Eamon Sandwith, bassist of the Chats, explained to Red Bull that the song originated in December 2016:[3] I was walking to the bakery from my dad’s house.

Josh [Price, guitarist] and Matt [Boggis, drums] helped me make it sound better.The song was included as the opening track to their second EP, Get This in Ya!

at Peregian Beach, 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 while sitting on a milk crate (referred to in the song as a 'milk crate throne').

[2] Triple J Unearthed 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 also drew attention from musicians such as Dave Grohl, Josh Homme, Alex Turner, and Iggy Pop.