"The Killing Jar" is a song written, produced and recorded by English rock band

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. ''Q'' magazine in ...

. It was released in 1988 as the second single from the band's ninth studio album, ''

Peepshow A peep show or peepshow is a presentation of a live sex show or pornographic film which is viewed through a viewing slot. Several historical media provided voyeuristic entertainment through hidden erotic imagery. Before the development of the ci ...

''.

Music and reception

The song is an uptempo number which reflects the

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describe ...

direction Siouxsie and the Banshees were taking at the time. Still, the track contained

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

elements and the band's trademark cryptic lyrical content. According to Siouxsie, the song was inspired by a technique used by butterfly collectors to retain the beauty of the animals. "The Killing Jar" was

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

ed slightly for its radio version, most notably in the song's introduction and percussion throughout. The single version of "The Killing Jar" was featured on the Banshees' 1992 compilation '' Twice Upon a Time: The Singles''. Following the American success of their previous single, " Peek-a-Boo", which hit No 1 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

chart, "The Killing Jar" nearly matched the feat, peaking at No. 2. The single hit No. 41 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

.Johns, Brian. ''Entranced : the Siouxsie and the Banshees story''. Omnibus Press, 1989. Page 94.

In other media

"The Killing Jar" was also included in the soundtrack for the 2013 Canadian movie '' Haunter''. "The Killing Jar" was featured in the 2009 videogame

Rock Band Unplugged ''Rock Band Unplugged'' is an spin-off of the ''Rock Band'' series of music video games released for the PlayStation Portable. The game is developed by Backbone Entertainment in conjunction with Harmonix, published by MTV Games and distributed ...

for the Playstation Portable.

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Killing Jar, The 1988 singles Siouxsie and the Banshees songs 1988 songs Polydor Records singles Songs written by Siouxsie Sioux Songs written by Budgie (musician) Songs written by Steven Severin