STEPHEN PEARCY: There Will Probably Never Be Another RATT Album

Former RATT singer Stephen Pearcy was interviewed on a recent edition of VH1 Classic "That Metal Show" co-host Eddie Trunk's podcast, "Eddie Trunk Podcast". You can now listen to the chat at this location. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On his latest departure from RATT:

"It's unfortunate. We get Juan [Croucier, bass] back into the mix a few years back, thinking things were gonna be copacetic and cool, and they just got worse. I made [it] very clear and [made everyone] aware, I can move on and do what I need to do without my band RATT, per se, and this monster I created. And so be it. Things got worse. And [I'm] just dealing with it and moving. It's like rehab or something — you get rid of all these bad things in your life and you make things good."

On whether things have gotten better between him and his former bandmates in the last several months since he announced his departure from RATT:

"It's actually gotten worse, to some extent. And probably we'll never see another RATT record because of it, and so be it. Like I said, you get rid of the bad to make your life good. And, as far as I'm concerned, that entails everything in my life. So, as far as a band, a band is a band. I mean, we were lucky to be around ten years, let alone, off and on, for thirty-plus. So, you know, it's probably a done deal. But so be it. If people wanna hear the band, they can hear RATT music with me, singing my songs, but I doubt there'll ever be another RATT record, no."

"You're dealing with a lot of dysfunction. I mean, look, we're not the most dysfunctional band on the planet that has been successful, I've said it before, but it all depends on who can put up with that dysfunction. Life's too short to live in misery and… just living in unpredictability and not knowing what's solid and what's loose. The last almost a year, it's just gotten to where there's no going back. And I can probably speak for Juan — we're very dismayed and disturbed by quite a lot of things. It's unfortunate, but that's the way it is. I don't dwell on it at all; I mean, it's nothing to dwell on."

On whether he is saying that Juan is no longer playing with the other remaining members of RATT:

"Yeah, we're both pretty much, you know… What we thought was going to be a good thing ended up being even worse than we thought. And when it took this long to get the four original members together, and then it just falls to even bigger shit, well, then you've got problems. And that's just what happened. And I can't elaborate on it, because it might be an ongoing thing. But there's no reason to dig a deeper hole, per se. I move ahead; I don't wanna take steps back — as far as me, personally — just to appease anybody. If somebody wants to hear us, they can put on a record. If they wanna hear the live music, well, you can go see me or you can go see whatever is out there. That's just the way it is, unfortunately, but I look ahead. I try to keep very positive about things, and if I need to step out, I step out. It's gotten nowhere, so that's it. Juan and I are actually gonna be doing something in the future together, and we'll take it from there. We'll be talking about something real soon. I can't really mention too much now. But we'll be working together, definitely."

On how bands like MÖTLEY CRÜE and POISON have somehow managed to stay together, on and off, for three decades despite being dysfunctional while RATT couldn't:

"The thing is, you can function being dysfunctional, but it's just a matter of if you wanna live your life that way. We never got to where we were supposed to, even when I was in the band without Juan, but when he came back, it got worse. Juan actually learned firsthand how dysfunctional without him it was with me, and what I had to deal with, without going into specifics. There was no compromise, there was no, 'How can this work being this way?' That was out of the picture. So when some people can say, 'Okay, it's gonna be this way or no way. Because we need you still to make it what it is, but it's gonna be this way.' And as far as I'm concerned, no, it's not gonna be that way. And with Juan back in the band, he said the same thing at the end of the day: 'No, it's not going to be like this.' So here we are. And it could be the end of the era. And, like I said, thirty years is enough. I owe nobody anything, unfortunately to the fans. But I've done it. I've done my time. It's been great, it's been bad, it's been ugly, it's been good. But, you know, it's my choice, it's my life. Like I said, I created a monster I didn't know I created. But the fact that we hung around this long… It is what it is. It's no different than [Rob] Halford coming back [to JUDAS PRIEST], or Vince [Neil rejoining MÖTLEY CRÜE], or whoever coming back to a band. It's just a matter of if you do it right."

On why the remaining members of RATT are seemingly able to carry on using the name RATT without him:

"Well, there's a lot of stuff I really don't want to, or need to, talk about, but the fact of the matter is all five of us, including [late RATT guitarist] Robbin's [Crosby] estate, still own that name; it's just a matter of who controls. And somehow they figured out how — probably fraudulently — to control it. But we still own it, all of us. So, contrary to what some people might say, to their dismay, reality is reality. I don't like sharing my business with anybody. It's none of their business. Their business is me playing the music, if they like it and wanna hear it. So I'm not one to really dish dirt. It's not worth the time [or] effort. We're grownups here, but some people are adolescent in how they address things. But, if there was compromise and there was real legal effort [put] into making things work, we would still be a band, with the four guys. But right now, no. It'll probably never happen again."

On whether he is fine with leaving RATT behind and moving forward as a solo artist:

"Of course. I mean, definitely. There's only so much… It's like a beaten-down wife or a beaten-down dog, somebody's gonna leave, or they're gonna bite back. You keep beating your dog, they're gonna bite. You do the same with your old lady or something, they're gonna fight back or they're gonna leave. That's pretty much how I can put it in analytical circumstances… You get tired of things and it's not worth it anymore. And it's like I said…. Relate it to a rehab: It's, like, get rid of the bad, get rid of the ugly, and life gets better. And it's the same thing. I'm very content with my legacy. I've written a lot of these songs, and co-written a lot of these songs, and I'm happy with it. It's very rewarding, to this day, and it's all good. I have nothing to complain about at all with what I've done and what I've created except for the problems that come with success. And that's usually what happens. Success brings a lot of ugly things. When there's changes in the environment, you can blame it on… 'Oh, there's grunge. There's this. There's that.' Well, that's a bunch of bullshit. You can blame it on, 'This guy doesn't sing right,' or, 'This guy does that wrong,' or, 'This guy does this.' Hey, it is what it is. Like I said, I grew up on [LED] ZEPPELIN and [THE ROLLING] STONES and [JUDAS] PRIEST, and these guys who sing different every night and they change things every day. That's how you keep moving. I don't wanna be a carbon copy of myself. But, yes, I'm very content. And I have a lot of things going on — TV production, the label, doing my own thing. So I'm way busy. It's not like I sit around and wonder what I can complain about, because I'm not happy. Other people do, and that's what destroyed the integrity of the group. And once somebody really destroys your integrity that you have nothing to do with, well, why would I wanna be a part of that? Why would Juan wanna be a part of that? Here's a guy who, you know, [was] a great co-writer in RATT, singer, and he comes back after years, hoping it would be okay, and then he finds out it's just a pile of shit inside. You can only put on a façade for so long before you get frustrated and call it a day. So, [it's] the same thing."