The Raves are a power pop

Power pop

Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...

 band based in Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

 and were most active in the 1980s. Originally formed in 1971 and called Nod, the Raves consisted of three brothers (Chuck, John and Jim Yoakum) and Ken Kennedy. Unusual for that time in the Southern United States, they played original rock music in the vein of The Pretenders

The Pretenders

The Pretenders are an English rock band formed in Hereford, England in March 1978. The original band consisted of initiator and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde , James Honeyman-Scott , Pete Farndon , and Martin Chambers...

, Badfinger

Badfinger

Badfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...

, Big Star

Big Star

Big Star was an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1971 by Alex Chilton, Chris Bell, Jody Stephens and Andy Hummel. The group broke up in 1974, but reorganized with a new line-up nearly 20 years later...

, and other pop rock bands. The Raves also had their own local public-access television

Public-access television

Public-access television is a form of non-commercial mass media where ordinary people can create content television programming which is cablecast through cable TV specialty channels...

 program titled "Eh, Wot's This?", a mix of original comedy sketches and music video which aired from 1980-1982. The series won a Caber award in 1981. The Raves played Atlanta area nightclubs: 688 Club

688 Club

The 688 Club was a popular alternative music venue in Atlanta, Georgia, located at 688 Spring Street, near the intersection of Spring and 3rd Streets. The 688 Club opened in May 1980 and closed in November 1986. The club was operated by Steve May. The club was co-owned by Tony Evans and John...

, The Agora Ballroom, The Bistro and many other venues throughout the South until their break-up in 1983. A post-break up LP entitled The Color of Tears was released on their own label later that year. A CD entitled Past Perfect Tense that took tracks from the Color of Tears LP and newly recorded material from 1989 was released in 1992. A second CD, entitled Inside Looking Out (a compilation of their Nod and Raves material from 1968–1983) was released in 2002.

NOVEMBER 2011 UPDATE:
The Raves are working on a release of new material and additional collections of previously unreleased songs due in 2012.