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While numerous musicians have borrowed from high fantasy, few have truly lived the mythical existence. Certainly, they might adorn their album sleeves with ghouls, goblins, chained damsels and muscular warriors, but has any musician ever been forced to retrieve a missing mythical horn from a wintry landscape in the depths of winter? Has a guitarist taken the time squinting in the back of a road transport, mending their own armor?

Living the Fantasy

Formed in 2019, New York’s Castle Rat have encountered such situations and additional ones as they act out their grand tales. Starting with knightly, earworm-heavy anthems to eye-popping performances, costume design, visuals and cover artwork, they’re not so much a rock act as a total artistic immersion.

“Castle Rat wasn’t meant to be a themed musical group,” says vocalist, guitar player, sword-wielder and creative overlord Riley Pinkerton as the group’s vehicle drives from a full-capacity concert in a German city to one more in another town – they’re also doing five gigs in the UK now. “We played two shows and received an offer on a October show, where I chose at the final moment to put on an outfit. The entire setup was completely self-made, but we had an amazing time and the feeling in the room was unforgettable. I thought, ‘Imagine if we could have such enjoyment every time?’”

Growth of the Group

After that, the group – which features Pinkerton as the “Rat Queen” joined by a plague doctor (bass player), proud bloodsucker (lead guitarist) and enigmatic nature priest (rhythm keeper) – never turned back. The Bestiary, the follow-up record, conjures visions of classic metal icons collaborating to struggle onward through a mythical painted realm – a epic masterpiece that positions them on the brink of far grander things.

This album was a initial step for Pinkerton in that she welcomed contributions to her collaborators. “This helped a more powerful project,” she says of the group work. “I had difficulty at first – There was a sense of a particular degree of satisfaction as a woman in music doing everything solo. There have been numerous occasions where after a show and some guy will say, ‘The other members write great riffs!’ and I think, ‘Listen – I composed all that.’”

Artistic Expression and Vision

As their fame has grown, so has the scale of their production design. “The saying I live by is always that if an effort matters, it’s worth overdoing,” Pinkerton chuckles. She was originally on path for a university studies in art before balking at the idea of financial burden. “What’s enjoyable about Castle Rat is there’s so many different ways to demonstrate artistic expression,” she says. “From crafting disguises, outfit planning, mastering post-production clips … these are all things I don’t know how to do, but it’s enjoyable to figure it out as we go.”

As if developing the group’s detailed mythology (“Everyone’s urging me to write it down because everything is stored,” Riley says, pointing to her head) and stitching garments wasn’t enough, the vocalist learned on her own how to create armor – a challenging endeavor, though she admittedly left her brand-new scale armor design to a professional in the city. “It seems like actual armour,” she beams.

Crowd Engagement and Difficulties

Regarding the fans? They loved the fake blood, soft weapons and handmade props with as much gusto as the musicians. “We played a concert in Detroit and it seemed like a Renaissance fair,” recalls Riley fondly. “All attendees was in robes, animal hides, metal wear.”

However, this doesn’t mean, however, that traveling lifestyle as sword’n’sorcery vagabonds has been easy. “All our gear is constantly breaking and gets duct-taped together,” Riley says. “Additionally I get endless ideas as to how I envision the aesthetics, but we are on the move in a bus with limited room. It’s a fascinating test to give the sense like a grand epic, then pack it down into minimal luggage.”

We faced additional practical issues that didn’t affect mythic characters. “We experienced an ‘uh-oh’ moment when we played SonicBlast festival in Portugal and my luggage – which had my weapon in it – got lost,” says Riley. “This became a worst-case scenario, because there’s not an backup plan of the performance where I am without a blade.”

Future Ambitions

Like a true warrior queen, Riley is gung-ho about the days to come. “I aim to reach to the top – I dream of stadiums,” she says. “The only thing that’s deeply meaningful to me is maintaining the DIY aesthetic, making sure each detail is handmade. This is a feature I want to keep true to, no matter what we grow into. Additionally, I wish to ride out on a unicorn each show. Think about how some artists ride bikes on stage? Exactly that, but on a mythical creature.”