MercuryNews.com | 10/20/2005 | Solo Stefani more flash than substance — Marian Liu, Mercury News

Performance-wise, Stefani made me miss No Doubt. As with many big pop singers in concert, she’s become more visually exciting than musically appealing — full of eye candy, changing costumes, bouncing this way and that. Her music seemed mechanical, and even her timing on the hit “Hollaback Girl” was off and her vocals were flat. For much of her set, which lasted a little more than an hour, the audience was listless.

As one of the biggest female pop icons, Stefani needed to give us more. I wanted to see the impromptu quirky star that I fell in love with in 1995′s “Tragic Kingdom,” the spunky, unpredictable singer who would suddenly do push-ups, then break into some yoga during a concert. I wanted to see that strong female role model I was proud to be a fan of.

Instead, I saw someone who was more flash than substance. Stefani was flanked by her sidekicks, the Harajuku girls, as well as break-dancers and a constantly changing screen of images from ocean waves to scantily clad Japanese girls.

Jen and I had a great time at the show, but I have to agree with much of what the Mercury News columnist writes — especially regarding the sound mixing. I was also hoping for a couple of No Doubt songs and was a bit disappointed. At the end, though, Gwen & Co. were clearly having a great time up on stage and it showed. Unfortunately, it looks like none of my pics came out; I’ll take a look this weekend to see if any of them can be salvaged, but it doesn’t seem likely. The linked article does include a couple of photos.

And if you ever wanted to know what “Hollaback Girl” is really about, here you go courtesy of the OC Weekly.