Early in their career, the Goo Goo Dolls were frequently dismissed by critics as mere imitators of The Replacements; however, the band refined its sound to be more mainstream, which helped it become one of the most popular adult alternative rock bands of the latter half of the '90s, selling millions of records to audiences largely unfamiliar with their inspirations. That's no bitch on the band, either -- their music simply improved in craft and accessibility as the years progressed, and radio happened to be receptive to what a decade earlier would have been considered collegiate power pop. Thus, the band landed two huge hits with the acoustic ballads "Name" and "Iris."
Originally a cover band with a taste for power pop and classic rock & roll, the group soon began writing its own songs. Their early sound recalled the The Replacements' origins as a bratty punk band (circa Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash) -- melodic, snotty, and a little bit thrashy. That sound was the reason the band attracted the interest of the heavy metal label Metal Blade, which issued their debut album in 1987 (known either as The Goo Goo girls or First Release). 1989's Jed continued in a similar vein; the college radio breakthrough came with 1990's Hold Me Up, a Replacements-ish power pop record.
1993's Superstar Car Wash was the Goo Goo Dolls' artistic breakthrough; though it did nothing to quell the Replacements comparisons, it was a finely crafted pop/rock record, and its lead single, "We Are the Normal," was co-written with Replacements leader Paul Westerberg himself. Still, Superstar Car Wash wasn't the commercial force the band hoped it would be, especially in light of the success of similar bands like the Gin Blossoms. That all changed with 1995's A Boy Named Goo, when an L.A. rock station put the acoustic-driven ballad "Name" into heavy rotation. It was eventually released as a single nationwide, and went Top Five late in the year; platinum sales for the album followed close behind. Unfortunately, the original drummer was no longer around to enjoy the band's success; prior to the album's release, he'd been sacked and replaced by drummer Mike Malinin.
Dissatisfied with the royalty rates in their Metal Blade contract, the band waged a legal battle that wound up allowing them to jump to parent company Warner Brothers. Somewhat drained, Rzeznik and the band shook off a case of writer's block to contribute the ballad "Iris" to the soundtrack of the 1998 americanized version of City of Angels (Featuring Nicolas Cage and Meg Ryan). Appearing that April, the song was a monster smash, although it was never released as a single (so its official Top Ten pop chart status doesn't convey how popular it was); for a better indicator, "Iris" spent nearly a year on Billboard's airplay charts, including an astonishing 18 weeks at number one, and was nominated for three Grammys. The band's next album, Dizzy Up the Girl, was released in September, during the middle of "Iris"'s marathon airplay run, and sold over three million copies. Its clean, polished sound completed the Goo Goo Dolls' transformation into mainstream pop/rockers who happened to have alternative roots. Further hits from the record followed over the next year, including "Slide," "Dizzy," and the Grammy-nominated "Black Balloon," and the band toured heavily in support. The Goo Goo Dolls revamped their sound for 2001's career retrospective, Ego, Opinion, Art & Commerce. A year later, the trio hit the charts with "Here Is Gone" from their seventh studio album, Gutterflower. The CD/DVD combo Live in Buffalo: July 4, 2004 helped fans endure the long wait for the band's next studio album, Let Love In, which didn't appear until 2006. The band toured through the summer of 2007. The band released the first of two greatest hits compilation, entitled Greatest Hits Volume One: The Singles, November 13th 2007.
In February 2008, the band officially headed into studio to work on their new record.
In August 2010, the band released their ninth album, Something for the Rest of Us. In June 2013, the band's tenth studio album, Magnetic, was released. In December 2013, drummer Mike Malinin announced that he left the band.
In May 2016, the band released their eleventh studio album, Boxes. The Goo Goo Dolls' 12th studio album, Miracle Pill, was released on September 13, 2019.
