No Doubt has been my favorite band since I first heard the song “I’m Just a Girl,” back when I was eight years old. Given that I’m now 21, that’s a rather long relationship, and one that has intensified throughout the years. No Doubt reached me in ways that no other band ever has. Almost all of their songs have fit particular situations in my life at some point or another, and I have always turned to their music for that extra push day-t-day. As cheesy or as cliché as it sounds, No Doubt is the one band that has always seemed to speak to me.

With that kind of connection, it’s needless to say that I was more than a little excited to hear that, after a five-year hiatus, No Doubt was touring once again. During that time, front woman (and my personal idol) Gwen Stefani released and toured for two solo albums. However, contrary to popular belief, No Doubt never actually broke up, thus making the title of “reunion tour” completely inaccurate. Perhaps, you might ask, would it be more accurate to say that this summer’s tour is No Doubt’s comeback tour?

The answer is no. Despite the band saying in interviews and on their website that the purpose of the tour was to get inspired and reconnect with their fans as fuel for the creation of a new album, the night I fulfilled one of my life goals (to see No Doubt live) the crowd at Minnesota’s Xcel Energy Center gave no indication that the connection between it and the band had ever been lost. Fans danced and sang along to all the favorites, from ‘Just a Girl’ and ‘Don’t Speak,’ which first made No Doubt a household name, to the catchy ‘Hella Good’ and ‘Hey Baby,’ songs that brought them back into the spotlight in 2001. The best thing about the performance, though, was that No Doubt in no way seemed like they were trying too hard to make their presence known again.

Dressed in black-and-white on an all white stage, and dressed in black and white, the band was the picture of simplicity, showing that this was truly a concert about the music and the fans, not flashy stage-effects and costumes. Gwen Stefani was a fireball of energy, dancing and running around the stage, doing her trademark push-ups during ‘I’m Just a Girl.’ Bassist Tony Kanal, guitarist Tom Dumont and drummer Adrian Young easily kept pace with Gwen, each embracing their own unique styles of stage presence.

While the highlight of the night for me was, undoubtedly, being front row center and having Gwen hold onto me for support as she sang into the audience, not one moment of the concert disappointed. No Doubt performed together as flawlessly as if they had been playing and touring together every day for the past five years, rather than using those years to take time for their individual lives. This was no reunion, and certainly no comeback. This was proof that No Doubt is still as strong a unit as they’ve always been.

If this summer’s tour yields a new record, it is sure to be as excellent a work as its six predecessors, and I will look forward its release with the giddy anticipation of a little girl waiting for her birthday. If not, I will delight in the fact that No Doubt went out with a bang, giving their fans the quality of sound and performance that they’ve come to expect. Either way, I will forever and always remain a proud and loyal fan of No Doubt, seeking refuge in the (not so) Tragic Kingdom of Gwen and the boys.

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I’ll be the first to admit it: I’m a bit of a music junkie. My current addiction? Owl City. I first heard the one-man band of my fellow Minnesotan, Adam Young, back in May, and with one listen I was hooked.

What is it about Owl City that grabbed, and continues to hold, my attention?

Simply put: everything. With a voice similar to that of Benjamin Gibbard of Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service, Adam Young sings electronic-tinged tunes that are simultaneously mellow and upbeat, instrumentally catchy and rife with lyrics that are both witty and nonsensical.

The overall effect?

A listening experience that takes listeners away from the real world for a bit, returning them to it in an inexplicably good mood. Or at least that’s the result Owl City has consistently had on me.

What made my discovery of Owl City even greater is that it came right before the July 14 release of Owl City’s second full-length album, Ocean Eyes. While it could easily be assumed that my excitement over this album merely comes from how much I enjoy Owl City’s first two albums (Of June and Maybe I’m Dreaming), that’s not the case. The new record is excellent, even without the progression artists generally try to show from one album to the next. It shows that Adam Young has created, and is now cementing, his own style which, likely, will remain consistent from album to album and from song to song.

While Adam Young’s Owl City may not satisfy the musical tastes of everyone, he has captured this music lover’s ears and fandom, and warranting a recommendation that you check out the band for a little taste of something different.