Television is an American rock band, formed in New York City in 1973 and considered influential in the development of punk and alternative music. Television was a fixture of the 1970s New York rock scene along with acts like thePatti Smith Group, the Ramones, Blondie, and Talking Heads. Although they recorded in a stripped-down, guitar-based manner similar to their punk contemporaries, Television's music was by comparison clean, improvisational, and technically proficient, drawing influence from avant-garde jazz and 1960s rock.[1][4] The group's debut album, Marquee Moon, is often considered one of the defining releases of the punk era.