The Brighton-based Amazorblades traced their roots back to a 1972 meeting between vocalist Rob Keyloch and guitarist Ben Mandelson, although it was 1976 before the band -- completed by bassist Ray Cooper and sax player Robin Watson -- played its first gig, at the Alhambra club. With drummer Steve Harris replacing an earlier, now-forgotten percussionist, the band gigged throughout the year and, in late summer, signed with the Chiswick label. Their debut single, "Common Truth" followed in October, but by the end of the year, the band had broken up. Mandelson later resurfaced alongside Jah Wobble; Cooper in the Oyster Band. ~ Dave Thompson