Quartz: Renited For Hometown Gig

70-80s Nwobhm act Quartz have been reunited for a gig in their hometown on the 16th of December. Quartz came out of the British hard rock hotbed of Birmingham to join the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement in the late '70s. With a line-up that included John Bonham-associate Mike Hopkins and future Black Sabbath keyboardist Geoff Nichols, they were actually founded under the name Bandylegs but changed when Jet Records showed interest in the band.

They signed a contract with the label and toured with both AC/DC and Black Sabbath before beginning work on their first album. The tour with Black Sabbath turned out to be quite fruitful, as they gained a tour manager (Albert Chapman) and a big fan in Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi. Iommi took over the production duties on their eponymous debut, drafting Queen's Brian May into the sessions to play some guitar. The album was important to the emerging scene, and they joined Diamond Head and Def Leppard in being one of the first bands to make heavy metal faster and less plodding.

Quartz stayed relevant to the genre for their short time together, but by 1983 their irreconcilable differences split the band apart. Time has eroded how important the band was to the genre at the time, but fans of that period in heavy metal history know Quartz's place in the scheme of things.

Quartz were among one of Birmingham's greatest rock bands and all Nwobhm fans still holds tracks like `Satans Serenade', `Wildfire', `Street Fighting Lady' close to their hearts. Joining them on this re-union gig are none other then Cryer who released a single on Happy Face records back in 1980.

Quartz and Cryer last played together at Digbeth Civic hall in Dec 1979 where Quartz recorded the performance and released it as a live album. Quartz member Geoff Nicholls joined Black Sabbath where he spent well over 20 years. Dont miss the chance to see two of Brum's best loved rock bands on a very special night, don't be one of the ones that didn't make it, be there and enjoy the nostalgia, the show and the music. Tickets are priced at only £10 for more information check out: http://www.theasylumvenue.co.uk/gigs.php.