Building on framework sound and style Garbage established on their debut set, "Version 2.0" featured musical references to the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, songs featuring live strings, over 100 recorded tracks and an interpolation of the Beach Boys and The Pretenders. The band said that the goal of "Version 2.0" was to create a "rapprochement between the high-tech and low-down, the now sound and of golden memories." Butch Vig stated that the band did not want to reinvent their sound, as they "felt that we had carved our own turf on the first record and we wanted to take everything we did and make it better". This meant to "have the guitars noisier and write poppier melodies", showing how the band had grown together: "With "Garbage", we were struggling to find an identity and to get comfortable with Shirley – and vice versa. After touring so much, there's a better camaraderie and sense of communication."