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Although plenty of musicians have drawn from fantasy lore, rarely any have truly lived the enchanted lifestyle. Admittedly, they may embellish their album sleeves with creatures, beasts, chained damsels and muscular warriors, but has any musician ever needed to recover a lost mythical horn from a snowy field in the heart of winter? Did a guitarist spent time squinting in the interior of a road transport, repairing their own armor?

Immersed in the Legend

Created in 2019, the Brooklyn-based Castle Rat have dealt with such situations and more as they embody their grand tales. Starting with heraldic, earworm-heavy songs to stunning performances, attire styling, visuals and album art, they’re more than a heavy metal group as a full immersive experience.

“The band wasn’t intended to be a outfit with characters,” explains singer, guitarist, sword-carrier and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the group’s vehicle travels from a full-capacity concert in a German city to a second one in Aschaffenburg – they have five gigs in the UK now. “We played two shows and got booked on a Halloween gig, where I decided spontaneously to wear a costume. Everything was completely self-made, but we had an amazing time and the energy was electric. It occurred to me, ‘What if we could have so much excitement every time?’”

Growth of the Group

After that, the band – which showcases Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” alongside a plague doctor (low-end instrumentalist), haughty vampire (six-string player) and secretive shaman (drummer) – haven’t looked back. The Bestiary, the band’s second album, brings to mind of classic metal icons joining forces to fight their path through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a epic masterpiece that positions them on the edge of greater success.

The release was a first for Pinkerton in that she invited input to her fellow members. “It made it a more powerful record,” she says of the collaborative process. “It was challenging at first – I’d always felt a particular degree of satisfaction being a woman in music going it alone. There’ve been numerous occasions where I finished performing and an audience member will say, ‘The other members compose cool melodies!’ and I think, ‘Hey – I composed all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As their fame has increased, so has the scale of their production design. “My motto is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. Initially, she was on course for a art school education before pulling back at the idea of financial burden. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to demonstrate artistry,” she says. “Be it crafting disguises, costume design, mastering post-production music videos … these are all things I don’t know how to do, but it’s enjoyable to figure it out as we go.”

As if building the ensemble’s complex backstory (“Everyone’s urging me to write it down because all the ideas are,” Riley says, pointing to her head) and making clothing were insufficient, the singer self-educated how to make chainmail – a difficult task, though she admittedly left her all-new reptilian-inspired outfit to a New York-based specialist. “It’s as if actual armour,” she grins.

Crowd Engagement and Difficulties

What about the crowd? They loved the fake blood, soft weapons and crafted rodent bones with equal enthusiasm as the band. “We had a show in Detroit and it resembled a historical festival,” remembers Riley with affection. “The whole crowd was in cloaks, sheepskin, armor.”

However, this doesn’t mean, though, that touring existence as mythical wanderers has been smooth. “Everything is constantly breaking and gets repaired with tape,” Riley says. “Additionally I’ll have numerous thoughts as to how I want things to look, but we’re traveling in a van with only so much space. It’s a fascinating test to make it feel like a mythic tale, then compress it into minimal luggage.”

We’ve encountered additional practical issues that would never have plagued legendary fantasy heroes. “We did have an ‘oh shit’ moment when we played a Portuguese festival in the European country and my suitcase – which had my sword in it – got lost,” says Riley. “It was a worst-case scenario, because we don’t have an different option of the performance where I am without a blade.”

Future Ambitions

As a genuine leader, Riley is enthusiastic about the days to come. “My goal is all the way – let’s do stadiums,” she says. “The only thing that’s deeply meaningful to me is maintaining the handmade style, making sure each detail is custom-made. That’s an element I want to remain faithful to, regardless of we scale to. Additionally, I wish to appear on a unicorn at all performances. Think about how famous musicians use vehicles in concerts? The same idea, but with a unicorn.”