Smoking Popes

Led by Josh Caterer’s eerily familiar high-pitched baritone and penchant for often-obtuse poetry, Smoking Popes earned instant, and not entirely fair, comparisons to the Smiths. While Caterer’s lyrics could match Morrissey for introspection and neuroses (see live favorite "Pretty Pathetic"), there is more hopefulness than melancholy, more love than loss in Caterer’s songs; it’s entirely unsurprising to hear Smoking Popes cover Irving Berlin or the theme from WILLY WONKA. While the Chicago band’s output was sparse (three studio albums in the 1990s and ‘00s), the band had a lasting impact on the alternative airwaves, frequently cited as a chief influence by the more discerning peppy emo outfits.