Singles:
There You Are (Hold Me Up)
Just the Way You Are (Hold Me Up)
I'm Awake Now (Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare Soundtrack)
We Are the Normal (Superstar Car Wash)
Fallin' Down (Superstar Car Wash)
Only One (A Boy Named Goo)
Flat Top (A Boy Named Goo)
Name (A Boy Named Goo)
Long Way Down (A Boy Named Goo)
Naked (A Boy Named Goo)
Lazy Eye (Batman & Robin Soundtrack)
Iris (City of Angels Soundtrack/Dizzy Up the Girl)
Slide (Dizzy Up the Girl)
Black Balloon (Dizzy Up the Girl)
Dizzy (Dizzy Up the Girl)
Broadway (Dizzy Up the Girl)
Here Is Gone (Gutterflower)
Big Machine (Gutterflower)
Sympathy (Gutterflower)
Give A Little Bit (Live in Buffalo: July 4, 2004/Let Love In)
Better Days (Target's Sounds of the Season/Let Love In)
Stay With You (Let Love In)
Let Love In (Let Love In)
Before It's Too Late (Sam & Mikaela's Theme) (Transformers Soundtrack)
Home (Something for the Rest of Us)
Real (AT&T Team USA Soundtrack)
Not Broken (Something For The Rest Of Us)
Wait For The Blackout
Goo Goo Dolls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
out when the sun does shine
Gonna stay here with curtains drawn
in darkness you'll be mine
Let's wait for the blackout
The lights are too bright
Let's wait for the blackout
Well welcome to my basement flat
No windows to see through
With darkness closing in, my friend
We both know what to do
Let's wait for the blackout
Wait for the night
Let's wait for the blackout
The lights are too bright
Yea!
Let's wait for the blackout
The lights are too bright
Let's wait for the blackout
Wait for the night
Come roam with me upon this earth
Keep us both alive
Know everything has lasted here
And ne'er would survive
Let's wait for the blackout
The lights are too bright
Let's wait for the blackout
Wait for the night
In darkness there is no sin Light only brings in fear There's nothing to corrupt the eyes
There is no vision here At first you may find it strange
But do not go away
The darkness holds a power that you won't find in the day
There is no vision here (repeat)
The lyrics to Goo Goo Dolls' song Wait For The Blackout express a desire to break away from the bright, sunlit world and retreat into darkness, where there is no sin, fear or corruption. The singer invites the listener to join them in a basement flat where there are no windows to see through, and they can wait for the blackout together. The darkness, they argue, holds a power that cannot be found in the light of day. It is an invitation to abandon the world of sight and embrace the world of feeling, where the absence of light creates a sense of mystery, wonder, and intimacy.
The song celebrates the idea of transformation through darkness. The darkness of the basement flat is a metaphor for the darkness of the soul, and the invitation to wait for the blackout is an invitation to explore the innermost recesses of the psyche. The song acknowledges that this exploration can be unsettling, even frightening at first, but it also hints at the rewards that await those who are willing to push through their fear and embrace the darkness. The powerful chorus, "Let's wait for the blackout, the lights are too bright, wait for the night" is a challenge to the listener to face their fear of darkness and transform their relationship with it.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't you ask me to come out
Do not request that I leave from inside
out when the sun does shine
Especially, when it's bright daylight outside
Gonna stay here with curtains drawn
I'll stay here shaded away from the light
in darkness you'll be mine
I'll be invisible to the sight of others
Let's wait for the blackout
We should wait for the darkness
The lights are too bright
The illuminations are too harsh
Wait for the night
Till the arrival of the less bright time
Well welcome to my basement flat
Welcome to my low-leveled home
No windows to see through
There are no outlets to look out from
With darkness closing in, my friend
The darkness rapidly approaching
We both know what to do
We possess knowledge of how to deal with it
Come roam with me upon this earth
Accompany me as we travel across this land
Keep us both alive
So we can continue to exist
Know everything has lasted here
Understand that everything has persisted here
And ne'er would survive
And would never survive
In darkness there is no sin
When there is no light, evil doesn't exist
Light only brings in fear
Illumination generates terror
There's nothing to corrupt the eyes
There's nothing to objectify the gaze
There is no vision here
There is no sight here
At first you may find it strange
Initially, you may be taken aback
But do not go away
Nonetheless, not leave
The darkness holds a power that you won't find in the day
The darkness exerts an influence that is absent during the day
There is no vision here (repeat)
There is no sight here (repeated)
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: CHRISTOPHER JOHN MILLAR, DAVID VANIAN, JOHN ARTHUR OSBORN, PAUL GRAY, RAYMOND IAN BURNS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind