Settle Down (No Doubt song)

"Settle Down" is a song by American rock band No Doubt. It is the first single from their sixth studio album '' Push and Shove'' (2012). Written by Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, Tom Dumont, and produced by Spike Stent, it was released on July 16, 2012 by Interscope Records. The song is a combination of many styles, such as reggae, ska, dancehall, Latin and Caribbean-tinged beats, merging with American pop and rock music. Lyrically, the song is about confidence and about feeling good, adjusting yourself to unfamiliar circumstances.

The song received positive reviews from music critics, who praised the band for "returning to form" and for being familiar with their other songs. Some critics wrote that it resembles the songs from their fifth album ''Rock Steady'', and particularly " Hey Baby", while some others compared it to Santigold songs.

A music video for the song was directed by Sophie Muller and released on July 16, 2012. In it, the members of No Doubt reassemble in the form of a trucking convoy, which meets up to perform the song in a parking lot. It received mostly favorable reviews, with the reviewers praising the colors, lights and the band for returning to do videos.

Background and release

After the success of their fifth studio album ''Rock Steady'' (2001),"316) Rock Steady"
''Rolling Stone''. November 1, 2003. Retrieved September 30, 2008. in April 2003, No Doubt went into hiatus to take a break to spend time with their families before starting to compile '' The Singles 1992–2003'', which would feature the band's greatest hits from their previous albums.Timeline of the band's history
at No Doubt's official website. Retrieved September 28, 2008. The main reason to go into hiatus was that, in early 2003, their lead singer Gwen Stefani started work on her 1980s-inspired new wave/ dance-pop music side project, under which she had released two solo albums at the time — '' Love. Angel. Music. Baby.'' on November 23, 2004 and ''The Sweet Escape'' on December 5, 2006.Moss, Corey and Downey, Ryan
"Gwen Stefani Recording Solo Material"
MTV News. April 18, 2003. Retrieved September 28, 2008. However, she and her bandmates assured fans that No Doubt remained an ongoing musical concern and confirmed that with a successful 2009 tour that carried the band to 50 North American cities.

The band began initial work on the album in March 2008, after Gwen Stefani wrapped the tour behind her second solo album, ''The Sweet Escape''. Songwriting on the effort reportedly got off to a slow start because, according to a post from Stefani, she was distracted by her second pregnancy, though she was certain at the time that "this could be the most inspired No Doubt record so far." Energized by being back together in the studio for the first time since recording 2001's ''Rock Steady'', the band decided to take a break from recording to hit the road for a wildly successful summer 2009 greatest-hits tour. The band reconvened at bassist Tony Kanal's personal studio in Hollywood after the tour concluded and spent the majority of 2010 writing and carefully polishing several demos. In January 2011, No Doubt guitarist Tom Dumont posted a message letting fans know that the group transitioned to the Santa Monica studio of producer Mark "Spike" Stent, who also worked on ''Rock Steady'', to officially begin tracking the effort.

''Rolling Stone'' visited Stent's studio and sampled several songs the band had recorded. Of the 12 tracks announced at that time, the magazine lavished particular affection on "Settle Down," calling it a "party-ready reggae blast," and "One More Summer," which "updates the band's ska-pop sound with pounding dance beats, arena-size guitars and a beyond-catchy chorus." A month after Rolling Stone's studio visit, in late July 2011, the band teamed up in the studio with Major Lazer, the recording name for hip-hop/dance producers Diplo and Switch. The group reportedly recruited the duo for a track titled "Push and Shove". At the time, drummer Adrian Young told reporters he hoped the new music would be released in the fall of 2011. However, the band chose instead to not rush the album's release and pushed the set to 2012. In April, the band announced on Twitter that the album was mixed and ready to go. In their announcement of the album's release date over the weekend, No Doubt elaborated that over the next several months, they would "shoot the video and start rehearsing to perform the new songs live for all of you."

In May, 2012, the band previewed the song "Push and Shove" in their first studio webisode back in May. Finally, on June 11, 2012, the band announced the title of the upcoming sixth studio album, "Push and Shove", and its release date, September 25. They also named the first single — "Settle Down" — and announced that it will be coming to airwaves on July 16, 2012.

Composition and lyrics

"Settle Down" was written by Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal and Tom Dumont, while production was handled by Spike Stent. It lasts for 6 minutes and 1 second, while the radio edit lasts for 3 minutes and 36 seconds. The intro to "Settle Down" is a Middle Eastern themed affair that segues into the ambient noise of a crowd of people on the street before launching into a familiar trademark electronic reggae wall of sound found on No Doubt's older jams. The song is a reggae-influenced dance jam, built over a dancehall beat, tapping into Latin and Caribbean-tinged beats, merging them with American pop and rock music. For Jason Lipshut of '' Billboard'', "sonically, the band balances reggae flourishes with Tony Kanal's kinetic bass movements, creating a forceful continuation of their 'Rock Steady' singles. The difference between 'Settle Down' and No Doubt hits like ' Hey Baby' and 'Hella Good' is how hard the group has to work on their new cut." Nolan Feenay of Entertainment Weekly's ''The Music Mix'' wrote that the song resembles their 2001's single "Hey Baby". Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone described the beat as "Caribbean, with hints of Seventies funk and Eighties electro percolating up through the mix." Andrew Unterberger of ''Pop Dust'' described it as "a six-minute, dancehall-influenced pop/rock number, with an extended dub outro and the typical No Doubt mix of attitude, vulnerability, hooks, funk and fun." Tom Breihan of Stereogum and Marc Hogan of '' Spin'' both compared the track to the work of Santigold.

Lyrically, it finds Gwen Stefani adjusting to unfamiliar circumstances but declaring that she'll be fine, "'I'm a rough and tough/ Nothing's gonna knock this girl down.'" "What's your twenty? Where's your brain?" Gwen asks herself in the first few lines, eventually responding with the unequivocal "I'm fine / I'm hella positive, for real, I'm all good," and concluding in the chorus "But you can see it my eyes, you can read on my lips / I'm trying to get a hold on this / And I really mean it this time." The song also has the positive mental attitude that is specific to the reggae genre. For Amy Sciarretto of Pop Crush, when she sings "But you can see it my eyes, you can read on my lips / I'm trying to get a hold on this / And I really mean it this time /And you know it's such a trip / Don't get me started / I'm trying to get a hold on this," we are left to assume that Stefani is singing about her desire to finally make a commitment. She's ready, willing and able. She just wants her man to be patient and "settle down." And then she can "settle down" with him.

Critical reception

The song was generally well received by most music critics. Randall Roberts of the ''Los Angeles Times'' said that, "It's a song made for summer in the Southland: big beats designed to pop out of sunroofs and rolled-down windows, to rumble the nuts and bolts of Impalas across Orange County and down Hollywood Boulevard." ''Popjustice'' said the song was "brilliant" and noted the familiar sound of No Doubt present in it, writing, "In terms of signature sound the track doesn't really mess around – this is definitely a No Doubt tune, rather than a Gwen one – but it gives the less Popjustice-friendly end of the No Doubt 'sonic' 'palette' a swerve, and by that we mean it goes easy on the ska-punk racket side of things." Lily Rothman of ''Time'' commended No Doubt for not "essing

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