Ratt - Out of the Cellar (40th Anniversary)

The album that made Ratt the next breakout story of the Sunset Strip, and one of the defining records of the entire hair metal era. Released on March 27, 1984 on Atlantic Records and recorded at Sound City Recording Studios with producer Beau Hill, Out Of The Cellar arrived four months after Quiet Riot's Metal Health had proved that heavy metal could conquer the mainstream, and proceeded to push the movement even further. The album peaked at number seven on the Billboard 200, achieved triple platinum certification in the United States, and sent Ratt on a world tour that saw them sell out stadiums and arenas across the globe.

At the heart of it all was "Round and Round," arguably the definitive single of the entire Los Angeles metal scene, its iconic music video featuring Hollywood legend Milton Berle in his Uncle Miltie drag character becoming a fixture on MTV and introducing the band to millions of new fans virtually overnight. The dual guitar attack of Robbin Crosby and Warren DeMartini, combining the hook-making instincts of Van Halen with the staccato riffing of British metal, set Ratt apart from every other band competing for attention on the Strip. Stephen Pearcy's raspy, instantly recognizable vocals tied it all together. "Wanted Man," "Lack of Communication," and "Back for More" round out an album that Metal Hammer later included in their list of the ten hair metal albums you need in your record collection, and one that has genuinely earned that distinction.

The album's cover, featuring actress Tawny Kitaen, became as iconic as the music itself. Kitaen would later become famous worldwide for her appearances in Whitesnake's "Here I Go Again" video, but this was the image that introduced her to the rock world.

This 40th anniversary limited edition is pressed on red and black splatter vinyl and includes a neon orange 7" single containing "Reach For the Sky," a previously unreleased 1983 demo co-written by Pearcy, Crosby, and future Bulletboys frontman Marq Torien that spent four decades in the vault before finally seeing the light of day. Remarkably polished for a demo, it sounds like a lost Cellar outtake and is an essential addition to the catalog for any serious fan.