(((     (from Allmusic.com) Raven were considered one of the brightest hopes in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, but bad decisions and musical inconsistency would de-rail their once-promising career, turning the trio into just another small -- albeit important -- footnote for this important genre. Raven formed in late 70's Newcastle, England by brothers Mark (guitar) and John Gallagher (bass/vocals) along with drummer Rob "Wacko" Hunter. Signing with independent Neat Records, layed the groundwork for what would become known as thrash metal by picking up where '70s noisemongers Motorhead had left off.  As the movement approached its peak in 1981, Raven rode its crest with the self-labeled "athletic rock" of their album, "Rock Until You Drop", still considered a classic of the genre.   Raven signed with the major record company marked the turning point of Raven's fortunes as 1985's disappointing "Stay Hard" saw the band opting for an overtly commercial direction. Raven gradually relinquished their pop-metal aspirations, but by the time they attempted a full return to their roots with 1988's "Nothing Exceeds Like Excess", their momentum had been irretrievably lost, along with drummer Wacko. The group has continued to record throughout the '90s on a variety of independent labels with new drummer Joey Hassewander, without anything close to mainstream success. Ã¯Â»Â¿Raven were forced to put the band on hold for almost 10 years after Mark Gallagher had his legs crushed after a wall fell on him at a construction site.  Mark recovered and Raven returned in 2008 and the band still performs today.Following a forced layoff through half of the last decade due to Mark Gallagher’s long recuperation from a serious accident where Mark’s legs were crushed after a wall collapsed on the musician, the band have fought back with a number of European festival appearances, a UK tour in 2008 and a triumphant jaunt to Japan in 2009.  

Subsequent Neat releases -- Wiped Out, All for One and Live at the Inferno -- weren't quite as focused but helped the band solidify their fan-base and attract the attention of Atlantic Records. Unfortunately, signing with the major record company marked the turning point of Raven's fortunes as 1985's disappointing Stay Hard saw the band opting for an overtly commercial direction. Raven gradually relinquished their pop-metal aspirations, but by the time they attempted a full return to their roots with 1988's Nothing Exceeds Like Excess, their momentum had been irretrievably lost, along with drummer Wacko. The group has continued to record throughout the '90s on a variety of independent labels with new drummer Joey Hassewander, without anything close to mainstream success. Raven formed in late 70's Newcastle, England by brothers Mark(guitar) and John Gallagher (bass/vocals) along with drummer Rob "Wacko" Hunter. Signing with independent Neat Records, the trio joined labelmates Venom in laying the groundwork for what would become known as thrash metal by picking up where '70s noisemongersMotorhead had left off. Not as satanically-inclined or downright silly asVenom, Raven were much better musicians and played with the raw energy and reckless power that epitomized the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. As the movement approached its peak in 1981, Ravenrode its crest with the self-labeled "athletic rock" of their album, Rock Until You Drop, still considered a classic of the genre. Raven formed in late 70's Newcastle, England by brothers Mark(guitar) and John Gallagher (bass/vocals) along with drummer Rob "Wacko" Hunter. Signing with independent Neat Records, the trio joined labelmates Venom in laying the groundwork for what would become known as thrash metal by picking up where '70s noisemongersMotorhead had left off. Not as satanically-inclined or downright silly asVenom, Raven were much better musicians and played with the raw energy and reckless power that epitomized the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. As the movement approached its peak in 1981, Ravenrode its crest with the self-labeled "athletic rock" of their album, Rock Until You Drop, still considered a classic of the genre.