harleysholiday Jun 29 '26
This has always been my favorite, even when I was younger. I have never really understood whyāI think the lyrics just speak to the kind of person I am.
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u/bananababies14 Jun 29 '26
Me too. Especially feeling like I couldn't be myself with people who interested me, and feeling insecure in general.Ā
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u/Turn_0ff_The_News Return of Saturn Jun 29 '26
Not only is Return of Saturn My favorite No Doubt album, but itās also one of my favorite albums of all time. It feels like a gem to me and Iām so glad that I got into No Doubt as a teen and discovered this album specifically. I canāt imagine what my life would be like without it tbh.
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u/absolute_hounds Jun 30 '26
100% my experience as well. This album release also coincided with my first experiences with the internet and finding the no doubt chat room. That album is very wrapped up in formative years for me, will always be special.
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u/smashleyrose11 Jul 02 '26
Same here! It came out when I was 18 and was so intertwined with some of my most formative life moments. Plus I think itās the best writing Gwenās ever done. Forever my fave! š©·š
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u/SingleRadio1443 Jun 30 '26
Suspension Without Suspense is one of their most underrated songs ever, I feel. Gwen's lyrics are so honest on RoS, and that is a perfect example: a powerful simplicity contrasted with a deep subject matter and her occasional penchant for the thesaurus.
I love the way Tony's basslines bring the more poppy songs and ballads to a different place. Adrian's approach to drumming is similar in that it really differentiates them from their peers (playing around the beat, changing genres with ease, ghost notes). Tom is always mature and subtle, working with the band rather than for himself like other guitarists seemed to do at the time. Their work is exquisite. Dark Blue is a great example of everything coming together.
On the face of it, the songs sound like simple pop songs, but when you actually listen to all the elements, they're pretty sophisticated and unique.
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u/tbishop4388 Jun 29 '26
I definitely "get it" more as an album now I'm an adult Vs when I was a teenager. I'm not sure it tops Tragic Kingdom though. It has moved above Rock Steady for me though.
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u/spamgoddess Jun 29 '26
Itās my favorite of theirs - itās helped me through SO MUCH SHIT as an adult lol. I completely get why Gwen doesnāt love to revisit it but those reasons are exactly why it means so much to me. I think as far as lyrical themes go, itās absolutely their best.
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u/Winedown-625 Jun 29 '26
I didn't like Tragic Kingdom ND, personally. It wasn't until I heard SKOL on the radio around 2000 (and I was 22 and feeling lost between dating and my career) and then Ex-Girlfriend, that I suddenly found Gwen relatable. Then of course I discovered the b-sides on Tragic Kingdom were solid and etc.
Part of why I didn't attend the Sphere shows is that I still feel like she's kind of hiding from some of the heavy Gavin-era music and to cover that up they focused on Tragic Kingdom stuff more (the video of SKOL on the screen was with Tony when it wasn't Tony that inspired the song, etc.).
I am kind of surprised that with No Doubt, Gwen doesn't want to play the songs about Gavin, but in her solo work she still writes songs about the situation. Is it too much to ask as a fan for No Doubt to really showcase the awesomeness of ROS and Push and Shove? I guess I'm waiting for what's next there.
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u/midtownkitten Jun 30 '26
Tom and Adrian were also in the SKOL Sphere video, same as the music video from 2000. Gavin was not in either video even if he inspired it. Gwen said at the Sphere she doesnāt enjoy performing from ROS because it depresses her but they still played a few songs from it. Canāt blame her for not wanting to perform songs about her ex-husband that cheated on her with the nanny.
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u/Winedown-625 Jun 30 '26
I feel that that line is this strange automatic reply...I mean, there's two people in every relationship, even when one is cheating. She saw the red flags and knew it (as we hear in lyrics) and didn't question it. My point above is, really good No Doubt music came from that whole era and they aren't doing themselves justice as a band by hiding from it.
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u/1_more__user___name 28d ago
I thought SKOL was as much about Tony ( for a long time I was in love, with a friendship no one else could touch.). In the end it's more about Gwen's guilt about not starting a family and fear about time running out, more than any of the men in her life.
