Alternative TV | |
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 Mark Perry in New York City, 2003 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | London, England |
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| Website | markperryatv |
Alternative TV (sometimes known as ATV) are an English band formed in London in 1977. [2] Author Steve Taylor writes: "Alternative TV pioneered reggae rhythms in punk and then moved on to redefine the musical rules". [3]
Alternative TV were formed by Mark Perry, the founding editor of Sniffin' Glue , a punk fanzine, with Alex Fergusson. [4] The name is a play on the name of Associated Television, a British broadcaster also known as ATV. Early rehearsals took place at Throbbing Gristle's Industrial Records studio with Genesis P-Orridge on drums (recordings from this period appeared, long afterwards, on the Industrial Sessions CD). [5] The band's first live appearance was in Nottingham supporting The Adverts. [6]
The band's debut on record was "Love Lies Limp", a free flexi disc issued with the final edition of Perry's Sniffin' Glue fanzine. [7] For their first two singles Perry and Fergusson were accompanied by drummer John Towe (ex-Generation X) and Tyrone Thomas on bass; Towe later left to join The Rage and was replaced by Chris Bennett. [8] This line-up was the most straightforwardly 'punk' version of ATV, although they combined short, fast songs with extended pieces such as "Alternatives to NATO", in which Perry read an anarchist political text and envisaged the possibility of a Soviet invasion of Britain. Shortly afterwards they released the "How Much Longer"/"You Bastard" 7" in December 1977. The A-side was a pointed critique of punk style: "How much longer will people wear/Nazi armbands and dye their hair?" [8]
At the end of 1977, Perry sacked his chief collaborator and co-writer Fergusson. [9] The latter went on to form the short-lived Cash Pussies [10] and, a few years later, Psychic TV along with Genesis P-Orridge. Tyrone Thomas switched to guitar, later replaced by Kim Turner, while Dennis Burns joined on bass. [9] A dub-influenced single, "Life After Life", was released, followed by the band's debut album, The Image Has Cracked , both featuring Jools Holland guesting on piano.
By the end of 1978, only Perry and Burns remained from the previous line-up, although ATV used additional musicians live and in the studio. The band's second album, Vibing Up the Senile Man (Part One) , saw the band take a more explicitly experimental direction, which alienated both the music press and audiences. [11] A recording of one gig which ended in a violent stage invasion can be heard on the cassette-only release Scars on Sunday. A live LP was released, documenting their tour with commune-dwelling progressive band Here & Now, marking the band's further movement away from the punk/new wave scene. A final single "The Force Is Blind" featured Anno from Here and Now on additional vocals. [12]
Alternative TV soon evolved into the avant-garde project The Good Missionaries (taking the name from a track on the Vibing album), releasing one live album, Fire From Heaven, in 1979. Perry also joined the experimental duo The Door and the Window, releasing some EPs and a studio album, Detailed Twang. The following year, Perry released a solo album, Snappy Turns, before he, Burns and Fergusson briefly reformed Alternative TV along with former members of Fergusson's Cash Pussies in 1981. The reconstituted ATV released one album, Strange Kicks , a venture into light pop songs unlike any of their previous work, produced by Richard Mazda. The album was indifferently received. A later appraisal by AllMusic panned the album, writing that the record, along with ATV's later work, "[falls] a little flat amidst the confusion and veer[s] closer to the new wave sound than most punks would dare to venture." [13]
From 1981 to 1982, Perry had a new project, The Reflections, a band with Nag from The Door and the Window, Karl Blake (of Lemon Kittens) and Grant Showbiz, among others. They released one album, Slugs and Toads, and a single, "4 Countries", before disintegrating.
Perry reformed ATV in 1985. This line up started with Karl Blake, Steve Cannell and Allison Philips. Martin 'Protag' Neish and then Clive Giblin featured later on guitar and ATV released further records over the following decade with varying line-ups, Perry being the only constant member. Another line-up followed with James Kyllo, Steve Cannell and Dave Morgan, which led to the release of "Sol" and "Dragon Love".
ATV's last studio album for over a decade, Revolution, was released in 2001, followed in 2003 by the official bootleg album Viva La Rock'n' Roll – consisting of live performances recorded in the UK, France, Germany and the US. In 2004, Perry recorded the Ramones song "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue" for a single and an Argentinian Ramones tribute album.
Their first studio album in fourteen years, Opposing Forces, was released through Lost Moment/Public Domain on 10 July 2015.
In 2022, Perry reformed Alternative TV for a series of gigs in the South West with Jimmy Jewell, Mark Tempest and Alan Burton. This line-up played their final gig in September.
