Raven: A 52 Year Lesson in How to Kick Ass at The Horseshoe Tavern
- jaybroderick
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
By: Jay Broderick
Toronto, Canada - Thirty‑five minutes before "doors" (which is actually a curtain), the Horseshoe Tavern was already buzzing... a full line running from the curtains at the back of the bar area out through the front door, metalheads of all ages shoulder‑to‑shoulder, waiting for a night of pure, sweat‑drenched heavy metal thanks again to Inertia Entertainment. The air had that unmistakable “ohhhhh… sweet sweet metal” energy. And with good reason... the legendary Raven with founding brothers John and Mark Gallagher. NWOBHM lifers since 1974 and godfathers to the thrash movement, Raven were about to give a lesson in ass kicking!
But first, Toronto got a double‑shot of chaos from two openers who absolutely refused to play like openers. So much so, that tonight's headliners were about to be put to the test.
Xephyr
Local boys... zero warning... Not originally on the bill, Xephyr hit the stage at 7:45 sharp and immediately flipped the switch from “waiting around” to “game on.” Their set was a fast, thrashy, punk‑infused blast... D.R.I. meets Nuclear Assault with a Toronto edge! And it was loud! But I think the crowd was even louder. The fact that my Loops earplug broke off in my left ear didn't help (yes, I will call them out in this case), but the cheers were deafening!
By their third track, a cover of Alice In Chains' "Them Bones", the band was firing on all cylinders, and the crowd was locked in. By the fourth, the 2023 track "Remember", the fans were galloping along to riffs built for circle pits. By the fifth, the band had the entire room clapping along to the bass drum without hesitation. Huge applause followed, and bassist Jacob Stellato even admitted it was one of the biggest crowds they’d ever played to.
Then came the moment... drummer Alex Stojanovic introduced “I’m Here for Blood”, demanding mosh pits and walls. The crowd obliged instantly. Xephyr even capped it off with a little tease of Slayer's "Raining Blood", because why not! Xephyr came in as the underdog and walked off with the crowd fully on their side.
Slackjaw
If Xephyr lit the fuse, Slackjaw detonated the building! The South Carolina quartet, active since 2018, had fans screaming before they even played a note. Guitarist Brady Riggenbach walked out during setup and the room erupted. When bassist/vocalist Dallas Young followed, someone yelled “WELCOME TO CANADA,” and the place popped again. See, this is the first time the band has toured in Canada, and based on the reaction from the crowd, this has long been anticipated.
Then... BANG!!! They launched into their 2022 track “Caught in the Crossfire,” and the Horseshoe crowd was the crossfire. Bodies flying, fists pumping, heads snapping back and forth. The room was ferocious in the best possible way. And to keep the pressure amped up, Young fed the fire nonstop, shouting encouragement, hyping the crowd, and laughing mid‑set... “I thought it was supposed to be cold up here, but I fucking love it!!” The ‘Shoe was already a sauna due to the suddenly warmer temperatures outside, and the crowd made it ten times hotter inside.
Slackjaw tore through their set with zero downtime. The new single “Ascend Me,” a quick drum solo from Jacob Rigdon leading into “Give ’Em Hell,” and a crowd that screamed the three‑word chorus back at them like a war chant. For 45 minutes, the entire floor was a storm, slamming, circling, jumping, losing their minds. This was the wildest set I have personally ever seen at the Horseshoe. Slackjaw conquered this Toronto crowd, and at least one photojournalist.
Raven
Before Raven took the stage, I joked to my photog homie Myles George that there was no way these guys (now in their late 60s) could match Slackjaw’s energy. Boy... was I wrong! Spectacularly wrong!! The moment Raven walked out, Mark Gallagher was bouncing around the stage like a man half his age, and brother John Gallagher let out a scream so sharp it pierced straight through my broken earplug seal. It was LOUD... the kind of loud that makes us PROUD, as the band ripped into the title track from their 2025 EP Can't Take Away the Fire.
By the third track of the set, fans were chanting “RAVEN! RAVEN! RAVEN!”
John welcomed the crowd, shouted out the openers, and declared
“We have our work cut out for us tonight. Our mission… TO KICK YOUR FUCKING ASS!!!” With all due respect to these legendary metal heads, John's statement was truer than you could believe (unless of course you were at this show), as the 2 much younger opening acts were a force to stand up to. But then the bassist Gallagher exclaimed “We are going to give you The Power!” And they did as they electrocuted the faithful with their 202 track "The Power".
One thing that seemed apparent, the room wasn’t quite as packed as it was when Slackjaw took the stage. In fairness though, I was squeezed into the corner in the front row during Slackjaw's set and could not see to the back of the venue. It could have simply been my vantage point, but at minimum, the crowd was a little more spread out for the headliners. Maybe the crowd simply squeezed forward for the sandwich act, and perhaps some ducked out, but those who stayed were ready to go the distance. And if anybody did in fact leave, you clearly had no idea who the headliners were and what they have meant to this genre.
Raven ripped through some new material, and then dove straight into a cut from their very first album Rock Until You Drop. During the early era classic title track, the crowd roared the “Hey! Hey! Hey!” chants and the chorus “ROCK UNTIL YOU DROP” like it was 1981 all over again. Then came the moment of the night... Mark Gallagher’s extended guitar solo... five minutes of tapping, shredding, stopping abruptly to let the crowd explode, then firing back in with a grin. At one point he yelled “LET’S FUCKING GO!” and the room answered with a roar as John chimed in "THIS IS FASTER THAN THE SPEED OF LIGHT", and the band ripped into the 1982 track.
John followed with his own solo... a distortion‑soaked bass solo that made me smile and quickly brought comparisons to the master of all, Cliff Burton. In fact, Raven has been a massive influence to the most successful metal band of all time, Metallica. During John's hammering on the 4 string, pockets of fans near the back chatted like they were at a reunion. There were old‑school rockers and kids young enough to be their grandchildren. It was a reminder that Raven’s fanbase spans generations. Now THAT's legacy!
The band kept the crowd clapping through “On and On,” hands raised high, the entire room moving in unison. The rolled into “Break the Chains,” thanking everyone for coming out to celebrate heavy metal, and then closed with the classic "Chainsaw".
WHEW!!!
Set List
Can't Take Away the Fire
Hell Patrol
The Power
Top of the Mountain
Surf the Tsunami
Rock Until You Drop
Faster Than the Speed of Light
For the Future
All Hell's Breaking Loose
On and On
Break the Chain
Chainsaw
This show was heavy metal in its purest form... solos, sweat, chanting, crowd participation, and a band that refuses to slow down after 52 years. Raven proved exactly why they’re still here, and why they still matter. Slackjaw delivered one of the craziest sets the Horseshoe has seen in recent memory and Xephyr showed up unexpected and left with new fans.
A perfect night of metal at the ‘Shoe.
Concert Photo Gallery (all photos by: Jay Broderick)
Raven Online
Show Date: April 16, 2026
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