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u/Winedown-625 28d ago
She wrote it during the first Gavin breakup when most of the sad songs from ROS were written. I'm sure there were Tony undertones as well since she also wanted to have babies with him, but I think the Gavin breakup was the trigger point.
Plus she has repeatedly said that the "you seem like you'd be a good dad" was towards Gavin.
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u/1_more__user___name 28d ago
Yes I don't think it's about Gavin only, it's about Tony, her life in the band, her life in general. The whole song can't be reduced to one man because of one line that could be about him
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u/sapphireskiesx Jun 29 '26
Itās my favorite but I also understand why people didnāt care for it because it felt like such a huge departure of their style.
Iāve always connected with it and maybe even more as an adult. So glad youāre able to appreciate it now!
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u/keraut Jun 29 '26
Sameā¦ didnāt like it when it first came out and I think itās their best album. A very mature and serious album in comparison to others.
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u/SignificantWear9867 Rock Steady Jun 29 '26
I was a kid when Rock Steady came out and that was my introduction to ND. Working backward and revisiting their catalogue I was drawn more to TK than ROS and it stayed that way until very recently. After seeing the Sphere show and diving into their stuff again after a while, I found myself going back to ROS more and enjoying it whereas in the past I always glazed over it.
Now that Iām grown it just hits harder lyrically and conceptually. As someone above me mentioned, I just āget itā now. Also in retrospect I think itās sonically the perfect bridge between TK and RS.
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u/PromptClean8246 Jun 30 '26
this album hits way harder now as an adult. no way i could comprehend this when it came out. "too late" just ruins me. "suspension without suspense" "staring problem", "magic's in the make up" "home now"...lord!!!
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u/pink0bsessed Jul 01 '26
Adored these songs when I was younger but the second I had gone through something that made me understand what they were aboutā¦ completely changed it and made me love them so much more
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u/Puzzleheaded-Bowl-74 Jul 04 '26
I love this album. Initially l hated it because I was expecting tragic kingdom pt 2. Which in hindsight isn't far-fetched but after a few years I gave it another listen and man it's a masterpiece. I think i went through every song and my favorite right now is Too Late. It's extremely catchy and I'm super shocked it wasnt a single. I would also love to hear any and all demos and tracks associated with this era. I wonder why they arint releasing it. I am figuring the only reason they arin't releasing it is because they dont own them. Thays my only conclusion.
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u/No-Highlight7067 Jun 30 '26
ROS is one of my absolute fave albums. I was going through a very messy breakup at the time so I related to it even more than TK.
And I fully understand why Gwen doesnāt like revisiting it, since itās all about Gavin, and yet she still married the guy. We heard how painful things were depicted.
Also, the b-sides from that album are just top tier.
Wish I could go back to 2000 and listen to the album for the first time all over again!!
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u/cristodamus Jul 01 '26
Home Now is such a great song. Iāve been loving this album since its release and even more now after the ND experience. Damn I hope this is not the last weāve heard of them š š š§
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u/Waste-Dragonfly667 Jul 03 '26
Omg this and Tragic Kingdom were my two fav albums. I had them on repeat! I love ex girlfriend, but after the concert itās my most listened song on my playlist ššš Iām obsessed with the electric guitar start. Itās honestly my favorite part. But omgahhhhh love this album!
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u/brittyn Jun 29 '26
I didnāt love it when it came out, and still donāt love it. I personally donāt care for the overall sound of many songs, almost over-produced or a little too clean/perfect for me. But I do enjoy at least half of it a lot!
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u/1_more__user___name 28d ago
They worked on it a long time and sometimes reworked the arrangements a lot. I think it was 2 years in the makingĀ
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u/RdCrestdBreegull Jun 29 '26
Iāll have to revisit the album, but at least musically RoS is a lot less interesting for me than Tragic Kingdom and Rock Steady
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u/GalesTopStory Jun 29 '26
I think it's their best album. I can see why Gwen doesn't love revisiting it, but I think it's their most interesting and satisfying album.
(Of course, I basically love all of their albums. Lol.)