"Jonny Sniper" was the third physical single, and fourth overall, by Enter Shikari

Enter Shikari

Enter Shikari are a British band, that combine post-hardcore with elements of various electronic genres, formed in 2003 in St Albans, Hertfordshire. The band is named after a boat belonging to Roughton "Rou" Reynolds' uncle, and a character in a play which he wrote before forming the band, both of...

 and the second single to be released from their debut album Take to the Skies

Take to the Skies

Take to the Skies is the debut studio album by Enter Shikari. On March 25, 2007, it reached #4 in the Official UK Album Chart selling 28,000 copies in its first week. It has been released as a standard CD, a limited CD + DVD edition and a double LP version with an embossed gate fold sleeve...

. The band have referred to the single as a "double a-side" , possibly due to the positive response to "Kickin' Back on the Surface of Your Cheek", the b-side from the previous single

Anything Can Happen in the Next Half Hour

"Anything Can Happen In The Next Half Hour..." is the second physical single, and third overall, by Enter Shikari and the first single to be released from their debut album Take to the Skies...

.

Track listing

• CD & 7

  Song	Length
  Jonny Sniper	4:01
  Acid Nation	3:12
  Sorry, You’re Not A Winner (Live From Zane Lowe Zane Lowe Zane Lowe also known as 'Zipper', is a radio DJ and television presenter. He was born in New Zealand and grew up in Auckland, where he was a presenter on the local music station Max TV, before moving to England... 's BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...  Session) - not part of 7	4:23

• Download pack (7digital and iTunes
  ITunes Store
  The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
  
  )

  Song	Length
  Jonny Sniper	4:01
  Acid Nation	3:12
  Sorry, You’re Not A Winner (Live From Zane Lowe Zane Lowe Zane Lowe also known as 'Zipper', is a radio DJ and television presenter. He was born in New Zealand and grew up in Auckland, where he was a presenter on the local music station Max TV, before moving to England... 's BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...  Session) - not part of 7	4:23
  Jonny Sniper (Emotiquon Remix)	7:10
  Jonny Sniper (Ocelot Remix)	4:41 (iTunes pack only)

Music video

The video premiered on MTV2 Europe (now MTV Two) on Monday, May 21, 2007. It shows the band going up from a platform to pick up their instruments and play. The video also features special effects throughout the video. At the end, the band's old tour van, dubbed by fans as "The Shikari Ferrari

Ferrari

Ferrari S.p.A. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929, as Scuderia Ferrari, the company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving into production of street-legal vehicles as Ferrari S.p.A. in 1947...

" is blown up by pyrotechnics

Pyrotechnics

Pyrotechnics is the science of using materials capable of undergoing self-contained and self-sustained exothermic chemical reactions for the production of heat, light, gas, smoke and/or sound...

.

Meaning

"Jonny Sniper" is described by Rou in the March 10th issue of Kerrang!

Kerrang!

Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...

 Magazine saying this of the song "It's about people having no respect for the earth. The lyrics are about the earth crying out, telling us to behave". This is similar to the description given for the song "No Sssweat" by the band at live shows. They were present in other areas as well when a demo version of the track, less produced, with different lyrics and a slightly different structure, was featured on Enter Shikari's third demo EP 'Anything Can Happen In The Next Half Hour'. The band has claimed that "Johnny Sniper" is the name of the comic figure that appeared in their Key Stage 3

Key Stage 3

Key Stage 3 is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14...

 sex education

Sex education

Sex education refers to formal programs of instruction on a wide range of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health, emotional relations, reproductive rights and responsibilities, abstinence, contraception, and...

 lessons. Furthermore, during many gigs on their 2007 tour, promotional Jonny Sniper condom

Condom

A condom is a barrier device most commonly used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy and spreading sexually transmitted diseases . It is put on a man's erect penis and physically blocks ejaculated semen from entering the body of a sexual partner...

s were handed out.

Reception

The B-side "Acid Nation" was first aired on BBC Radio 1

BBC Radio 1

BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...

 on Wednesday, May 30, 2007, at 8:07 PM. The song was available free on iTunes

ITunes Store

The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...

 as part of the "Free Single Saturday" campaign. The popular music magazine NME

NME

The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...

 dubbed the single "The worst single ever made by anybody ever",http://www.nme.com/reviews/enter-shikari/8672 which Chris Batten mocked during the secret BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 Radio Theatre gig, and again by using the quote to introduce the song at the Download Festival

Download Festival

The Download Festival is a three day rock music festival held annually at Donington Park, England . It usually takes place in June...

 2007.

Chart performance

Chart (2007)	Peak position
UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...	75

Personnel

• Roughton "Rou" Reynolds - Vocals, Electronics
• Chris Batten - Bass, Backing Vocals
• Liam "Rory" Clewlow - Guitar, Backing Vocals
• Rob Rolfe - Drums
• John Mitchell - Recording
• Ben Humphreys - Recording
• Martin Giles - Mastering
• Keaton Henson - Illustration, Design