The sophomore album, coming just three years after their eponymous first album skyrocketed on all the music charts and achieved worldwide success, was slightly slower in its ascent to worldwide popularity. In an interview about Version 2.0 with Billboard Magazine, singer Shirley Manson said that they "tried to let the darker undercurrents come through to offset some of the pop melodies", adding that "like human people, songs shouldn't be one-dimensional” (Bambarger 25). The working title of the album was Sad Alcoholic Clowns, which is also an indication of the multi-dimensionality the group was trying to achieve. With a band name like Garbage, it is no surprise that they liked to tap into the darker side of human nature, the earth, and life. “Temptation Waits” is far from one dimensional, and it is unsurprising that the band chose to open the album with this multi-layered rock song that pleads the case of a blood-sucking love addict.
“I Think I’m Paranoid”, which has a more upbeat tempo and fits more of the “pop song” feeling of some of the other songs on the album, immediately follows “Temptation Waits”. The darker songs, such as “Wicked Ways”, delve deeper and follow along the lines of “Temptation Waits” with lyrics like “I tried hard to mend my wicked ways. The damage's done, there's nothing left to save”. “Somebody get me out of here. I’m tearing at myself. Nobody gives a damn about me, Or anybody else” is part of the chorus in the song “Medication”. “Play boomerang with your demons, Shoot to kill and you'll pop them off, bang, bang” is a line from “Hammering in my Head”. Shirley calls herself a “demon” and an “addict” and a “vampire” in “Temptation Waits”. These songs add to the depth and eeriness of the album, making it clear that Garbage was not afraid to write or sing about the unseemly side of nature or life. Considering the majority of the Billboard top songs of 1998 were love songs or R&B hits, these darker, alternative songs by Garbage were somewhat avant-garde for the time.
When “Temptation Waits” was released, the number one song on the Billboard charts was “Too Close” by Next, asong about a man having a hard time containing his erection when grinding with a girl at a club. The number one single of the year 1998 was the duet “The Boy is Mine” by Brandy and Monica. “Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” by Aerosmith, “You’re Still the One” by Shania Twain, and “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion were all chart toppers during this time period. While other musicians were singing sappy, yet catchy, love songs, Garbage was singing darker love songs that infer that love is more like an obsession or a drug.
"Temptation Waits" :Alternative Rock Dives Deeper
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