Ravenous Ravens

And now for something completely different . . .

Ravens, Ravens

Ravens are such mysterious creatures.

They perch in lustrous silence on a branch.

Their glossy black feathers are their features.

And they range over forest, farm, and ranch.

But they smile in their grim, occult beauty,

iridescent, incandescent, smoking hot,

and still darkly burn in ways that suit thee,

and love lost in a grave will be their lot.

These don't sound like ordinary ravens in the end, but rather a subset of ravens put to dire aims. Pretty dark. Where did this come from?