No Doubt Australia

Hi guys - for the people who don’t know, I’m traveling to the US to see No Doubt’s Californian shows and I leave five weeks from now. I want to take a small gift with me to give to the band, and I was hoping all the Australian fans would contribute.

The idea I have is to make this small folded paper thing, and the fans send me a message they would like to tell the band. I’ll type them out onto squares and put them all together into this thing and give it to the band! Each square is 6 x 6cm, so to make sure your message will fit I’d suggest writing it by hand on a square that size first before you submit your message.

Have a think about what you would like it to say (anything you want) and please email your submissions to me at nodoubt_tragickingdom@hotmail.com with the subject title “message for No Doubt”.
I leave on July 20th, so in order for there to be time for me to type them out, make the piece etc I need to receive all submissions no later than Friday July 3rd.

Here’s a photo to demonstrate what I’m talking about, but I’m going to make one from scratch using black paper and make it more No Doubt-ish.

And for anyone interested in which concerts I’ll be attending, here’s the list:
July 24th - Marysville, CA
July 25th - Mountain View, CA
July 27th - Los Angeles, CA
July 28th - Los Angeles, CA
July 31st - Irvine, CA
August 1st - Irvine, CA
August 2nd - Irvine, CA
August 4th - Irvine, CA

Two more songs from No Doubt’s previous performance on Jimmy Kimmel were aired this week - It’s My Life and New. Check them out!

It’s My Life

New

• From No Doubt.com:

“We want to thank all of the fans that created their own versions of the “Just A Girl” video for our summer tour.  The submissions were amazing!  As some of you may have noticed, we have not been showing this footage during the live show.  Unfortunately,and after a number of attempts to incorporate the video into the production, it didn’t work as we had hoped and so the decision was made to move forward without it.  We’re so fond of the footage that we’ve decided to post the full version here for all of you to enjoy.  Thanks again to everyone that took the time to be a part of this video.”

Watch the video here

• From Elle.com:

On being a mother: “It’s one thing when you have an infant, but when you have this two-or three-year-old going, ‘Mommy, what’s the deal?’ it’s harder. Kingston’s whole thing is, ‘I need, I need.’ He is insane right now. We’re just hoping for the best and that he’s not going to turn out to be a freak, but we’ll see.”

On celebrity: “Obviously, I’m not anything more than I am. I’m just, like, totally normal. The fact that any of this has happened, that we’re sitting here at the Beverly Hills Hotel just gets me going, like, What?”

On leaving No Doubt: “Everybody’s making it like there’s all this new tension, you know, like I stepped away from the band and now they’re jealous of me, and look, maybe there is a little bit of that.”

On how her priorities changed from band to family: “I wasn’t even married. Now I’m a wife and a mother of two. It’s a really different role. I always referred to No Doubt as a marriage, because that’s what it’s like to be together for so long and go through what we’ve been through. I can’t really have that relationship with them anymore. My priorities are always going to be my husband and my family now. That’s a huge, huge thing.”

CHECK OUT THE JULY ISSUE OF ELLE FOR THE FULL STORY ON GWEN STEFANI

NB: This issue is due out in the US June 15th, look for it in Borders shortly after.

Watch a behind the scenes video of the photoshoot here.

• Hi guys - I’ve been promising for a few years now to bring back a forum, and it’s finally here! I’m looking forward to getting to know other Aussie fans who I don’t already know, and discuss everything No Doubt or otherwise! Click here to join.

• Adrian posted on the forum today in a thread titled ‘Tutus‘:

“Hey guys! We have noticed that a bunch of you have been wearing tutus to the concert. Thank you for the homage! Please keep ‘em coming. Show us what you’ve got, post photos here and keep wearing them to the shows! The more the merrier!”
Adrian

• In case you don’t already know, voting for Triple J’s Hottest 100 of all time has now begun!

What is your HOTTEST song of all time?
To celebrate 20 years of the Hottest 100, we’re throwing our collective arms up in the air in a bid for enlightenment and asking you: What is your hottest song of all time? In 1989 you crowned Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart with the top spot. What will your favourite song of all time be two decades on? It’s time for YOU to decide.

Voting opens on Monday 1st June 2009 and will close Sunday 28th June 2009 - midnight AEST.

The best chance at getting No Doubt in the countdown would be to vote for one of their more popular songs, so I shortlisted the Tragic Kingdom singles and Ex-Girlfriend, and chose to vote for Just A Girl. It’s your choice, but let’s try and get the band in there somewhere!

VOTE HERE

• From Yahoo:

Gwen Stefani’s Harajuku Lovers brand to open first free-standing store in Asia
Fashion guru Gwen Stefani not only transcends the music and fashion industry, her love for Harajuku fashion style in Japan has culminated in the launch of her accessories apparel brand “Harajuku Lovers” in 2005. With great Taiwanese consumer anticipation, “Harajuku Lovers” is finally opening its flagship store in May. Located in Taipei’s fashion pioneering Xinyi District, this will be the brand’s first independent store in the world.

