Seventies proto-punkers Television have never been strangers to long jams. Last night at the Teragram Ballroom was no exception. Fans of all ages whooped and hollered as the band pushed through drawn out versions of their songs keeping the audience ebbing and flowing through the hour and 40 minute set. Frontman Tom Verlaine started off the evening by telling the audience that some pretty interesting stuff was going on with the planet Jupiter recently and between songs he would enlighten us with more planet facts. They opened their set with an intro and then into “Prove It” and “Elevation” from their 1977 debut album “Marquee Moon” which dominated their set. Popular songs were “Venus” and “Persia” but the greatest response came from album title track “Marquee Moon.” Audience members were either intently watching fierce licks from guitarist Jimmy Rip and drummer Billy Ficca’s improvisational erratic drummer style or they were eyes closed, totally immersed in the band’s sometimes dissonant but trend-defying scale exploration. It would seem, with the length of some songs, Television are still trying to challenge their audience. With age, these pioneers of progressive jamming haven’t totally maintained an outward punk energy, but the punk ethos is still very much there. They closed their set with the rarity “I’m Gonna Find You” and “Glory” from sophmore album “Adventure”. Verlaine’s perfectly imperfect sneering vocals and enigmatic guitar playing proved his unwavering craftsmanship and sans encore, Television left the audience pining for more.

Shot for BUZZBANDS.LA