Vardis are <!-- This article is written in British English, which commonly treats collective nouns as plural. Please do NOT change "ARE" to "IS". Thank you. --> an English three-piece hard rock, boogie rock and heavy metal band from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, who enjoyed hits between 1978 and 1986, and reformed in 2014.

They formed a prominent part of the new wave of British heavy metal scene, then prevalent in the United Kingdom. They consisted of frontman Steve Zodiac (real name Stephen John Hepworth) on guitar and lead vocals Alan Selway on bass guitar and Gary Pearson on drums. Alan Selway was later replaced by Terry Horbury (previously of Dirty Tricks) on bass guitar.

Background

The band were originally formed in 1973 under the name 'Quo Vardis' (a misspelling of the Latin for 'quo vadis', or 'who goes there?'). This was later abbreviated to Vardis in 1977. and performed at festivals in the UK and Germany until Gary Pearson's departure at the end of the year, with Hoplite Records reissuing a remastered edition of Vigilante (1986) on CD and digital download for the first time on 1 April. New drummer Joe Clancy was unveiled in January 2015, as Vardis announced plans to write and record new material. This new lineup released the EP 200 MPH on 18 July, the first new Vardis material in 29 years, to critical acclaim. In November 2015, Vardis penned a worldwide deal with SPV/Steamhammer, with the German label announcing the fifth Vardis album, Red Eye, had been scheduled for release in 2016. On 15 December that year, bassist Terry Horbury died suddenly after a short battle with cancer. Bassist Martin Connolly stepped in to fulfil live obligations in support of Red Eye the following year. Roly Bailey was unveiled as the new permanent bassist in September 2019.

Discography

Live albums

  • 100 M.P.H. (Logo, 1980) - UK No. 52
  • "Too Many People" (Logo, 1980)
  • "Silver Machine" (Logo, 1981)
  • "All You'll Ever Need" (Logo, 1981)
  • "Gary Glitter Part One" / "To Be With You" (Logo, 1982) - (double A-side single)
  • "Standing in the Road" (Big Beat, 1984)
  • "200 M.P.H. EP" (Hoplite Records, 2015)

See also

  • List of new wave of British heavy metal bands

References

  • Official website: www.VardisRocks.com
  • See Vardis on youtube
  • Hear Vardis on soundcloud
  • Vardis on Last.fm