Smoking Popes

Centered on vocalist Josh Caterer, the Smoking Popes shaped their punk-pop approach through his fixation on big-band recordings and black-and-white films broadcast on the American Movie Classics channel, forging a singing style that stood apart in punk circles. The group came across as a high-volume guitar outfit led by a lounge singer, blending brisk rock energy with relaxed vocals and lyrics steeped in vintage romantic sentiment. Formed in the Chicago region near 1991, the lineup featured Caterer’s siblings Matt and Eli handling bass and guitar along with drummer Mike Felumlee. Although Caterer resisted labeling the music punk, the Smoking Popes drew endorsement from Johann’s Face, the noted punk independent label, as well as Green Day’s Billie Joe, Alkaline Trio, and fellow Chicago act Fall Out Boy.

Johann’s Face issued the band’s first album, Get Fired, in 1993. The 1995 follow-up, Born to Quit, arrived via a major label and presented vocals shaped by Morrissey alongside a polished overall sound. That release also yielded the frequently aired single “Need You Around,” and subsequent tours alongside Jimmy Eat World, Green Day, and Goo Goo Dolls carried the music to widening audiences. Destination Failure surfaced in 1997.

The Popes disbanded in December 1998, much to the dismay of fans. Their last recording, the covers collection Party’s Over, had been tracked earlier that year; Capitol turned it down, so the set finally emerged in 2001 through Double Zero. The same imprint later put out the 1991-1998 anthology Smoking Popes 1991-1998, which gathered previously scarce tracks, and the 2000 live document Live, while the former members turned to separate endeavors.

The Caterer brothers reconvened in November 2005 with Rob Kellenberger on drums for the Flower 15 Festival in Chicago. Victory captured the show and issued it in February 2006 as the CD/DVD package At Metro. A two-month North American headline run with Bayside came next, followed by the new studio album Stay Down. The early-’90s compilation It’s Been a Long Day appeared in 2010, and the studio album This Is Only a Test followed in 2011.