From Bob Dylan's classic 1960s folk songs to the shocking, electric frenzy of the Sex Pistols in the '70s, the most compelling popular music often reflects the political climate and turbulent times in which it was created.

Creedence Clearwater Revival, Woody Guthrie, Billy Bragg and United States rock band Rage Against the Machine all penned protest songs that targeted hot-button political issues, opening a wider public discussion about the tragedy of war, the role of government or social injustice.

Get up, stand up: The Smith Street Band with Will Wagner, far left.

In time for Australia Day this year Melbourne four-piece the Smith Street Band have taken a swipe at the Abbott government's policies on asylum seekers with the provocatively titled track Wipe That Shit-Eating Grin Off Your Punchable Face in a bid to keep the plight of refugees firmly in the spotlight and on the political agenda.

The group's 24-year-old songwriter and frontman, Wil Wagner, told Fairfax Media that money from this month's sales of the song would be donated to a charitable fund for refugees, but the aim was primarily to shift focus from a "political vote-winning monster" to those "fleeing something really horrible" in the hope of a better life.