Sponge Electric Cattle Gods Review
Sponge
Electric Cattle Gods
Cleopatra Records
2025
90’s Alt. Rockers Sponge are back with a follow up to last year’s cover album - “1994”. This time around though, the band is bringing out their dead… Yes, this new feast entitled “Electric Cattle Gods” is a collection of songs from the band’s earliest days, I’m sure a few of the songs rightfully should’ve and could’ve made it on the band’s debut “Rotting Pinata”.
I can’t speak on why they didn’t but anyone who’s been in a band, around a band or in studio, understands that not every song gets recorded/released. That’s fine by me because a lot of albums like this really hide some of the best tracks. It also helps that it goes back to a certain moment in time. Also, something cool to know is that the title of this new album was the band’s original name, but The Ritz didn’t have enough letters to spell it out on the Marquee. Rumor has it that the band just said do you have enough letters to spell the word “Sponge” out and that was it, the band was known as Sponge from then on. I must hand it to the members of the band, they’re a lot cooler than me, I wouldn’t have gone with that logic, I would’ve said just leave our name off. But let’s be honest here, there was already a band called Electric Love Hogs floating around, so it’s similar enough that it would’ve confused people. Big differences in sound there…
Getting into the Electric Cattle Gods, as soon you press play, you’ll instantly be taken back to 1994. This is the Sponge album I’ve been waiting for ever since the band hit the airwaves! You can hear the similarities and the moments that were captured on “Rotting Pinata”. This is long overdue if we’re being fair. I do find myself a bit more than curious that these songs weren’t held over and released on the band’s second album, “Wax Ecstatic” or even the band’s third release, “New Pop Sunday”. I’m not in the band’s inner circle but it doesn’t take much to know that those albums weren’t anywhere near as popular as “Rotting Pinata”. If I would’ve been within an earshot of the band, I would’ve been screaming for the moody “My Desert Low” to have been added on one of those albums. The tune “Welcome Home” would’ve been a great debut single for “Wax Ecstatic”. Another great add here is “Cowboy Eyes” which was a B-side to the band’s single “Molly”. Naturally, it wasn’t easily heard in the USA, but thankfully, there’s a special Record Shop in Atlanta, Ga. That carries singles and random oddities, so I’ve been able to enjoy that tune all these years.
Speaking of “Molly” the demo version has been added here as well as the working version of the tune “Drownin” which was one of my favorite tracks off the “Rotting Pinata” album. The “Molly” track is exactly what you’d expect, however “Drownin” isn’t at all what you’d expect… There are strings, there’s no drums and the mood is even more desperate and moving than it originally was. That’s hard for me to say, I really identified and clung to that song particularly as I was losing myself in drugs around this era, so the lyrics really spoke to me. I still get chills when I listen to the tune, this version hurts me in the most wonderful way.
The single off the album though is a new track called “Wet Brain”, not sure why there’s a new tune on the album and that’s the lead single, but hey it is what it is. And it’s Sponge, so it’s not at all bad. I would’ve gone with one of the deeper cuts based off the success of the original strength of “Pinata”.
The original fans should be clamoring for this album, it’s a return to those earlier days of youth, naivete and big dreams or in my case – some of the darkest times of my life. I’m still here for it and I love this album just as much as I do “Rotting Pinata”, I can’t not, you can hear the energy, the hunger and the hope of a band who was on the verge of stardom, and they didn’t know it. Kudos to Cleopatra for having the guts to get this album out to the masses!