Temptation (Monrose album)


Temptation is the debut studio album by German girl band Monrose. It was released by Starwatch Music in association with the Warner Music Group and Cheyenne Records on 8 December 2006 in German-speaking Europe, following the band's formation on the television talent show Popstars – Neue Engel braucht das Land. Pre-recorded with all six finalists of the sixth Popstars season throughout October and November 2006, jury member Dieter Falk produced the majority of the album and collaborated with producers like Jiant, Marcus Brosch, Jonas Jeberg, Toni Cottura and Marc Mozart and his Mozart & Friends team. The album is primarily a dance-pop record with influences from many the hip hop, contemporary R&B, and Europop genres.
One of the most successful debuts of the year, the album debuted on top of the charts in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, and was certified platinum for more than 200,000 copies sold within its first week of release. By June 2007, Temptation had reached triple platinum status for more than 400,000 copies sold. With the number-one hit single "Shame" and the ballad "Even Heaven Cries", the album spawned two singles.

Production

Recording

In late October 2006 the six remaining finalists of the fifth installment of Popstars entered the recording studios for a total of three weeks to start working on alternate versions of the band's future debut album with judge Dieter Falk and his production team. While Falk and British duo Jiant contributed most to the album, the contestants also worked with producers Bobbybass, Marcus Brosch, Toni Cottura, Jonas Jeberg, Marc Mozart, Major, J remy, Snowflakers, Derek von Krogh and J. Worthy, and songwriters Edwin "Lil' Eddie" Serrano, Gary Barlow, Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil.

Reception

Media reception for Temptation was generally positive, with laut.de's Stefan Johannesberg praising Monrose and their team for wisely finding a very "British and catchy" and authentic musical middle ground, simultaneously referring the trio as the "new Destiny's Dolls and Pussycat Childs" respectively. Following its physical release, Temptation immediately debuted at number-one of the albums charts in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, making it one of the most successful debuts of the year. The album was instantly certified platinum for more than 200,000 copies sold within its first week of release, and as of June 2007, has been certified three-time platinum for more than 400,000 copies sold worldwide. It was eventually ranked 17th on the German Media Control year-end charts.
Although "Do That Dance" was planned to be released as the album's third single at times, Temptation has spawned two singles only: The album's lead single, "Shame", reached number-one in Austria, Germany, Luxembourg and Switzerland, making it one of the most successful debuts of the year. Outselling 3/4 of the German Top 100's singles sales combined, the song also emerged as the fastest selling CD single of 2006 and the biggest downloaded song since 2004. Follow-up single "Even Heaven Cries" was released in early March 2007 and moreover used as the band's competition song in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 pre-selection show Deutscher Vorentscheid 2007. While it reached the top 10 in Germany, the song also peaked within the top 20 in Austria, and Switzerland.

Track listing

;Notes and sample credits

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history