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Although many rockers have taken inspiration from high fantasy, few have fully embraced the enchanted existence. Certainly, they might adorn their record jackets with monsters, imps, manacled maidens and muscular warriors, but has any musician ever have to recover a lost mythical horn from a wintry landscape in the midst of winter? Has a guitarist taken the time squinting in the back of a traveling vehicle, repairing their own metal mesh?

Living the Fantasy

Established in 2019, Brooklyn’s Castle Rat have dealt with both these scenarios and others as they live out their heroic dreams. Starting with heraldic, catchy songs to breathtaking live shows, outfit creation, music videos and album art, they’re more than a heavy metal group as a full immersive experience.

“It wasn’t planned to be a themed musical group,” states vocalist, guitarist, sword-wielder and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the band’s tour van drives from a packed show in a German city to a second one in another town – they are playing multiple performances in the UK now. “Initially, we performed twice and were scheduled on a October show, where I made a last-minute decision to dress up. Everything was highly handmade, but we had an amazing time and the atmosphere was incredible. I thought, ‘What if we could have so much excitement always?’”

Growth of the Group

From that point on, the band – which includes Pinkerton as the “Queen Rat” joined by a medic from history (low-end instrumentalist), proud bloodsucker (lead guitarist) and secretive shaman (percussionist) – haven’t looked back. The new record, the follow-up record, brings to mind of classic metal icons uniting to battle their way through a Frank Frazetta fantasy world – a heroic opus that sets them on the brink of greater success.

The Bestiary was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her bandmates. “That contributed to a lot stronger album,” she says of the group work. “It was challenging at first – I’d always felt a certain amount of satisfaction as a woman in music working independently. There have been so many times where I finished performing and some guy will say, ‘The other members create awesome guitar parts!’ and I’m like, ‘Wait – I wrote all that.’”

Artistry and Imagination

With their growing popularity has expanded, so has the scale of their production design. “My philosophy 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 so much debt. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s various avenues to express creativity,” she says. “Whether it’s making masks, costume design, learning how to edit song visuals … these are all things I am unfamiliar with, but it’s exciting to figure it out in the moment.”

As if developing the group’s detailed mythology (“The team is pushing me to write it down because all the ideas are,” Riley says, tapping her head) and sewing costumes wasn’t enough, the vocalist learned on her own how to create armor – no mean feat, though she admittedly left her completely original scalemail look to a New York-based specialist. “It feels like actual armour,” she beams.

Audience Reaction and Challenges

Regarding the fans? They loved the stage blood, soft weapons and handmade props with similar excitement as the group. “We had a concert in the Motor City and it resembled a Renaissance fair,” reminisces Riley with affection. “The whole crowd was in cloaks, sheepskin, metal wear.”

This isn’t to say, though, that touring existence as fantasy adventurers has been plain sailing. “Everything is always failing and gets repaired with tape,” Riley says. “Additionally I come up with numerous thoughts as to how I want things to look, but we tour in a vehicle with limited room. It’s an interesting challenge to make it feel like a larger-than-life story, then pack it down into minimal luggage.”

We faced other logistical problems that wouldn’t have troubled mythic characters. “We experienced an ‘oh shit’ moment when we appeared at SonicBlast festival in the European country and my luggage – which had my blade in it – got lost,” says Riley. “It was a nightmare, because there is no an alternative version of the concert where I don’t have a weapon.”

Upcoming Plans

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is gung-ho about the future. “I want to go all the way – we should play stadiums,” she says. “The only thing that’s deeply meaningful to me is keeping the self-crafted look, making sure all elements is custom-made. That’s an element I want to remain faithful to, regardless of we achieve. Additionally, I desire to appear on a magical horse every night. You know how legends ride bikes on stage? Exactly that, but using a unicorn.”