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While numerous artists have drawn from fantasy lore, few have truly lived the enchanted way of life. Sure, they could adorn their album covers with ghouls, goblins, captive women and strong fighters, but has any musician ever have to find a misplaced unicorn horn from a snowy field in the depths of winter? Did anyone devoted hours squinting in the rear of a road transport, mending their own chainmail?

Embracing the Mythos

Created in 2019, the Brooklyn-based Castle Rat have had to face these exact challenges and more as they embody their grand tales. Starting with medieval-inspired, catchy songs to breathtaking live shows, outfit creation, videos and cover artwork, they’re not just a metal band as a full immersive experience.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a outfit with characters,” explains singer, guitarist, blade-handler and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van drives from a packed show in Cologne to a second one in another town – they are playing multiple performances in the UK now. “After a couple of performances and got booked on a spooky event, where I made a last-minute decision to dress up. The entire setup was highly handmade, but we had so much fun and the feeling in the room was incredible. It occurred to me, ‘Imagine if we could have so much excitement at every show?’”

Development of Castle Rat

Since then, the group – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Rat Queen” joined by a medic from history (bassist), haughty vampire (lead guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (drummer) – haven’t looked back. The new record, the band’s second album, conjures visions of legendary heavy bands joining forces to struggle onward through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a epic masterpiece that positions them on the verge of greater success.

This album was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her bandmates. “This helped a more powerful record,” she says of the team effort. “I had difficulty at first – I’d always felt a specific level of pride as a woman in music working independently. I’ve had numerous occasions where I finished performing and some guy will say, ‘Those guys compose cool melodies!’ and I think, ‘Hey – I wrote all that.’”

Artistry and Imagination

As their fame has grown, so has the scale of their visual elements. “The saying I live by is always that if something is valuable, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton smiles. She was originally on course for a art school education before balking at the prospect of heavy loans. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to express creativity,” she says. “Be it creating face coverings, outfit planning, figuring out video editing song visuals … it’s all stuff I have no experience with, but it’s enjoyable to learn as we go.”

As if building the ensemble’s complex backstory (“Everyone’s urging me to write it down because it’s all in here,” Riley says, pointing to her head) and stitching garments wasn’t enough, the singer self-educated how to create armor – no mean feat, though she admittedly delegated her completely original scale armor design to a New York-based specialist. “It seems like actual armour,” she grins.

Audience Reaction and Challenges

Regarding the fans? They embraced the fake blood, foam swords and handmade props with as much gusto as the group. “We had a concert in the Motor City and it looked like a Renaissance fair,” reminisces Riley happily. “The whole crowd was in cloaks, animal hides, metal wear.”

However, this doesn’t mean, nevertheless, that traveling lifestyle as fantasy adventurers has been smooth. “All our gear is always failing and becomes repaired with tape,” Riley says. “Additionally I’ll have countless concepts as to how I want things to look, but we tour in a van with restricted capacity. It’s an interesting challenge to give the sense like a mythic tale, then pack it down into a small space.”

We’ve encountered further organizational challenges that didn’t affect legendary fantasy heroes. “We did have an ‘oh shit’ moment when we performed at SonicBlast festival in Portugal and my baggage – which had my sword in it – went missing,” says Riley. “It was a nightmare, because there’s not an backup plan of the show where I lack a blade.”

Upcoming Plans

In the spirit of a hero, Riley is gung-ho about the days to come. “I aim to reach as far as possible – let’s do stadiums,” she says. “The main aspect that’s really important to me is maintaining the handmade style, guaranteeing all elements is custom-made. It’s a component I want to keep true to, whatever we grow into. Additionally, I want to ride out on a mythical beast each show. Think about how legends ride bikes on stage? The same idea, but on a mythical creature.”