Do you have a Ratt problem? Geico has been running some humorous ads lately for bundling auto and home insurance policies, including one where the band Ratt appears in various rooms in the house.
In it, a couple celebrate their new home and its classic features, including “original crown molding, walk-in closets” but then lament, “we do have a Ratt problem.”
The ad then cuts to the current lineup of Ratt playing their classic hit “Round and Round” first in the basement, then in the kitchen as the homeowner dodges the band while retrieving a bag of chips, then after a dead-stare from the couple, a scene of the band playing in the bathroom closes out the 30-second spot.
Ratt was a pivotal part of the '80s hair-metal craze that ruled Los Angeles and the Sunset Strip clubs like the Troubadour, Whisky-a-go-go and The Roxy. When MTV launched, hair-metal blew up internationally and Ratt celebrated many years of commercial success.
Ratt's San Diego origins date back to the late 1970s, when the original band, Mickey Ratt, was formed. Eventually, they moved to L.A. and shortened the name. Ratt have had a rotating cast of members, over the years, and there were lawsuits over use of the band name for touring and recording. In the past few years, however, the band reformed, playing festivals and recording with a current four-piece lineup that includes vocalist and founding frontman Stephen Pearcy, bassist Juan Croucier, guitarist Jordan Ziff and drummer Pete Holmes.
More recently, Ratt have been working on a record, telling Ultimate Classic Rock that they "intend to move forward with it again as soon as we get the green light to get closer with social distancing.”
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Pearcy has also been working on new solo music. According to his official site, he was working on his sixth solo album during Ratt's 2019 tour and just dropped a demo called “All That I Want,” saying about it, “the song has relevance to what's going on, for me, so I thought I'd share. It brings us together where we should always be anyway."
