In a new interview with music writer and long time Brave Words supporter Joel Gausten, Raven bassist/vocalist John Gallagher discusses a variety of topics including the band's new album ExtermiNation, their longevity over four decades and the struggles they and many of their peers encountered when they were forced to follow a more commercial direction in the mid '80s. An excerpt of the chat appears below:

Gausten: This year is kind of an anniversary for Raven. Exactly 30 years ago was the first time a lot of Americans got to hear the band to begin with through the single 'On And On' and the first Atlantic record, Stay Hard. When you look back now, what are your thoughts on that era's place in the history of the band and the effect it's had on you even today?

Gallagher: "It didn't do us any favors. Stay Hard was a great album for us; it was the logical next step after All For One. We had no problem; the album was done before we finalized the deal with Atlantic. They had input on the next one (1986's The Pack Is Back), and obviously made our lives miserable one way or another. We had to climb back from that, and we got a lot of flack for that [period], but a lot of other bands made much more grievous errors. Judas Priest did at least two horrible albums, and Saxon probably did two or three. It happened to a lot of bands where the record companies were meddling and pushing...They wanted KISS meets Bon Jovi or something, you know? You're young, impressionable and naive, and it takes you a while to wake up sometimes. And we did, and we moved on from that. It's water under the bridge. You live and learn. We learned that when we did The Pack Is Back, it's not the best way to do a record – using click tracks and going in and doing it one (track) at a time and spending eight to 10 weeks doing a record. It drove us crazy."

"When we record, we spend all the time with pre-production and writing and getting it the way we want it, and then we bang it all out in like five or six days live in the studio . No click track, no nothing – just boom. You fix whatever you need to fix, but you've got to capture that energy. That's what it's all about – capturing the feel."

Gausten: Obviously, heavy metal as a genre has taken a few hits over the years in terms of public opinion, but it always seems to come back. It's a style of music that has always proven to be incredibly resilient. The press doesn't get it and record companies don't always get it, but the fans always seem to understand. What do you think it is about heavy metal that has allowed it continue to grow to the point where it's still very much a worldwide phenomenon in 2015?

Gallagher: "It's part of the spectrum of music; it really is. It's bright red; it's right there. Your laid-back Jazz is a kind of purple, and the Blues is the blue, but Heavy Metal is full-out red. Because of that, it will never go away. It's like a beacon for people who have been through some hard times or whatever. It's a release – the glorious power of just hitting a big power chord. That's what it's all about – the energy that's in that. To my mind, it's obviously more than that. There's melody, there's songs. It's energy viewed through that prism as opposed to the nonsense which a lot of bands call Heavy Metal these days. I've seen that so many times when we were on tour in the states last year: (Mimicking redneck voice), 'Oh, you guys are in a band? What kind of music you play?' We go, 'Heavy Metal,' and we see the face go urrrr...We say, 'Our roots are in Deep Purple and..' They'd go, 'Oh! That's great! I love that!' You know what I mean? They think they're talking to some guy with a white face playing a chainsaw guitar and making a complete racket. I think the term's been corrupted by all that down-tuned, Cookie Monster stuff that's not Heavy Metal. It really isn't, so we need to claim the term back (laughs)."

The complete interview is available at this location.

Raven are celebrating their 41st year as a band with the new album, ExtermiNation, which was released in Germany on April 24, and will be out in Europe on April 27 and in North America on April 28 as a digipak version (incl. 1 bonus track), 2LP gatefold green vinyl version and download through SPV/Steamhammer. Marking their first new album in five years, Raven have launched the new video for the song “Battle March/Tank Treads (The Blood Runs Red)”.

Metal’s “three musketeers” have had an exciting 2014 – opening for Metallica (the band Raven took on their first tour back in 1983) in Sao Paulo in front of 70,000 fans, and completeing a 43 date headlining USA tour – not to mention completing their finest album to date – ExtermiNation “combines the melody/chaos/musicianship/lunacy that defines the band with songs that are simply the best they have done in decades,” according to a press release. Rivaling the “holy trinity” of  those early albums, and again working with the engineering metal mastermind who is Kevin 131 (Walk Through Fire)  – the band have taken their game to the next level..this may well be their 41st anniversary but these guys are only just getting started!

Tracklisting Digi:

“Destroy All Monsters”
“Tomorrow”
“It’s Not What You Got"

“Fight”
“Battle March/Tank Treads (The Blood Runs Red)”
“Feeding The Monster”
“Fire Burns Within”
“Scream”
“One More Day”
“Thunder Down Under”
“No Surrender”
“Golden Dawn”
“Silver Bullet”
“River Of No Return”
“Malice In Geordieland” (Bonus Track)

Tracklisting 2LP:

LP 1

Side 1

“Destroy All Monsters”
“Tomorrow”
“It’s Not What You Got”
“Fight”

Side 2

“Battle March/Tank Treads (The Blood Runs Red)”
“Feeding The Monster”
“Fire Burns Within”
“Scream”

LP 2

Side 1

“One More Day”
“Thunder Down Under”
“No Surrender”
“Golden Dawn”

Side 2

“Silver Bullet”
“River Of No Return”

“Malice In Geordieland” (Bonus Track)

In commemoration of Bon Scott’s death 35 years ago, Raven release a snippet of their new song "Thunder Down Under”:

“ExtermiNation” lyric video: