Invasion Of Your Privacy

Released just over a year after their blockbuster double-platinum debut, Ratt's second album, Invasion of Your Privacy, contained all of the same ingredients that helped launch the band to MTV and radio success: a batch of commercially savvy pop-metal tunes and a half-naked model on the cover. This may seem like an overly simplistic analysis, but it helps make the point that, for all its many positive attributes (including a number nine chart peak), Invasion of Your Privacy was very much a creative holding pattern for the group. If anything, returning producer Beau Hill merely helped Ratt fine-tune their songs and give them a brighter pop sheen (including some telltale electronic percussion), but although there were still hit singles to be had via riff-driven opener "You're in Love," "Lay It Down," and "What You Give Is What You Get," none of these challenged the first album's "Round and Round" in terms of commercial or cultural ubiquity. Nonetheless, another largely consistent selection of tracks (including fan favorites "Give It All" and "Between the Eyes") helped Ratt avert most accusations of looming creative stagnation, and the full flowering of budding guitar hero Warren DeMartini (while still leaving some lead work for co-axeman Robbin Crosby -- the band's heart and soul) was a highlight in and of itself. Ultimately, no after-the-fact nitpicking can change the fact that Invasion of Your Privacy was a perfectly respectable effort, much loved by Ratt's fans, and easily avoided any hints of a sophomore slump. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia