Love them or hate them, Sponge Cola has been a prominent name in the local music scene since the last decade. Having released songs with catchy tunes, easy-to-memorize lyrics, and relatable topics, Sponge Cola has indeed captured the masses with their music, having employed perhaps one of the most recognizable musical formulas in the Philippines today. Frontman Yael Yuzon first formed the band way back in 2002 with drummer Chris Cantada, bassist Gosh Dilay, and guitarist Erwin Armovit. They wanted to call the band “Sponge,” but then they discovered that there was already a grunge band with the same name in Detroit. Yuzon said that they decided to add the word “Cola” since it was “easy enough word to remember.”

Skyrocketing career

Sponge Cola's rise to fame is something all bands in the Philippines long for. Their cover of Madonna's “Crazy for You” was the spark that ignited the young Filipino music fan's curiosity about what Sponge Cola had to offer the music industry. Giving it their own unique twist and garnishing it with their own flavor, their cover easily became the rock ballad for the youth during that time, with some even believing that the song was the band’s own original piece. In 2004, the band finally signed a distribution deal with Sony BMG Philippines and released their first full-length album entitled Palabas. Since then, they never looked back garnering numerous music awards here and there. 

Their legacy

Although Sponge Cola is a relatively young band, they have solidified their legacy of making memorable pop-rock tunes that everybody can sing along to. Grounded in the OPM style of creating music, their catchy melodies, and unique style of musicality, Sponge Cola still has a bright future ahead of them. With their recent performance in the United States at the Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis, Tennessee last May 4 and 5, the band continues to aim and reach even more markets. Although there are still many who criticize their musical style and songwriting, the results that they’ve created as a band cannot be disregarded. With a name that is almost as recognizable as the Eraserheads, Rivermaya and the Dawn, it is just a matter of time until this young band becomes one of the banner-holders of Pinoy music that we all can celebrate.