Artiste: Raven
Nationality: British
Album: The Pack is Back
Year: 1986
Label: Atlantic
Genre: Heavy Metal
Tracks:
The pack is back
Gimme some lovin'
Screamin' down the house
Young blood
Hyperactive
Rock dogs
Don't let it die
Get into your car and drive
All I need
Nightmare ride
Chronological position:Fifth album
Rank: I covered Raven in my NWOBHM article, so have heard a few of their albums
Comments: So this is the one that almost made Raven into Def Leppard/Praying Mantis, eh? The one where they were convinced to soften their music and tailor it more to the American AOR market than the headbanging thrashy UK metal one? This could be interesting. Hmm. The opener tries so hard to be, well, hard, but fails miserably, and putting Spencer Davis Group's “Gimme some lovin'” on the album sounds like a desperate attempt to get a single. It failed. The album didn't even chart. “Young blood” shows us the Raven we had come to know and love, though it sounds like there are keyboards in there.
Keyboards? Oh Jesus! And
horns on “Hyperactive”?
Horns? It's a terrible song too. As is “Don't let it die”. Yeah, it's pretty much a fail. No wonder it didn't sell. Thank God Raven went back to doing what they do best after this abortion.
Intention: Try to wash the memory of this from my mind and ears!
