Raven frontman John Gallagher recently shared his memories of the tour Kill ‘Em All For One of 1983, during which Metallica opened for Raven. In an interview given to the show Meltdown of WRIFhe spoke about the meteoric rise of the Thrash Metal group and confided that he did not expect it to become a global star.
A tour with a future thrash giant
By 1983, Raven was already well established in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal scene, while Metallica debuted with their debut album, Kill ‘Em All. Together, the two bands crossed the United States as part of the tour Kill ‘Em All For One. For Metallica, sharing the stage with its idols was an unexpected opportunity, but no one at the time, not even Gallagher, imagined the band's legendary future career.
“Yes, they were good. They were energetic. It was like a gang, which is always appealing, because we were like a gang too,” Gallagher remembers. “But to say: 'In 10 years, they will be the greatest', I would never have believed it.”
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The musical evolution with Ride the Lightning
Gallagher noted a significant transformation in Metallica after the first album. He considers Ride the Lightning (1984) as a turning point in the maturity of the group: “On the second album, they showed a certain maturity, an ability to do different things. They did slower songs like Fade to Black, while keeping fast songs, but diversifying their sound.”
-Metallica also expressed their admiration for Raven at the time. “They told us they loved our album All For One because we expanded our sound without compromising our identity,” says Gallagher.
A bond that endures
Gallagher also spoke about his current relationship with Metallica. During a visit to the group's HQ in California, he had a frank conversation with James Hetfield: “[James était] very humble and grateful. He told me: 'I don't know how this all happened, but we are very grateful and we will continue to give our best.' You can’t ask for better than that.”
In 2022, at an event celebrating Jon and Marsha Zazula, the founders of Megaforce Records, Gallagher reunited with Metallica on stage. “It was great. They're still the same guys despite everything they've been through. It’s impressive.”
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