Raven Honors ‘Old Sparring Partners’ Metallica With New ‘Metal Militia’ Cover

The legendary NWOBHM band Raven has unveiled their take on the Metallica classic “Metal Militia,” the fourth single from the upcoming all-star compilation, No Life ‘Til Leather – A Tribute To Metallica’s Kill ‘Em All. The album is scheduled for release on November 14 via Silver Lining Music.

Raven‘s inclusion on the tribute is particularly fitting, as Metallica‘s first proper tour in 1983, the famed “Kill ‘Em All For One” venture, was in support of them. Raven‘s new rendition closes out the album, channeling the original’s ferocity while adding their own signature identity.

Raven‘s co-founding lead vocalist and bassist, John Gallagher, commented on the band’s contribution and their historic relationship:

“We are very happy and honored to have been asked to be part of this awesome tribute to our old sparring partners. Our cover version is many things as you will hear… in the best tradition of the guys themselves, but I think we captured that Metallica ‘snarl’…. Especially by changing a few key elements! Features Mark on vocals, today all is revealed!”

The tribute album unites Metallica‘s peers, influences, and the subsequent generations they inspired. The stacked lineup includes contributions from Metallica‘s own favorite bands like Diamond Head, Saxon, and Motörhead, alongside thrash giants Testament and former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson.

The full track listing for No Life ‘Til Leather – A Tribute To Metallica’s Kill ‘Em All is as follows:

• “Hit The Lights” – Tailgunner
• “The Four Horsemen” – The Almighty
• “Motorbreath” – Soen
• “Jump In The Fire” – Tygers Of Pan Tang
• “(Anesthesia – Pulling Teeth)” – David Ellefson
• “Whiplash” – Motörhead
• “Phantom Lord” – Saxon
• “No Remorse” – Diamond Head
• “Seek & Destroy” – Testament
• “Metal Militia” – Raven

In an interview earlier this year with Detroit’s WRIF radio station, John Gallagher reflected on that formative 1983 tour with Metallica.

“Yeah, they were good. They were energetic. They were like a gang, which is always appealing ’cause we were, obviously, like a gang… But as far as, ‘Do you see them in — whatever — 10 years being the greatest thing since sliced bread?’ It’s, like, no, not a chance. And to be fair, the band that you could have said that with was at least a good year away because they really changed on the second record. It showed some maturity and breadth and the ability to do different things other than just [playing fast] all the way through. So, they sat, they learned and they soaked it all in and they did a whole bunch of stuff.”

Gallagher also noted that Metallica was paying close attention to Raven‘s own musical evolution at the time.

“They said to us on the tour, ‘We love your All For One album because you’ve broadened your sound without compromising who you are.’ I was, like, ‘Oh, well, I guess we did. Okay.’ So they did kind of the same thing. They stretched out and did ‘Fade To Black‘, which was, like, ‘This is really cool. This is different.’ Some slower-paced songs — still fast stuff, but mixed it up a bit.”