Most of the members of Sponge had played in straight hard rock bands before group formed. That background is evident throughout Rotting Piñata, the debut from this Detroit-based alternative hard rock band. Sponge's sense of alternative rock goes back as far as Pearl Jam, or maybe only Stone Temple Pilots, judging from the hit single "Plowed." For an STP ripoff band, they're very adept -- the chords cluster together, vocalist Vinnie sings directly from his gut, and the whole thing barrels ahead, ignoring whatever's in its way. Even if they have the polished, commercial veneer, they only deliver the songs in spurts. "Plowed" wails mercilessly and "Molly" is a rare contemplative moment, yet most of the disc features half-finished ideas like the monotonous title track. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Pablo Mathiason (A&R), Tim Cross (Bass), Vinnie Balzano (Vocals), Jimmy Paluzzi (Vocals), Sponge (Producer), Tim Patalan (Producer), Michael Halsband (Photography), David Daoud Coleman (Art Direction), Howie Weinberg (Mastering), Joey Mazzola (Guitar), Tim Patalan (Mixing), Mark O'Donoughue (Mixing Assistant), Jimmy Paluzzi (Drums), Brandon Harris (Mixing Assistant), Mike Cross (Guitar), Scott Litt (Producer), Andy Patalan (Assistant)
Rotting Piñata is the debut album by American band Sponge, released in 1994 on Sony Records. Hit singles from this album, such as "Molly" and "Plowed," helped launch the band's career and pushed the album to Gold. The name of the album came from a conversation the band had regarding shockpunk singer GG Allin. Allin claimed he would commit suicide while on tour and wanted his corpse to be shown at the remainder of the shows on the schedule. Furthermore, he wanted the fans to be able to throw objects at his deceased body. The band joked that if he did, the corpse would be like a "rotting piñata."
The vocals were re-recorded for the single release, which was titled "Molly (Sixteen Candles)."
"Fields" – 4:55
"Rainin'" – 5:03
A hidden track, "Candy Corn," begins 2 minutes after "Rainin'" ends. This song is hidden in the negative space between Track 10 and Track 11. "Candy Corn" has a run time of 5:54. When the CD is played on a computer, "Candy Corn" appears to be part of Track 10, making the running time of "Rainin'" 12:57.
(silence) - :03
Bonus Disc
Early copies of the album contained a bonus CD featuring Sponge's performance at Rock am Ring. The tracklisting is as follows:
"Neenah Menasha"
"Rotting Piñata"
"I Hate Myself"
"Molly"
"Rainin'"
"Plowed"
"Fields"
"Big Girl"
Personnel
Tim Cross - Bass
Joey Mazzola - Guitar
Vinnie Dombroski - Vocals
Mike Cross - Guitar
Jimmy Paluzzi - Drums, Vocals
Tim Patalan - Producer
Chart positions
Album
1995 Rotting Pinata The Billboard 200 No. 58
1995 Rotting Pinata Heatseekers No. 4
Singles
1995 Molly The Billboard Hot 100 No. 55
1995 Molly Mainstream Rock Tracks No. 11
1995 Plowed Mainstream Rock Tracks No. 9
1995 Rainin' Mainstream Rock Tracks No. 18
1995 Molly Modern Rock Tracks No. 3
1995 Plowed Modern Rock Tracks No. 5
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