History Music / Television

* MeaningfulName[=/=]RedOniBlueOni: According to one story, youngsters Thomas Miller and Richard Meyers ran away from a boarding school and set fire to a field. When questioned by the cops, Miller (who would later rename himself Verlaine after the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Verlaine 19th century French poet]]) said he [[{{Angst}} just wanted to feel warm]]; Meyers (who would later rename himself Hell, after the poem ''[[https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/168499.A_Season_in_Hell?from_search=true A Season in Hell]]'', by the poet [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Rimbaud Arthur Rimbaud]], whom of which was Verlaine's lover) said [[PyroManiac he just wanted to see it burn]].

+ Music/{{REM}}, Music/JoyDivision, Music/{{Felt}}, Music/EchoAndTheBunnymen, Music/{{U2}}, Music/SonicYouth, Music/{{Pixies}}, Music/JohnFrusciante, Music/{{Wilco}}, Music/RedVox]

+ Music/{{REM}}, Music/JoyDivision, Music/EchoAndTheBunnymen, Music/{{U2}}, Music/SonicYouth, Music/{{Pixies}}, Music/JohnFrusciante, Music/{{Wilco}}, Music/RedVox]

* LighterAndSofter: ''Adventure'' has a more melodic sound compared to the first album, not that their sound was particularly hard to begin with.

The band were famous for being more technically proficient than the punk scene they were associated with, with their SignatureStyle involving complex, interlocking guitars (influenced by Music/VelvetUnderground, Music/{{Love}}, Music/BuffaloSpringfield, and the Music/NewYorkDolls) and extended {{Improv}}s and jamming.

* LeadSingerPlaysLeadGuitar: Verlaine is the lead singer and shared lead guitar duties with Lloyd.

* ThreeChordsAndTheTruth: Completely averted, despite Television's frequent categorisation as a PunkRock band (this may be because they played it when it was still an UnbuiltTrope). Some of the band's songs have standard chorus/verse structure. Still, they manage to be more complicated than average punk songs, and some leave all semblance of normal structure behind entirely and take off into the stratosphere (good examples of this being "Marquee Moon" and "Little Johnny Jewel").

* ProgressiveRock: Despite being associated with the punk scene, they were ironically much closer to this, with often lengthy and complex compositions that took heavy influence from jazz and featured complicated counter-melodies as a SignatureStyle. If it wasn't for their ties to Richard Hell, they would have never had any connection to punk.

Television were a cult PunkRock[=/=][[NewWaveMusic New Wave]] band from the USA, active between 1973-1978, 1992-1993 and since 2001. Its core lineup included guitarist/vocalist Tom Verlaine, guitarist/vocalist Richard Lloyd, bassist/vocalist Fred Smith and drummer Billy Ficca. Early on, their line-up also included bassist Richard Hell, who would go on to front the Voidoids, another influential punk group.

+ Music/{{REM}}, Music/JoyDivision, Music/EchoAndTheBunnymen, Music/{{U2}}, Music/SonicYouth, Music/{{Pixies}}, Music/JohnFrusciante, Music/{{Wilco}}]

Television were a cult PunkRock[=/=][[NewWaveMusic New Wave]] band from the USA, active between 1973-1978, 1992-1993 and since 2001. Its core lineup includes guitarist/vocalist Tom Verlaine, guitarist/vocalist Richard Lloyd, bassist/vocalist Fred Smith and drummer Billy Ficca. Early on, their line-up also included bassist Richard Hell, who would go on to front the Voidoids, another influential punk group.

Lloyd left the band in 2007, and Jimmy Rip became his temporary then permanent replacement.

The band were famous for being more technically proficient than the punk scene they were associated with, with their SignatureStyle involving complex, interlocking guitars (influenced by Music/VelvetUnderground, Music/{{Love}} and Buffalo Springfield) and extended {{Improv}}s and jamming.

