Biography

English hard rock/metal outfit Quartz sprang out of the industrial hotbed of Birmingham as part of the seminal New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement in the late '70s. They found success in the early '80s via their Tony Iommi-produced debut album, but ceased operations in 1984. After reuniting for a one-off show in 2011, Quartz officially reconvened in 2016 for a new studio LP, Fear No Evil. Originally operating under the moniker Bandylegs -- the band changed its name to Quartz in 1976 after inking a deal with Jet Records -- the initial lineup consisted of Mike Taylor (vocals), Geoff Nicholls (rhythm guitar and keyboards), Malcolm Cope (drums), Mick Hopkins (lead guitar), and Derek Arnold (bass guitar). They released their eponymous Tony Iommi-produced debut album in 1977, followed by a heavy bout of touring that included performances alongside fellow decibel-crushing heavyweights like Black Sabbath, AC/DC, Saxon, Rush, Gillan, and UFO. The group's sophomore effort, Stand Up and Fight, arrived in 1980, this time via MCA, with Against All Odds dropping in 1983, the latter of which would prove to be the group's last studio LP, as they disbanded the following year -- Geoff Nicholls would go on to join Black Sabbath, with whom he would become an essential contributor through 2004. The band reconvened in 2011 for a reunion gig, employing a lineup that featured Nicholls, Cope, Hopkins, Arnold, and vocalist David Garner, who had taken over for Taylor on Against All Odds -- Taylor passed away in 2016 after battling lung cancer. The success of the reunion show prompted Quartz to officially re-form the following year, and in 2016 they issued their long-awaited fourth studio long-player, Fear No Evil, via High Roller Records. ~ James Christopher Monger, Rovi