imageRetro-hip kids in their re-issued Ramones garb are quick to assert the legitimacy of punk as musical art. And while people roll their eyes and bat around the issue of whether The Hives, The Vines, The Strokes, and whomever else retains credability amidst icons such as The Clash and The Sex Pistols, some musical wonders lost in the initial shuffle go largely unnoticed by the T-Shirt testimonials of punk faithful.

For Television, a New York City band whom released its debut Marquee Moon in 1977, categorization as “Punk” creates an undue struggle for notoriety in a genre often defined by grittiness and raw power. Television were technical musicians with dry production and long elaborate compositions more akin to classic rock than the short power spurts of contemporary punk. Marquee Moon boast two guitarists, and 5 of 8 tracks over 5 minutes long.

Tom Verlaine’s guitar ignites this album with a complex moody energy absent of tactless redundancy. Achieving speed and technical grace while preserving crucial edginess, Verlaine soars and wallows around punk rock’s core. Even brief songs such as, “Prove It” are fused with tight unforgettable guitar licks with enough essential spikiness to jut just above sloppy and onto the surface of cool.

Punk rock fans will have mixed reactions to Marquee Moon’s kinship to free-thinking art-rock guitar wanderings. Soft-tempered and politically empty, Television leaves a lot to be desired for punk fans who crave sharp wit and pertinent lyrics. Still, classic rock hardliners may find a punk album they can respect for its musical depth. Fans of experimental in-betweeners like the Talking Heads will discover Television’s Marquee Moon as one of the great forgotten albums of rock history.

-Hazzard

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