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While many musicians have taken inspiration from fantasy lore, only a handful have genuinely embodied the mythical lifestyle. Admittedly, they may adorn their record jackets with creatures, imps, chained damsels and muscular warriors, but has any musician ever have to find a lost unicorn horn from a frost-covered ground in the heart of winter? Has anyone taken the time straining their eyes in the interior of a traveling vehicle, mending their own armor?

Immersed in the Legend

Formed in 2019, Brooklyn’s Castle Rat have encountered such situations and more as they live out their grand tales. From knightly, catchy tunes to stunning live shows, outfit creation, visuals and cover artwork, they’re more than a metal band as a complete sensory journey.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a themed musical group,” states vocalist, guitarist, sword-wielder and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the musicians’ transport travels from a sold-out gig in a German city to one more in Aschaffenburg – they’re also doing multiple performances in the UK now. “We played two shows and were scheduled on a spooky event, where I made a last-minute decision to wear a costume. It was all completely self-made, but we had so much fun and the feeling in the room was incredible. It occurred to me, ‘Imagine if we could have this much fun always?’”

The Band’s Evolution

Since then, the band – which features Pinkerton as the “Rodent Monarch” joined by a medic from history (low-end instrumentalist), haughty vampire (lead guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (rhythm keeper) – continued forward. The new record, the follow-up record, brings to mind of legendary heavy bands joining forces to struggle onward through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a grand composition that places them on the brink of far grander things.

This album was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her collaborators. “It made it a much better album,” she says of the team effort. “It was challenging at first – There was a sense of a certain amount of satisfaction as a woman in music working independently. There have been numerous occasions where I’ve got off stage and some guy will say, ‘The other members create awesome guitar parts!’ and I think, ‘Listen – I created all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As the band’s stature has increased, so has the breadth of their production design. “My motto is always that if it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton laughs. Initially, she was on course for a fine art degree before hesitating at the prospect of heavy loans. “The fun thing about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to express creativity,” she says. “Be it crafting disguises, attire creation, learning how to edit music videos … it’s all stuff I don’t know how to do, but it’s enjoyable to learn on the fly.”

Even though creating the band’s intricate lore (“Everyone’s urging me to record it because all the ideas are,” Riley says, tapping her head) and stitching garments were insufficient, the vocalist learned on her own how to craft metal mesh – no mean feat, though she admittedly left her all-new scale armor design to a expert from NYC. “It feels like actual armour,” she grins.

Fan Response and Obstacles

What about the crowd? They embraced the theatrical gore, foam swords and handmade props with as much gusto as the musicians. “We played a show in the Motor City and it resembled a medieval event,” remembers Riley happily. “All attendees was in capes, sheepskin, metal wear.”

This isn’t to say, nevertheless, that traveling lifestyle as sword’n’sorcery vagabonds has been easy. “Each item is always failing and gets fixed temporarily,” Riley says. “Additionally I come up with countless concepts as to how I desire the presentation, but we tour in a vehicle with restricted capacity. It’s an interesting challenge to create the impression like a larger-than-life story, then store it into nothing.”

There have been additional practical issues that would never have plagued fictional warriors. “There was an ‘disastrous’ moment when we performed at a Portuguese festival in Portugal and my suitcase – which had my sword in it – got lost,” says Riley. “This became a nightmare, because there’s not an different option of the concert where I don’t have a weapon.”

Goals Ahead

As a genuine leader, Riley is eager about the days to come. “I aim to reach to the top – we should play stadiums,” she says. “The key element that’s deeply meaningful to me is maintaining the self-crafted look, making sure all elements is handmade. It’s a component I want to keep true to, regardless of we achieve. Additionally, I desire to make an entrance on a magical horse each show. Remember how some artists do the motorcycle thing? Exactly that, but with a unicorn.”