Full disclosure: I’m a giant fucking Ratt nerd. In fact, it’s fair to say that if it weren’t for hearing their seminal hit “Round and Round” for the first time as a preteen, I probably wouldn’t have grown up to be a giant fucking metal nerd.

Something about Stephen Pearcy’s acidic voice and Warren DeMartini’s wailing guitar riffs compelled me to keep chasing the louder, faster, heavier dragon for all these years. But you never forget that first time, do you?

So when Vince offered me a chance to talk to Pearcy — who rejoined the band last year after a seven-year hiatus — about Ratt’s new album Infestation, I jumped at the chance. That excitement increased exponentially when I actually heard the record—a true throwback to melodic, ballsy hard rock with plenty of attitude and sexual innuendo.

Check out Infestation when it’s released on April 20 through Roadrunner Records. And be sure to worship every Ratturday.

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