Pas un Best Of de plus mais une anthologie chronologique établie sur 2 CD par Mark Perry lui-même (qui se confond avec l'acronyme nominatif du groupe).
Avis parfaitement subjectif mais indiscutable : ATV était le meilleur groupe punk de la période 77-79. Peut être le seul, si punk signifiait le refus de toute contrainte musicale (même celle de savoir jouer) et de la grotesque rock'n roll attitude. Affichant son éclectisme musical au mépris de la mentalité en vigueur (il pose avec ses disques de Love, Zappa, Beefheart, Neil Young ou les Who sur la pochette de l'indispensable The Image Has Cracked début 78, l'un des 10 meilleurs albums de tous les temps), intégrant le reggae bien avant les autres ("Love Lies Limp" ou "Life" dès le début 77), l'expérimentation la plus extrême bien avant tout le monde ("Release The Natives" et le sublime "The Force Is Blind" dès la fin 78), il peut même se vanter d'avoir, avec "Action Time Vision" et "How Much Longer", mis bas à deux hymnes punk immarcescibles.
Toujours précoce, en 79, Mark Perry, 
dégoûté de la tournure que prenaient les événements fut aussi l'un des premiers à retourner bosser et redevenir un anglais d'en bas quand les autres se vautraient dans le trip sex drug and rock'n roll. Par la suite, il réanima ATV à deux reprises (en 84 puis 95), mais ne cessa entre-temps de composer et d'enregistrer, parfois sous son nom, parfois sous celui, un peu usurpé, d'Alternative TV (l'album Child Star, en fait solo). Contrairement à ses co-légionnaires de la punk army vieillissante, tout ce qu'il fait est encore marqué du sceau de la nécessité, de l'intensité. Peu (si ce n'est Peter Hammill, Dylan, Lou Reed ou Steve Austin) ont mêlé avec autant de franchise et de force dans leurs textes, vie privée, réflexion ontologique et poésie.
Musicalement, certains titres sont des sommets de puissance tourmentée et de violence dissonante (tels "Nasty Little Lonely" et "Splitting In Two" qui annoncent tout Sonic Youth).
En 38 titres, cette anthologie est le meilleur survol qu'on puisse imaginer de ce parcours passionnant. Ils tournent cet hiver aux USA et seraient tentés de venir faire une date à Paris, s'ils pouvaient être sûrs de ne pas jouer devant une salle vide. Pour les attirer chez nous et pour savoir pourquoi Steve Albini a toujours porté ATV au pinacle, procurez-vous ce bijou.
5 poin / 5
Addendum. Cette anthologie couvre tout de même une large palette de styles, de l'expérimental le plus intégral ("The Force Is blind") jusqu'au folk minimaliste assez proche de Nikki Sudden comme sur "Child Star". Si l'on veut seulement posséder le Alternative TV d'origine (avec Alex Fergusson) on peut acheter alors la réédition CD de The Image Has Cracked parue en 1994 chez Cherry Red Records / Anagram Records et qui contient tout l'album + en bonus tous les singles de cette formation (1977-1978).
En bonus cet article tiré de Dusted Magazine que je viens de dénicher sur Internet et datant de l'époque de notre entretien (janvier 2003) ce qui me fait comprendre pourquoi sur 3 h de discussion, nous avons parlé de Dylan la moitié du temps.
Mark Perry is, without question, one of the most important figures in punk history. After seeing the Ramones play in 1976, he started the seminal Sniffin’ Glue fanzine, which largely determined the direction of the UK movement punk. Perry’s zine was the first to cover acts like the Sex Pistols, Subway Sect, and the Clash, and soon garnered national attention. NME went as far as deeming Perry the “Poet Laureate of the Blank Generation.” After just 12 issues, however, Perry stopped publishing the rag, claiming punk was dead (in 1977!), and concentrated more on his band Alternative TV and his label Step Forward Records, which released early records by The Fall and Chelsea and the Cortinas. Perry continues to play with ATV, switching genres every couple years to keep things fresh (check out 1991’s My Life as a Child Star), and Sniffin’ Glue was recently commemorated in 2000 when Sanctuary Books published Sniffin’ Glue: The Essential Punk Accessory, which collects all 12 issues. For more information on this vastly unappreciated groundbreaker, check out http://www.markperry.freeuk.com.
