In 1977, John Robb and Mark Tilton formed the band at Blackpool Sixth Form College. Inspired by punk rock and the DIY ethic of punk, they started both a fanzine, "Rox," and The Membranes at the same time. Tilton, who lived a few doors down the road from Robb, bought a 'Woolworth's special' guitar from a junk shop, while Robb built his own bass guitar out of spare parts and a slab of wood from a local DIY store (along with dustbin lids, the band having no drummer at this stage). They then enlisted a singer Martyn Critchley and Martin Kelly joined on drums. Critchley subsequently left, with Robb and Tilton taking over to share the vocals, Martin Kelly moving to keyboards with a Wasp synthesiser and a 13-year-old called "Coofy Sid" (Coulthart) joining on drums. Their first recording was "Ice Age", which appeared on the "Blackpool Rox" EP featuring Section 25, Syntax and The Kenneth Turner Set on Robb's Vinyl Drip label,