Goldblade

Goldblade are a punk group from Manchester, United Kingdom, active from 1994 to the present. They are led by John Robb, the music journalist, occasional television pundit and former Membranes frontman, and the line-up also includes Johny Skullknuckles. The band’s music mixes punk with ska, rockabilly, hardcore and underground blues.

Formation and early releases

Goldblade form in 1996 when John Robb meets a like-minded musician in a local UFC gym. Robb, Keith Curtis and Rob Haynes then form the first line-up, with Curtis on bass and vocals and Haynes on drums and vocals. The band sign to Ultimate Records and release two low-key singles before Strictly Hardcore reaches the UK national charts in March 1997. That single comes from the album Hometurf, after which Goldblade continue with a heavy touring schedule.

The follow-up single Hairstyle is named Single of the Week on BBC Radio 1, and the band appear on Saturday morning television. A second album, Drop The Bomb, follows in 1998, but the label then collapses.

Line-up changes and later records

After further line-up changes, Pete Gorgeous, formerly of the Nightingales and the UK Subs, and Johny Skullknuckles join on dual lead guitar. Goldblade then sign to the Scottish independent label Twenty Stone Blatt Records, which releases the limited-edition single AC/DC ahead of the album Do You Believe In The Power Of Rock 'N' Roll. When that label also goes bankrupt, the album becomes difficult to obtain.

In 2005, after being seen at Wasted 2005, Goldblade sign to Captain Oi! Records and release Rebel Songs, which becomes their biggest release. The band also sign to SOS Records in the United States, where a US-only compilation, Punkrockers In The Dancehall, appears with Sony distribution. Cleopatra Records later releases Rebel Songs in the US, and KB-Records picks it up in Germany. Goldblade also record and release a live DVD, Testify, on Cherry Red Records, filmed in Blackpool during Christmas 2005.

Captain Oi! later issues the compilation Strictly Hardcore, combining the unavailability of the early albums with two tracks from Rebel Songs. The band make their back catalogue available as digital downloads. Goldblade’s fifth album, Mutiny, is released in 2008, preceded by the single Jukebox Generation. Another single, City Of Christmas Ghosts, is a reworking of a Mutiny track and features added vocals from Poly Styrene of X-Ray Spex. In 2009, Riot! Riot! appears on the soundtrack to Green Street 2. The band also release The Terror Of Modern Life in 2013.

Live activity and festivals

Goldblade tour extensively in the UK, Europe, America and Russia and build a reputation for a high-energy live show. They appear with Stiff Little Fingers, The Misfits and The Damned, and play festivals including Punk & Disorderly in Berlin, Rebellion in Amsterdam, Glastonbury on the Left Field stage, the Rebellion Festival in Austria and the UK, the Brittany Oi! Festival, Strummercamp 3, and Endorse It in Dorset. They also play dates in Germany, Switzerland, Poland and Serbia, including a first show in Gdansk and later performances in front of large crowds at the Roundhouse in London.