Gathering of Global Fashion in Taiwan
Situated on the Western Pacific Rim, the island nation of Taiwan is an important hub of transportation. With rich island culture and characteristics, the people of Taiwan have a high level of acceptance for new things; hence Taiwan has become the distribution center for diverse culture and global fashion.

According to report, the ratio of domestic sales and imports for the clothing industry is roughly 4:6, with imported clothing being in the majority. In addition, Taiwanese people’s willingness in trying new things has resulted in the conglomeration of diverse international brands. Whether it’s the hippie, or the extravagant fashion style, are all widely accepted in Taiwan.

Recently, the fashion apparel expenditure of the Taiwanese public is on the rise, with annual sales of between NT$150~170 billion. Therefore, the distributor in Taiwan imported Gwen Stefani’s own brand “Harajuku Lovers” from the US, and opened up a store in Taipei’s Xinyi District (Taiwan). The store is the brand’s flagship store in Asia, bringing a unique mix and match Japanese Harajuku fashion to the vibrant streets of Taipei.

Distinctive Style and Celebrity Endorsement
In December of 2009, Harajuku Lovers doll fragrance was launched in Taiwan, and it became an instant hit with its adorable appearance, and was collected by many Harajuku Lovers followers. This year, the Harajuku Lovers garment, bag and watch will be introduced to Taiwan. In terms of tailoring and pattern, the design retains the essence of the Harajuku style; together with bold and imaginative use of colors, Harajuku Lovers is set to become yet another fashion statement in Taiwan.

Following in the footsteps of LAMB, Gwen Stefani’s fashion brand Harajuku Lovers once again comes to Taiwan. With Gwen Stefani’s distinctive style and trend setting fashion sense, Harajuku Lovers is set to bring about a new American fashion trend and street culture in Taiwan.

Launch of Harajuku Lovers in Asia as Market Test
Taiwan is known as the fashion distribution center in Asia. By selecting Taiwan to open its first store in Asia, Harajuku Lovers perceives great importance in Taiwanese people’s consumption power and high level of acceptance for fashion. In addition, Harajuku Lovers intends to use their Taiwan flagship store as the springboard to the rest of Asia.

• From the Harajuku Lovers Fragrance facebook page:

One of the cutest fragrance bottles has got to be Gwen Stefani’s Harajuku Lovers doll shaped fragrances, the five bottle collection first debuted last year and they’re back for a limited edition change of clothes in September according to WWD. The five limited edition dolls scent remains the same but they will be outfitted in winter gear as Snow Bunnies. The Snow Bunnies will be priced at $30 per 10-ml. scent and at retail locations and online at Macy’s, Nordstrom and Sephora. The scent will also be promoted on a dedicated Web site, HLfragrance.com, which includes interactive features designed to connect users to the brand. I can’t wait to get a set of these, they’re so cute! Do you like the old clothes or the new?

“I think [the appeal is] twofold,” said Stefani of the success of the initial collection. “I think people really connect with these adorable little dolls. I know every time I look at the dolls, I can’t help but smile. Second, the fragrances are really great — extremely fresh and very wearable.”

• From No Doubt.com:

No Doubt donated a few items to the Road To Recovery auction which benefits our friend Jay Thomas. Jay suffered a major spinal chord injury recently and was paralyzed. To help his family with much needed medical expenses, we donated some items for this very worthy cause. The auction is live now so please check it out and help if you can. Other artists featured in the auction include Tony Hawk, Social Distortion, Kelly Slater, Nine Inch Nails and a gift pack from KROQ in Los Angeles. Click here to visit the Road To Recovery Auction.

All proceeds from the sale of these items will go to the Jay Thomas Special Needs Trust. For more information on Jay Thomas and his road to recovery click here.

Bass guitar signed by band
LAMB bag signed by Gwen

• Merch.com have added four new No Doubt shirts to their site, check them out here.

• Thanks to Jawi for these photos, someone from Loara High School uploaded them to No Doubt’s facebook page and tagged Gwen. In case you’re not sure, Gwen is the girl in the black striped dress (photo #1) and the one dressed up as Dopey from the Seven Dwarfs (on left in photo #2).

View them in the gallery here.

• Sorry for the short notice, but the episode of Gossip Girl that No Doubt appear in is screening tonight at 8:30pm on Fox 8, and 10:30pm on Fox 8 +2. Watch it!

• Thanks to Christina/Jenny, check out this CNN interview with the band from backstage at one of the tour rehearsals last week:

• Check it out, Hot Topic.com have added another new ND shirt to their site!