* CoverVersion: The band's live repertoire included Music/The13thFloorElevators' "Fire Engine", Music/BobDylan's "Knockin' on Heaven's Door", and Music/TheRollingStones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction".

* TechnicianVersusPerformer: Richard Lloyd (technician) vs. Tom Verlaine (performer). Lloyd's guitar solos tend to be more legato, melodic, and complex (i.e. "See No Evil", "Elevation", the short solo in "Marquee Moon"), while Verlaine's guitar solos tend to be more jagged, noisy, and unpredictable (i.e. "Friction", the long solo in "Marquee Moon").
* ThreeChordsAndTheTruth: Completely averted, despite Television's frequent categorisation as a PunkRock band (this may be because they played it when it was still an UnbuiltTrope). Some of the band's songs have standard chorus/verse structure, but still manage to be more complicated than average punk songs, and some leave all semblance of normal structure behind entirely and take off into the stratosphere (good examples of this being "Marquee Moon" and "Little Johnny Jewel").

* MohsScaleOfRockAndMetalHardness: Lower than usual for a PunkRock band, as befits their unusual sound (for the genre, at least)- Television's work ranges from a 2 ("Guiding Light", "Days") up to about a 5 on a few rare occasions ("Foxhole" is a good example, powered as it is by a [[Music/TheRollingStones Stones-y]] groove). Most of their work is in the 3-4 range, though.

* LoudnessWar: Averted or downplayed at worst, even on the remasters of their music - the 2003 Rhino remasters of ''Marquee Moon'' and ''Adventure'', probably the most widely available versions these days, come out to [=DR9=] and [=DR10=], respectively, with no tracks on either scoring below [=DR8=]. The original [=CDs=] were still slightly more dynamic ([=DR13=] for ''Marquee Moon'' and [=DR12=] for ''Adventure''). A 2015 [=HDTracks=] release of ''Marquee Moon'' splits the difference and comes out to [=DR11=]. The closest thing to an offender in the band's discography is a 2006 Japanese remaster of ''Marquee Moon'', which is still not very bad at [=DR8=] overall, with no track scoring below [=DR7=]. The SelfTitledAlbum, meanwhile, is the most dynamic release in the band's discography at [=DR14=].

* CoverVersion: The band's live repertoire included Music/The13thFloorElevators' "Fire Engine".
* EpicRocking: "Marquee Moon", "Torn Curtain", "The Fire", "The Dream's Dream", "Little Johnny Jewel".

Television were a cult PunkRock[=/=][[NewWaveMusic New Wave]] band from the USA, active between 1973-1978, 1992-1993 and since 2001. Its core lineup includes guitarist/vocalist Tom Verlaine, guitarist/vocalist Richard Lloyd, bassist/vocalist Fred Smith and drummer Billy Ficca. Early on, their line-up also included guitarist Richard Hell, who would go on to front the Voidoids, another influential punk group.

* MeaningfulName[=/=]RedOniBlueOni: According to one story, youngsters Thomas Miller and Richard Meyers ran away from a boarding school and set fire to a field. When questioned by the cops, Miller (who would later rename himself Verlaine after the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Verlaine 19th century French poet]]) said he [[{{Angst}} just wanted to feel warm]]; Meyers (who would later rename himself Hell, after the poem ''[[https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/168499.A_Season_in_Hell?from_search=true A Season in Hell]]'', by the post Artbut Rimbaud, whom of which was Verlaine's lover) said [[PyroManiac he just wanted to see it burn]].

* MeaningfulName[=/=]RedOniBlueOni: According to one story, youngsters Thomas Miller and Richard Meyers ran away from a boarding school and set fire to a field. When questioned by the cops, Miller (who would later rename himself Verlaine after the 19th century French poet) said he [[{{Angst}} just wanted to feel warm]]; Meyers (who would later rename himself {{Hell}}) said [[PyroManiac he just wanted to see it burn]].