10 things I am currently listing to: 
1) Bob Dylan - Live 1975 (Columbia) - This is just out on Columbia. Recorded on the Rolling Thunder Revue tour of 1975. Two CDs of utter brilliance. It’s hard, sometimes, to pin down why Dylan is so good. This set is a good starting point - listen to the version of “It Ain't Be Babe” for proof - with Mick Ronson on lead guitar as well!
2) Bob Dylan - Hard Rain (Columbia) - After getting the above, I had to dig this out again! Hard Rain is recorded in 1976 - the second Rolling Thunder tour. Dylan sings as though his heart, and soul, depends on it and, in a way, it did. The version of "Idiot Wind" is the most exciting rock recording, ever! Genius.
3) Prince Buster - Fabulous Greatest Hits (Trojan) – It’s great to have this on CD. The ultimate ska/rock steady collection. A good helping of bonus tracks as well, including “Madness” and “Enjoy Yourself”.
4) The Who - My Generation (Universal) - The UK version finally available on CD, with plenty of bonus A’s, B’s and rarities on a second CD. This is the best of the great 60’s debuts. Explodes at you with an attitude that was rarely matched by the band. "My Generation," the song, still excites, and the rest are just as strong. It’s great to have “I Can’t Explain” plus B-sides as well.
5) Love - Four Sail (Elektra) - The album that followed Forever Changes finally remastered! How could they follow Changes? Arthur Lee didn’t try. Instead, he reshuffled the line-up and produced a great band album which is a classic in its own right.
6) Jackson Browne - The Naked Ride Home (Elektra) - The new album. It’s not Late For The Sky or The Pretender but, in its own way, this is classic Browne. No pretensions on stances. Just great songs in a great musical wrapping.
7) U Roy - Version Galore (Frontline) - This is the one! Two CDs of the very best of the ace deejay and his pals. Someone should of thought of this before. The first disc has all the great U Roy Treasure Isle sides, the second has the original songs. A great idea and probably the best ever of the new Trojan reissues. This is up there with the gods!
8) ELP - Live At The Isle Of Wight (Manticore) - Why ELP get so much stick from, so called, rock music fans, I don’t know. Sure, they got overblown, but that has happened to everyone since Elvis. This CD is a live recording of their second gig and is a great document of their early sound. Listen to Emerson’s Moog! This is prog, as played by punk rockers! Remember, at the time, they were the young Turks. The version of “Pictures At An Exhibition” is brilliant and so bold for the time.
9) Whitehouse - Wriggle Like Fucking Eel (Susan Lawly) - Industrial noise art. This is the single of their new album which is coming out in January. This is where Emerson’s moog ended up! Wonderful stuff, the most important new music being made. Still scary, still loud - they’re getting better as well. Like an arrow to the heart of the fake new NME fad wannabees. Hail the death of rock and pop. It’s all been said and done!
10) Rolling Stones - Beggars Banquet (ABKCO) - This was made when rock was alive and well - cutting edge, important and full of great ideas and tunes. At last, remastered properly for CD, it sounds wonderful. But...the packaging is shit, the booklet notes - there’s not any. It’s got me listening to the Stones again, so it works for me. "Street Fighting Man," "Sympathy For The Devil," "Stray Cat Blues." Has a rock band ever been this great? I doubt it...
By Dusted Magazine
Pour l'entretion avec Mark Perry, toujours New Wave, n° 5 et 7 à commander sur http://www.celiableue.com/
Encore une petite citation pour montrer que je ne suis pas seul, que ce n'est pas une posture snob (parano quand tu nous tiens)
ATV played their last gig under that name in March 1979, metamorphosed into The Good Missionaries and eventually fizzled out/ [...] But, even now, listening to the first few records by this vital group you can still get a real thrill, but the impact of ATV was somehow deeper; their attitude, their way of doing things, their very raison d'etre was the very stuff of what some folk (this person included) would consider the true punk spirit; something that transcended product, yet still stood out as the product's single most enlightening and vibrant facet. If ever there was a band that stood for what punk should have been about, surely it was Alternative TV. Then again, as Lenny Bruce famously said (and Mark Perry would undoubtedly concur), 'What should be is a fucking lie.'
Richard Mason Perfect Sound Forever
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