Unrecorded-at-the-time ATV lyric "Urban Kids" was released as a single by Chelsea in 1977. [14] The Chameleons regularly closed their gigs with a cover of "Splitting in 2". Savage Republic covered "Viva La Rock n' Roll" on their 1988 LP Jamahiriya Democratique et Populaire de Sauvage . Thee Headcoats recorded "Action Time Vision" for a single in 1993. [15] Wild Billy Childish and the Musicians of the British Empire covered "Date With Doug" on their 2007 debut album. [16]
Approximate dates up to 2002 adapted from Mark Perry biography. [17]
Sniffin' Glue and Other Rock 'N' Roll Habits..., widely known as simply Sniffin' Glue, was a monthly punk zine started by Mark Perry in July 1976 and released for about a year. The name is derived from a Ramones song "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue." Some of the zine's writers, such as Danny Baker, later became well-known journalists.
Sham 69 are an English punk rock band that formed in Hersham in Surrey in 1975. They changed their musical direction after seeing the Sex Pistols play live in early 1976. They were one of the most successful punk bands in the United Kingdom, achieving five top 20 singles, including "If the Kids Are United" and "Hurry Up Harry". The group's popularity saw them perform on the BBC’s Top of the Pops, and they appeared in the rockumentary film, D.O.A.. The original unit broke up in 1979, with frontman Jimmy Pursey moving on to pursue a solo career.
Psychic TV were an English experimental video art and music group, formed by performance artist Genesis P-Orridge and Scottish musician Alex Fergusson in 1981 after the break-up of Throbbing Gristle.
The Clash is the debut studio album by the English punk rock band the Clash, released on 8 April 1977 through CBS Records. Recorded and mixed over three weeks in February 1977 for £4,000, it would go on to reach No. 12 on the UK charts, and has been included on many retrospective rankings as one of the greatest punk albums of all time.
Brian James is an English punk rock guitarist, who is best known for being a founding member of The Damned as well as of The Lords of the New Church.
Rich Kids were a short-lived new wave band from London, founded in 1977 by Glen Matlock following his departure from the Sex Pistols. The band also included future Ultravox member Midge Ure and Rusty Egan, who both later founded Visage together. They released one album and three singles during their existence, from March 1977 to December 1978.
999 are an English punk rock band, formed in London in December 1976. From 1976 to 1985, their line-up consisted of Nick Cash, Guy Days, Jon Watson and Pablo LaBritain (drums). LaBritain was temporarily replaced in 1980 by drummer Paul Edward while he recovered from a motor accident. Bassist Jon Watson left the band in 1985 and was replaced by Danny Palmer, who was succeeded by Arturo Bassick in 1991.
Generation X were an English punk rock band, formed in London in 1976. They were the musical starting point of the career of their frontman Billy Idol, and issued six singles that made the UK Singles Chart and two albums that reached the UK Albums Chart.
Mark Perry is a British writer and musician, and former fanzine publisher.
U.K. Subs are an English punk rock band, among the earliest in the first wave of British punk. Formed in 1976, the mainstay of the band has been vocalist Charlie Harper, originally a singer in Britain's R&B scene. One of the first hardcore punk bands, elements of rhythm and blues music - including harmonica - also remained an occasional element of their work.
Skrewdriver were an English punk rock band formed by Ian Stuart Donaldson in Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, in 1976. Originally a punk band, Skrewdriver changed into a white power skinhead rock band after reuniting in the 1980s. Their original line-up split in January 1979 and Donaldson reformed the band with different musicians in 1982. This new version of the band played a leading role in the Rock Against Communism movement.
London is an English four-piece punk band formed in London in 1976, best known for their wild stage act. The original line-up was Riff Regan (vocals), Steve Voice, Jon Moss (drums) and Dave Wight (guitar). They were managed by Simon Napier-Bell and recorded two singles, a four-track EP and an album for MCA Records in 1977. Most of their songs were written by Riff Regan or by Regan and Steve Voice. All their records were produced by Napier-Bell at the IBC Studios in London.
Chelsea are an English punk rock band which formed in 1976. Three of the four original band members went on to found Generation X.
Radio Stars were an English punk rock band formed in early 1977. They released two albums and had one UK Top 40 single.
The Suburban Studs were an English punk rock band, formed in Birmingham in 1976.
Disorder are an English street punk band that formed in the Bristol area of England in 1980, and has existed with varying line-ups. They are aligned with politically charged punk bands.
The Drones are an English punk rock band from Manchester, England. For a period of time, the band were in their early days produced and managed by Paul Morley.
Neo was an early new wave band which was part of the English musical scene originated by punk in the 1970s. The group was formed by the American-born singer Ian North, who was the frontman and the only continuous member from the band formation in 1977 to the end in 1979.
The Killjoys were a punk band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1976, with members including Kevin Rowland and Kevin "Al" Archer, who would later form Dexys Midnight Runners, and Ghislaine "Gil" Weston, who would later join Girlschool. Although their releases while still together were limited to one single, subsequent interest has seen an album of their recordings released.
Vibing Up the Senile Man (Part One) is the second studio album by English rock band Alternative TV. It was released in March 1979 by record label Deptford Fun City. The band followed a more experimental and avant-garde approach than on The Image Has Cracked (1978).
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