John Robb (musician)

John Robb
John Robb performing at Justice Tonight : In Aid of the Hillsborough Justice Campaign, HMV Ritz Manchester, 2011.
Background information
Born	Fleetwood, Lancashire, UK
Genres	Spoken word punk rock
Occupation(s)	Singer songwriter TV pundit Radio DJ author
Instruments	Vocals, bass guitar, guitar
Years active	1977 to present
Associated acts	Membranes Goldblade
Website	goldblade.com

John Robb (born 4 May 1961 in Fleetwood, Lancashire, England) is vocalist in the punk rock band Goldblade and bassist and vocalist in post punk band The Membranes. Based in Manchester, he has also written several books on music and occasionally makes media appearances as a music commentator. Aged 24, he became a vegetarian and turned to veganism later.

Robb was born in Fleetwood and grew up in Anchorsholme, a suburb of Blackpool, since the early sixties. He attended Blackpool Sixth Form College an addition to the Collegiate Grammar School which Robb attended, where after reading about the emerging punk rock scene in the music press in 1976 he was inspired to start his own band. He is a supporter of Blackpool F.C. stating in January 2013, "I was born in Blackpool and supporting your local team is one of those things that gets under your skin for life."

Robb was inspired by the DIY ethic of punk to form The Membranes in 1977, the band releasing several albums in the 1980s. The band split up in 1990 with Robb forming Sensurround, releasing two singles in the early 1990s. In 1994 he formed Goldblade, who have released albums including 2005's Rebel Songs and 2008's Mutiny and single "City of Christmas Ghosts" featuring Poly Styrene on shared vocals. In 2013 Goldblade released the album The Terror of Modern Life via Overground Records.

The Membranes reformed in 2010 appearing at the All Tomorrow's Parties Festival at the request of My Bloody Valentine and released the 7" vinyl single 'If You Enter The Arena, You Got To Be Prepared To Deal with the Lions' (Louder Than War Records) – The single was released on Record Store Day 20 April 2012; the track was The Guardian 'Single of the Week'. Tim Burgess from the Charlatans released their next comeback single, 'The Universe Explodes Into A Billion Photons Of Pure White Light' and the band released a new album, 'Dark Matter/Dark Energy' in June 2015 on Cherry Red. In 2016 The band played concerts with a 25 piece choir in the UK and Europe and have lined up a remix album called Inner Space/Outer Space with mixes from Manic Street Preachers, Killing Joke, Mark Lanegan, Godflesh, Reverend and the Makers, Einstürzende Neubauten, Clint Mansell and many others.