Narcotic (Liquido song)
Narcotic is a song by the German rock band Liquido. It was released on August 31, 1998 as the band's debut single from their first album, Liquido. The track is built around a catchy keyboard riff and became a big hit in Western Europe, reaching the top ten in Austria, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. It sold about eight million copies worldwide and peaked at number three in Germany and number one in Austria. It was not a hit in the United Kingdom or the United States.
The music was written by lead singer and keyboardist Wolfgang Schrödl in 1996 in Heidelberg. The opening riff came from a modified Roland D-70 synthesiser. Schrödl wrote the song about a recent breakup. Liquido hoped to sound like Weezer, a major influence for Schrödl. Olaf Opel produced the track for Virgin Records after several labels rejected the demo.
The song's lyric "my cocaine" is often misheard as "Michael Caine." It began at number 87 on the German charts and climbed higher in the following weeks. Despite Narcotic's huge success, Liquido did not have as much success with later singles, so they are often called a one-hit wonder. Schrödl later said he was uneasy about the hype but learned to accept that a hit can take on a life of its own.
Narcotic became the official anthem for football club FC Girondins de Bordeaux in France and for UFC Eferding in Austria. In 2019, it was covered by YouNotUs and Janieck, with Schrödl credited under the alias Senex. The song remains popular across continental Europe.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 20:50 (CET).