Smoking Popes have been a staple in the punk and indie rock scenes since the 1990’s, playing a unique blend of up - tempo rock with punk guitars and Brit - pop influenced vocals. “Did you ever hear ‘Born To Quit’? It’s by the Smoking Popes. I thought that album was extraordinary, the most lovable thing I’d heard in years,” raved musical icon Morrissey. Smoking Popes helped shape an entire generation of music fans and wrote the book for Chicago’s indie rock scene. “After Naked Raygun, Chicago was the Smoking Popes,” says Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy. “They were Alkaline Trio before Alkaline Trio, they were Fall Out Boy before Fall Out Boy. This band is one of the reasons that Fall Out Boy even exists.” Smoking Popes formed in 1991 and released several albums on independent labels before signing to Capitol Records in 1995. Tours with Green Day, Jimmy Eat World and Jawbreaker soon followed, making Smoking Popes a household name in the mid to late 1990’s indie rock and punk circuits. “The Smoking Popes were a good band that only wrote good songs. They have always been a big influence on Alkaline Trio and are a huge reason a lot of us started bands in the first place,” says Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba.