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Sponge
Biography
Sponge was one of the more underrated groups in the post-grunge boom of the mid-'90s. When they were on top of their game -- as on the hits "Plowed" and "Molly (Sixteen Candles)" -- their songs had a knack for jangly riffs and catchy, anthemic hard rock hooks, despite being wrapped in the fuzzy guitars and brooding seriousness of grunge. Sponge grew out of a Detroit-based hard rock act called Loudhouse, which released an album on Virgin in 1988 before getting dropped and breaking up. Drummer-turned-vocalist Vinnie Dombrowski (born Mark Dombrowski) and guitarists Mike Cross and Joey Mazzola regrouped as Sponge in 1992, adding Mike's brother Tim Cross on bass and Jimmy Paluzzi on drums. Adapting their '70s hard rock influences to fit the grunge zeitgeist, Sponge earned a major-label deal with Columbia and released their debut album, Rotting Pinata, in late 1994. Critics compared them unfavorably to Stone Temple Pilots, but alternative radio embraced the band's first two singles, the driving rocker "Plowed" and the jangly, introspective "Molly (Sixteen Candles)." A third single, "Rainin'," also earned airplay, and Rotting Pinata went gold; meanwhile, Sponge went on tour as Live's opening act.
Selected Discography