"Smoko" is a song by Australian punk rock band
The Chats
The Chats are an Australian punk rock band that formed in 2016 in the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. They describe their sound as "shed rock". The current band lineup is composed of guitarist Josh Hardy, drummer Matt Boggis, and bassist and vocali ...
. It was initially released on their EP ''
Get This in Ya!!
''Get This in Ya!!'' is the second EP released by Australian punk rock band the Chats. It was released on Bandcamp on 31 July 2017 and physically released on 30 August 2019. It is the band's last EP before the release of their first studio albu ...
'' on 31 July 2017, before being released as a single on 14 August.
The song gained international attention following the release of its
viral music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
on 3 October 2017.
The song was certified gold in Australia in May 2021.
Background
Eamon Sandwith, bassist of the Chats, explained to
Red Bull
Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks of Austria, Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With 38% market share, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2019. Since its launch in 1987, more than 100 billion cans of Red Bull have been sold worldwid ...
that the song originated in December 2016:
The song was included as the opening track to their second EP, ''
Get This in Ya!!
''Get This in Ya!!'' is the second EP released by Australian punk rock band the Chats. It was released on Bandcamp on 31 July 2017 and physically released on 30 August 2019. It is the band's last EP before the release of their first studio albu ...
'', released on 31 July 2017. The music video for the song was released on 3 October 2017 on YouTube, and it immediately began garnering an unexpected amount of attention, ultimately culminating in more than 16 million views by May 2022.
Music video
The music video for the song, shot by Matisse Langbein (who also did the artwork for Get This In Ya) at
Peregian Beach
Peregian Beach is a beach and small coastal town on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. It is a suburb split between two local government areas with the eastern coastal in the Shire of Noosa and the western hinterland part in the Sunshin ...
, mostly adheres to the lyrics in the song, depicting Chats bassist Eamon Sandwith wearing a lifeguard shirt, approaching a tradesman on a construction site (played by Josh Price) eating a
sausage roll
A sausage roll is a savoury pastry snack, popular in current and former Commonwealth nations, consisting of sausage meat wrapped in puffed pastry. Sausage rolls are sold at retail outlets and are also available from bakeries as a take-away food. ...
while sitting on a
milk crate
Milk crates are square or rectangular interlocking boxes that are used to transport milk and other products from dairies to retail establishments.
In English-speaking parts of Europe the term "bottle crate" is more common but in the United Sta ...
(referred to in the song as a 'milk crate throne'). During the chorus, it cuts to the band playing on the same construction site. During the second verse, Eamon rises from his bed, drinks a can of beer and opens a laptop to see a piece of paper pasted on the laptop screen saying "CENNO ZERO BUCKS" (referencing the lyric "So it's Tuesday morning/And my
Centrelink
The Centrelink Master Program, or more commonly known as Centrelink, is a Services Australia master program of the Australian Government. It delivers a range of government payments and services for retirees, the unemployed, families, carer ...
hasn't come through). It then cuts to him on the phone calling Centrelink with drummer Matt Boggis playing a Centrelink employee, who leaves him hanging until he picks up the phone and yells the chorus of the song, leaving Eamon banging the doorway in anger, and then puts down the phone. It then cuts to Eamon on a beach with binoculars, seeing what appears to be a woman having trouble in the ocean, but then checks his watch and realizes it's 'smoko'. It then cuts to the band playing in a different area nearby the same ocean, where the video ends shortly afterwards.
Reception
Triple J Unearthed
Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broadc ...
described "Smoko" in their biography of The Chats as being "a perfectly put together punk song protesting the drudgery of dole queue angst, minimum wage life and work-place hierarchies." The song and its video became popular in late 2017. The song also drew attention from musicians such as
Dave Grohl
David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969) is an American musician. He is the founder of the rock band Foo Fighters, in which he is the lead singer, guitarist, and principal songwriter. Prior to forming Foo Fighters, he was the drummer of gru ...
,
Josh Homme
Joshua Michael Homme ( ; born May 17, 1973) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the founder, primary songwriter, and only continuous member of the rock band Queens of the Stone Age, which he form ...
,
Alex Turner
Alexander David Turner (born 6 January 1986) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is well known as the frontman and principal songwriter of the rock band Arctic Monkeys, with whom he has released seven albums. He ...
, and
Iggy Pop
James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...
.
Personnel
* Eamon Sandwith - vocals
* Josh Price - guitar
* Tremayne McCarthy - bass, backing vocals
* Matt Boggis - drums
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
2017 singles
2017 songs
The Chats songs
Music videos shot at Peregian Beach